Rev. Proc. 83-29

Section 1. Purpose

.01 The purpose of this Revenue Procedure is to provide instructions to Federal agencies for requesting data from the Internal Revenue Service under the provisions of sections 7 and 8 of the Debt Collection Act of 1982, Public Law 97-365.

.02 The Debt Collection Act of 1982 increases the efficiency of Government-wide efforts to collect debts owed the United States and provides additional procedures for collection of debts owed the United States.

a) Section 7 of the Act, amending Internal Revenue Code section 6103(1)(3), authorizes the Secretary of Treasury to disclose to a Federal agency administering any included Federal loan program, whether an applicant for a loan under such program has a tax delinquent account (TDA). (See Section 11)

(1) For purposes of the above paragraph, the term "included Federal loan program" means any program under which the United States or a Federal agency makes, guarantees, or insures loans, and with respect to which there is in effect a determination by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (which has been published in the Federal Register) that the application of the above paragraph to such program will substantially prevent or reduce future delinquencies under such program. A listing of included Federal loan programs was published in the Federal Register, Volume 47, Number 248, dated December 27, 1982.

b) Section 8 of the Act extends the authority of a Federal agency relative to the use of taxpayer mailing address information. Section 6103(m)(2) of the Code is amended to read as follows:

"(2) FEDERAL CLAIMS--

(A) IN GENERAL--Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the Secretary may, upon written request, disclose the mailing address of a taxpayer for use by officers, employees, or agents of a Federal agency for purposes of locating such taxpayer to collect or compromise a Federal claim against the taxpayer in accordance with section 3 of the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966 (section 3711 of title 31, United States Code) (31 U.S.C. 952).

(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCY--In the case of an agent of a Federal agency which is a consumer reporting agency (within the meaning of section 603(f) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (15 U.S.C. 1681a(f))), the mailing address of a taxpayer may be disclosed to such agent under subparagraph (A) only for the purpose of allowing such agent to prepare a commercial credit report on the taxpayer for use by such Federal agency in accordance with section 3 of the Federal Claims Collection Act of 1966 (section 3711 of title 31, United States Code) (31 U.S.C. 952)."

.03 Recipients of information under Code sections 6103(1)(3) or (m)(2) are subject to the safeguard requirements of Code section 6103(p)(4).

Sec. 2. Application for Inclusion in the IRS Debt Collection Act Program

.01 Within Treasury, the Returns Processing and Accounting Division of the Service has been designated the coordination point with Federal agencies relative to requests for information under the provisions of Sections 7 or 8 of the Debt Collection Act.

.02 Any Federal agency wishing to enter into a reimbursable agreement with the Service to request data under the above cited provisions must first submit a written application. The application should indicate whether the agency wishes to enter into an agreement(s) to request address data, TDA data, or both.

.03 Federal agencies presently receiving address data from the Service as part of Project 719, Taxpayer Address Program, do not need to reapply to receive data under the Debt Collection Act unless they wish to extend the use of address data based on the provisions of Section 8 of the Act relating to use of credit agencies, request address data of business entities, or receive TDA data. If so, the agency must submit an application so that a new agreement can be prepared.

     .04 Submit applications to:

.06 The requesting agency will complete boxes 5a, b, and c and 9a, b, and c of the Form 5181. The person indicated in box 5a will be the person coordinating requests and receipt of data from the Service. The signature in box 9a must be that of the agency head or other delegated official authorized to request data under the Act.

.07 The original and two copies of the signed agreement should be returned to the Service at the address indicated in .04 above.

.08 The Service will receive the signed copies of the agreement from Federal agencies. After signature of the Service's approving official is obtained, a copy of the agreement will be returned to the requesting agency. Upon receipt of the signed agreement, the agency may begin making submissions for the type of data specified in the agreement. (See Section 3)

.09 If a signed agreement received from a Federal agency does not meet all criteria for final approval, the Service will contact the Federal agency project coordinator to explain any deficiencies.

.10 Each approved agreement returned to a Federal agency will provide an "Agency Code(s)" to be used in all data requests. Distinct agency codes will be provided to a Federal agency for address requests and TDA requests. Agencies currently receiving address data under IRS Project 719 will continue to use their previously assigned agency code and mag-tape code for requests for address data for individuals regardless of whether they are required to reapply for a new contract as specified above.

Sec. 3. Submissions of Requests for Data

.01 All submissions of requests for data will be on magnetic tape.

.02 The information provided to Federal agencies will be extracted monthly from the Internal Revenue Service Individual Master File (IMF) and Business Master File (BMF) located at the IRS National Computer Center (NCC) in Martinsburg, West Virginia. The IMF contains tax accounts of individuals. The BMF contains tax accounts of business entities (i.e. corporations, subchapter S corporations, partnerships, exempt organizations and estates).

