SECTION 4. ON WHAT

ISSUES MAY OR MUST TECHNICAL ADVICE BE REQUESTED UNDER THIS PROCEDURE?

Issues under the jurisdiction .01 Generally, the instructions of this revenue procedure apply to requests for technical of the Commissioner, Tax advice on any issue under the jurisdiction of the Commissioner, Tax Exempt and Exempt and Government Government Entities Division. Entities Division

Farmers’ cooperatives .02 If an EP or EO Examinations, an EP or EO Determinations, an appeals office or a taxpayer requests technical advice on a determination letter under § 521 of the Code, the procedures under this revenue procedure, Rev. Proc. 90–27, 1990–1 C.B. 514, as modified by Rev. Proc. 2001–8, page 239 as well as § 601.201(n) of the Statement of Procedural Rules, must be followed.

Basis for requesting .03 Requests for technical advice are encouraged on any technical or procedural questechnical advice tions arising in connection with any case of the type described in section 3 at any stage of the proceedings in an EP or EO Examinations, an EP or EO Determinations or an appeals office that cannot be resolved on the basis of law, regulations, or a clearly applicable revenue ruling or other published precedent.

Areas of mandatory .04 Requests for § 7805(b) relief are mandatory technical advice with respect to all technical advice exempt organizations and employee plans matters.

Except for those exemption application cases handled in EO Technical in accordance with section 6.02 of Rev. Proc. 90–27, EO Examinations, EO Determinations and appeals offices are required to request technical advice on their exempt organization cases concerning qualification for exemption or foundation status for which there is no published precedent or for which there is reason to believe that non-uniformity exists.

Regarding employee plans matters, a request for technical advice is required in cases concerning (1) proposed adverse or proposed revocation letters on collectively-bargained plans, (2) plans for which the Service is proposing to issue a revocation letter because of

2001–1 I.R.B. 169 January 2, 2001

certain fiduciary actions that violate the exclusive benefit rule of § 401(a) of the Code and are subject to Part 4 of Subtitle B of Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, Pub. L. 93-406, 1974–3 C.B. 1, 43, (3) amendments to defined contribution plans pursuant to Rev. Proc. 94–41, 1994–1 C.B. 711, in connection with a waiver of the minimum funding standard and a request for a determination letter ( see section 15 of Rev. Proc. 2001–6, page 194, this Bulletin, and section 3.04 of Rev. Proc. 94–41), (4) termination/reestablishment and spinoff-termination cases in which EP Examinations or EP Determinations proposes that the Implementation Guidelines are not applicable, (5) a situation in which the employer has had a prior termination/reestablishment or spinoff-termination within 15 years of the time of the transaction or (6) any determination letter case or any examination case involving a plan amendment to convert an existing defined benefit formula to a cash balance type benefit formula that was not previously subject to technical advice on the conversion.

Special procedures for .05 In the instance of section 4.04(6) above, the requirements of the first sentence of certain conversions section 10.01 below will be deemed met by the Service by the use of the following (or similar) statement: Technical advice is requested on the effect on the plan’s qualified status of the conversion of an existing defined benefit plan formula to a cash balance type benefit formula.