Supporting Statement for 8453-F -8879-F

SUPPORTING STATEMENT

8879-F

IRS e-file Signature Authorization for Form 1041

1545-0967

1. CIRCUMSTANCES NECESSITATING COLLECTION OF INFORMATION

Form 8453-F is one of the forms used for the electronic and magnetic media filing of trust and fiduciary income tax returns. However, with the retirement of Form 1041 Legacy at the end of processing year 2014, the Form 8453-F will also be retired and no longer accepted for electronic filing for processing years 2015 and later.

Form 8879-F provides e-file signature authorization for Form 1041 to foster IRS policy promoting e-filing of returns. The form is necessary to support modernized e-file initiatives. This form will reduce paper processing and handling of forms 1041, schedule K-1 (Form 1041), and related forms and schedules.

2. USE OF DATA

8879-F conveys to the Service the signature of the taxpayer, fiduciary, or/and the preparer when the return is filed on magnetic tape or electronically. The forms include data which is also on the return. The purpose is to provide a linkage between the signatures and the electronic returns, and enables the Service to verify the authenticity of a return by matching the data on the declaration with the corresponding data on the electronic return. Also, in the event of a dispute, the Service can prove that the data contained on the electronic transmission constituted the return the taxpayer(s) intended to file by this same matching.

The data will be used to verify and affirm the return for the taxpayer's signature. This process would allow CI, Exam, Audit and other employees who have a need for the signature document to have immediate access to the information instead of having to request it and wait for someone to manually search, find, and copy/fax/mail the document to them. With the current PIN registration system, some filers expressed confusion as to who the signer should be. Because of the confusion, a large percentage of the PIN requests received are rejected. By using the forms the Service can offer very specific instructions for who is legally allowed to sign the return thus further reducing filer burden and potential fraud

3. USE OF IMPROVED INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY TO REDUCE BURDEN

Form 8879-F is not filed with the IRS unless requested to do so. The completed Form 8879-F should be retained for 3 years from the return due date or IRS received date, whichever is later. Form 8879-F can be retained electronically in accordance with the recordkeeping guidelines in Rev. Proc. 97-22.

4. EFFORTS TO IDENTIFY DUPLICATION

We have attempted to eliminate duplication within the agency wherever possible.

5. METHODS TO MINIMIZE BURDEN ON SMALL BUSINESSES OR OTHER SMALL ENTITIES

Not applicable.

6. CONSEQUENCES OF LESS FREQUENT COLLECTION ON FEDERAL PROGRAMS OR POLICY ACTIVITIES

Not applicable.

7. SPECIAL CIRCUMSTANCES REQUIRING DATA COLLECTION TO BE

INCONSISTENT WITH GUIDELINES IN 5 CFR 1320.5(d)(2)

Not applicable.

8. CONSULTATION WITH INDIVIDUALS OUTSIDE OF THE AGENCY ON

AVAILABILITY OF DATA, FREQUENCY OF COLLECTION, CLARITY

OF INSTRUCTIONS AND FORMS, AND DATA ELEMENTS

Periodic meetings are held between IRS personnel and representatives of the American Bar Association, the National Society of Public Accountants, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, and other professional groups to discuss tax law and tax forms. During these meetings, there is an opportunity for those attending to make comments regarding this group of forms.

In response to the Federal Register Notice dated July 8, 2014, 79 FR 38670, we received no comments during the comment period regarding this group of forms.

9. EXPLANATION OF DECISION TO PROVIDE ANY PAYMENT OR GIFT TO

RESPONDENTS

Not applicable.

10. ASSURANCE OF CONFIDENTIALITY OF RESPONSES

Generally, tax returns and tax return information are confidential as required by 26 USC 6103.

11. JUSTIFICATION OF SENSITIVE QUESTIONS

A privacy impact assessment (PIA) has been conducted for information collected under this request as part of the “Modernized eFile R 9.5, MeF” system and a Privacy Act System of Records notice (SORN) has been issued for this system under IRS 24.040 and 24.030. The Department of Treasury PIAs can be found at http://www.treasury.gov/privacy/PIAs/Pages/default.aspx.