.03 The Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) provides an indication whether the taxpayer's account would be found on the IMF or BMF. Accounts are established on the IMF under Social Security Numbers (SSN, format xxx-xx-xxxx). Accounts are established on the BMF under Employer Identification Number (EIN, format xx-xxxxxxx), except for estates, which appear on the BMF with an SSN.

.04 Data will be extracted from the IMF and BMF based on the existence of a match between the master file and the data record submitted by the requester. Both the Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and name control on the data record request must match with a record on the Master File before any data is extracted. Without a match, the Service will not be able to provide the requested data. See Section 5 for instructions for determining Name Control.

.05 Tape submissions must be in the format specified for that type of request.

.06 Separate tapes must be submitted for address requests and TDA requests. Separate tapes must also be submitted for IMF and BMF requests. A separate tape, therefore, is required for each of the following type requests:

a) IMF Address Requests

b) IMF TDA Requests

c) BMF Address Requests

d) BMF TDA Requests

.07 An agency may submit any combination of types of requests in a given month, or even make no tape submission in a given month. They should not, however, combine more than one type of request on a single reel of tape. There is no limitation on the number of reels of tape that may be submitted in a month for a particular type of request.

.08 A file is defined as one or more reels of a specific type of request, submitted at one time.

.09 If unsure as to whether an account would appear on the IMF or BMF it may be expedient to request information from both the IMF and the BMF.

.10 Accounts for married individuals are sometimes established on the IMF using the SSN of one of the individuals as the control or primary SSN. Submissions for IMF extracts will first be run against the IRS Spouse-Primary SSN Record File to determine the primary SSN. Although the primary SSN identified will be used in the IMF extract process, the SSN shown on the output tape will be that provided by the requesting agency.

.11 It is the responsibility of the requesting agency to assure that input record data meets all specifications. Data Records containing invalid characters in the Taxpayer Identification Number field or in the Agency Code field will be dropped from processing. Duplicate requests by the same agency will also be dropped.

Sec. 4. Input Tape Specifications

.01 All input should be submitted on magnetic tape with the following characteristics:

a) 9 track

b) 1600 BPI

c) Extended binary coded decimal (EBCDIC)

d) Odd parity

.02 Each tape reel must contain the following types of record.

Header Record

Tape Mark (after the Header Record)

Data Records--Maximum of 100 data records per block. Separate blocks from each other by an interrecord gap. Each tape reel can consist of several sets of data blocks.

Tape Mark after the last Data Record on a Tape.

Trailer Record

Tape Mark

.03 BMF TDA Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Record(s)

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

.04 BMF Address Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Records

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

.05 IMF TDA Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Record(s)

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

.06 IMF Address Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Record(s)

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

Sec. 5. Determining a Name Control

.01 Each input data record will require a name control. Determine according to the following instructions.

.02 Individuals

The name control of an individual is the first four significant characters of the last name (including hyphens). In surnames of less than four characters, the remaining positions are blank. Disregard blanks or apostrophes between letters.

 Individual Name       Name Control

a) The name control of a corporation is derived from the first four significant characters of the name.

b) An exception to this rule is to exclude the word "the" when used as a prefix to the name and the word "the" is followed by more than one word:

c) In instances where a numeric is followed by a decimal (.) as part of the name, replace the decimal point (.) with a hyphen (-) when determining the name control.

 Business Name         Name Control

Derive the name control for partnership entities from the legal name of the partnership. If the legal name contains the name of a partner, derive the name control from the surname of the first listed partner. If the legal name does not contain the name of a partner, derive the name control from the first four characters in the legal name. Do not use a trade name (doing business as) to determine name control.

.05 Other Organizations

a) Unions, municipal groups, churches, lodges, associations, tax exempt organizations, foundations, funds and other like entities are assigned name controls as if corporate names. Chapter, department and local designations should be ignored.

 Name of Organization                      Name Control

 Name of Organization                            Name Control

Derive the Name Control from the surname of the decedent.

Sec. 6. Shipment of Tapes

.01 Ship input tapes (prepaid) to

     Internal Revenue Service

a) Agency Name

b) Tape Reel Identification Number

c) An indication of "Request for Data Under Debt Collection Act".

d) Assigned Agency Code Number for type of request.

e) IMF or BMF extract

f) Address or TDA Request.

.03 Include a copy of the transmittal letter prescribed in Section 7 with the tape shipment.

.04 Please provide magnetic tapes (at least three tapes) for your output when making initial input shipment. The input tape is scheduled for a 100 day retention. After that time, the input tape will be scratched and the tape used for your next output.

.05 If IRS tapes must be used to provide output new tapes will be used. The cost of these tapes will be reflected in the agency billing.

Sec. 7. Transmittal Letter

.01 For each shipment, a transmittal letter should be sent under separate cover to the National Computer Center. The transmittal should indicate the number of reels in the shipment, the reel identification number of each reel, the number of records on each reel, the assigned agency code for each reel, and the type of request (BMF TDA, IMF Address, etc.). The transmittal should also include the name and telephone number of an individual within the agency who can aid in reconciling shipping problems.

