SECTION 2. BACKGROUND

(a) Superfund chemical taxes . The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), Public Law 96-510, 94 Stat. 2767 (1980), informally referred to as “Superfund,” was enacted, in part, to create a hazardous substance cleanup program. Section 221 of CERCLA established the “Hazardous Substance Response Trust Fund,” which was funded, in part, by the Superfund chemical taxes. The Superfund chemical taxes expired on December 31, 1995.

Effective July 1, 2022, section 80201 of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Public Law 117-58, 135 Stat. 429 (November 15, 2021), reinstates the Superfund chemical taxes with certain modifications. Pursuant to section 80201(c) (3) of the IIJA, Notice 2021-66, 2021-52

I.R.B. 901, provided initial guidance related to the Superfund chemical taxes and requested comments on whether any issues related to the reinstated Superfund chemical taxes require clarification or additional guidance. To date, the Department of the Treasury (Treasury Department) and the IRS have received seven (7) public comments in response to Notice 2021-66. One of these comments requested relief from failure to deposit penalties, which is provided by this notice. The Treasury Department and the IRS continue to consider the other comments. All comments can be accessed via the Federal Rulemaking Portal at www.regulations.gov (type IRS-20210018 or Notice 2021-66 in the search field on the regulations.gov homepage to find the comments).

(b) Collection of Superfund chemical taxes .

The Superfund chemical taxes are codified in subtitle D, chapter 38 of the Code (chapter 38), which pertains to environmental excise taxes. Chapter 38 taxes are reported on Form 6627, Envi- ronmental Taxes, which is required to be attached to the tax return made on Form 720, Quarterly Federal Excise Tax Return (Form 720 return) . See §§ 40.0-1(a) and 40.6011(a)-1(a)(1) of the Excise Tax Procedural Regulations.

Section 6302 of the Code authorizes the IRS to establish the mode and time for collecting certain taxes, including the taxes imposed by chapter 38. Section 40.6302(c)-1(a)(1) requires each person that is required to file a Form 720 return to make deposits of tax for each semimonthly period in which the tax liability is incurred. A semimonthly period is the first fifteen (15) days of a calendar month or the portion of a calendar month following the 15th day of the month. See § 40.0-1(c) of the Excise Tax Procedural Regulations.

The tax deposit for each semimonthly period must not be less than ninety-five percent (95%) of the amount of net tax liability incurred during the semimonthly period unless a deposit safe harbor in § 40.6302(c)-1(b)(2)(ii) or (iii) applies (deposit safe harbor). See § 40.6302(c)1(b)(1). Under the deposit safe harbor

applicable to taxes imposed by chapter 38, any person that filed a Form 720 return for the second preceding calendar quarter (look-back quarter) is considered to have met the semimonthly deposit requirement for the current quarter if: (i) the deposit for each semimonthly period in the current calendar quarter is not less than 1/6 of the net tax liability reported for the look-back quarter; (ii) each deposit is made on time; (iii) the amount of any underpayment is paid by the due date of the Form 720 return; and (iv) the person’s liability does not include any tax that was not imposed during the lookback quarter. Section 40.6302(c)-1(b)(2) (v) provides that if a person fails to make deposits as required, the IRS may withdraw the person’s right to use the deposit safe harbor.

Section 40.6302(c)-1(c)(1) provides that, in general, the deposit of tax for any semimonthly period must be made by the 14th day of the following semimonthly period unless such day is a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday in the District of Columbia, in which case the immediately preceding day which is not a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday in the District of Columbia is treated as the 14th day. Thus, generally, the deposit of tax for the first semimonthly period in a month is due by the 29th day of that month and the deposit of tax for the second semimonthly period in a month is due fourteen (14) days after the close of the second semimonthly period. ( See § 40.6302(c)-2 for special deposit rules for September.)

Section 6656 imposes a penalty in the case of any failure by any person to make timely deposits as required by section 6302, including as required by §§ 40.6302(c)-1 and 40.6302(c)-2. A taxpayer may avoid penalties under section 6656 for failure to make deposits of taxes if the taxpayer makes an affirmative showing that such failure is due to reasonable cause and not due to willful neglect. See section 6656(a).

(c) Deposit safe harbor not applicable until first calendar quarter of 2023 .

As the Superfund chemical taxes are effective beginning July 1, 2022, the first deposit, covering the first fifteen (15) days

Bulletin No. 2022–18 1043 May 2, 2022

Update for Weighted Average Interest Rates, Yield Curves, and Segment Rates