Title 26 USC 6109 requires inclusion of identifying numbers in returns, statements, or other documents for securing proper identification of persons required to make such returns, statements, or documents and is the authority for social security numbers (SSNs) in IRS systems.

12. ESTIMATED BURDEN OF INFORMATION COLLECTION

No.of Time per

Form Responses Response Total hours

Form 8879-F 1,774,081 .79 2,164,379

The following regulation imposes no additional burden. Please continue to assign OMB number 1545-0967 to this regulation.

1.6012-5

Estimates of the annualized cost to respondents for the hour burdens shown above are not available at this time.

13. ESTIMATED TOTAL ANNUAL COST BURDEN TO RESPONDENTS

As suggested by OMB, our Federal Register Notice dated July 8, 2014, (79 FR 38670), requested public comments on estimates of cost burden that are not captured in the estimates of burden hours, i.e., estimates of capital or start-up costs and costs of operation, maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information. However, we did not receive any responses from taxpayers on this subject. As a result, estimates of these cost burdens are not available at this time.

14. ESTIMATED ANNUALIZED COST TO THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT

The primary cost to the government consists of the cost of printing this form. We estimate that the cost of printing the form is $300.

15. REASONS FOR CHANGE IN BURDEN

Beginning January 1, 2015, Fiduciaries will be required to sign each and every Form 8879-F, IRS e-File Signature Authorization for Form 1041. Form 8879-F can no longer be used with multiple Forms 1041. The agency has determined that the signing one document does not ensure that a fiduciary has reviewed multiple returns and that it was perhaps unlikely that a fiduciary of thousands of returns had certified/affirmed their accuracy of the information (as required on Form 8879-F) This change increases the forms number of responses by 1,773,081 which increases the overall burden by 2,163,589.

With the retirement of Form 1041 Legacy at the end of processing year 2014, the Form 8453-F will also be retired and no longer accepted for electronic filing for processing years 2015 and later. The retiring of Form 8453-F results in an estimated burden decrease of 960 hours.

We are making this submission as a renewal of a previously

approved collection.

16. PLANS FOR TABULATION, STATISTICAL ANALYSIS AND PUBLICATION

Not applicable.

17. REASONS WHY DISPLAYING THE OMB EXPIRATION DATE IS

INAPPROPRIATE

We believe the public interest will be better served by not printing an expiration date on the form(s) in this package.

Printing the expiration date on the form will result in increased costs because of the need to replace inventories that become obsolete by passage of the expiration date each time OMB approval is renewed. Without printing the expiration date, supplies of the form could continue to be used.

The time period during which the current edition of the form(s) in this package will continue to be usable cannot be predicted. It could easily span several cycles of review and OMB clearance renewal. In addition, usage fluctuates unpredictably. This makes it necessary to maintain a substantial inventory of forms in the supply line at all times. This includes supplies owned by both the Government and the public. Reprinting of the form cannot be reliably scheduled to coincide with an OMB approval expiration date. This form may be privately printed by users at their own expense. Some businesses print complex and expensive marginally punched continuous versions, at their expense, for use in their computers. The form may be printed by commercial printers and stocked for sale. In such cases, printing the expiration date on the form could result in extra costs to the users.

Not printing the expiration date on the form(s) will also avoid confusion among taxpayers who may have identical forms with different expiration dates in their possession.

For the above reasons we request authorization to omit printing the expiration date on the form(s) in this package.

We are requesting OMB approval for continued use of the prior version of the form(s) in this clearance package, so that late filers will have the previous versions available to them in future years.

18. EXCEPTIONS TO THE CERTIFICATION STATEMENT

Not applicable.

Note: The following paragraph applies to all of the collections of information in this submission:

An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless the collection of information displays a valid OMB control number. Books or records relating to a collection of information must be retained as long as their contents may become material in the administration of any internal revenue law. Generally, tax returns and tax return information are confidential, as required by 26 U.S.C. 6103.