.02 Address the transmittal to:

     Internal Revenue Service

.01 Master File extracts will be made monthly. The schedule for 1983 processing is as follows:

 Tapes Received at NCC by:     Will be included in the extract

.03 Processing schedules are not flexible. Federal agencies are responsible for assuring that input tapes are received in ample time to be included in the month's processing. Those tapes received late will be processed in the next month.

Sec. 9. Return of Output Tapes

.01 Output tapes will be returned to the requesting agency formatted according to the type of request. See Section 10 for specific formats.

.02 Separate tapes will be returned for each type of request submitted.

.03 Each output tape will be labeled with the following information:

a) Agency Name

b) Tape Reel Identification Number

c) Indication of "Data Requested under Debt Collection Act"

d) Assigned Agency Code Number for type of request

e) IMF or BMF extract

f) Address or TDA request.

Sec. 10. Output Tape Specifications

.01 Tape Output will be created on an IBM computer, using a Model 2401 tape drive. The tape will have the following characteristics:

a) 9 track

b) 1600 BPI

c) Extended binary coded decimal (EBCDIC)

d) Odd Parity

.02 Each tape reel will contain the following types of records:

Header Record

Tape Mark (after the Header Record)

Data Records. Tape Blocks separated from each other by an interrecord gap.

Tape Mark after the last Data Record on a tape.

Trailer Record

Tape Mark

Each tape reel may consist of one or more sets of data blocks.

.03 BMF TDA Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

.04 BMF Address Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Records

 Position(s)       Contents

Zeros in all five positions of the Zip Code indicate that the taxpayer did not provide a valid Zip Code and the city or town could not be located in the Zip Code Master File maintained by IRS. Zeros in the last two positions indicate that only the area code (the first three digits) could be determined.

A tape mark will follow the last data record on the reel.

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

.05 IMF TDA Request

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Record(s)

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

.06 IMF Address Requests

(a) Header Record

 Position(s)       Contents

(b) Data Record(s)

 Position(s)       Contents

(c) Trailer Record

 Position(s)       Contents

Sec. 11. Use of Request Output

.01 Users should be aware of the limitations of the delinquency indication. It reflects only the Master File status of the account at the time of the extract. For instance, the account could show delinquency status but a payment agreement could have been recently established between the Service and the taxpayer. Or the extract could show an account as delinquent but by the time the agency receives the output or is ready to use the information, the delinquent amount may have been paid.

.02 There is also the possibility that a taxpayer may be delinquent but in an amount less than that which creates a delinquency indication on the Master File. In such a case, the extract will indicate that the taxpayer's account is not in delinquent status.

.03 Requestors should take care to provide correct information to the Service. They should be aware that if they fail to do so, there is the slight possibility that through coincidental circumstances, the data provided may not be that of the individual for whom the request was made. For instance, if information is requested for John Smith, but an erroneous SSN is provided which happens to be that of a Joe Smith, the Master File will match the account of Joe Smith and the data provided will reflect that account.

Sec. 12. Return of Tapes

Tapes will be returned to the Federal agency at the address provided on the Form 5181. Output tapes will be returned approximately three weeks after the original due date at NCC.

Sec. 13. Reimbursement

All work done by the Service for agencies will be performed on a reimbursable basis. Billing will be based on the number of data records requested and the number of IRS tapes required for output. The cost per data record is tentatively projected to be eight cents ($.08) for IMF requests and four cents ($.04) for BMF requests. The cost per IRS tape will be $12.

Sec. 14. Questions

Any questions regarding the material in this Revenue Procedure can be addressed to the Internal Revenue Project Coordinator whose name appears on the Form 5181.

_____________________________________________________________________

1. The authority to perform services on a cost basis is contained in Section 6103(p)(2) and Section 6108(b) of the Internal Revenue Code (IRC). The performance of services is authorized only when consistent with the basic public obligations of the Internal Revenue Service (the Service). If necessary to fulfill its public obligations, the Service may reject or terminate any part of this agreement and return the unused balance of funds advanced.

2. Although every reasonable effort is made to avoid delays and errors in the performance of its work, the Service is not responsible for delays or errors in the services performed. The cost of data recompilations or corrections must be paid for by the requesting party.

3. Direct and indirect actual costs will be charged for reimbursable work. If funds advanced to the Service are more than the actual cost of performing the work, the difference will be returned. If an estimate is less than the actual costs incurred, the requesting organization agrees to pay for the actual costs incurred.

4a. Section 6103(p)(4) of the IRC provides specific requirements for Federal, state and local organizations to safeguard Federal returns and return information as a condition for receiving the information.

b. Section 7213 of the IRC makes illegal disclosure of returns or return, information a felony punishable by a fine not to exceed $5000 or imprisonment of not more than 5 years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution. IRC Section 7217 makes persons liable for civil damages who knowingly or negligently disclose returns or return information illegally.

5. The Service reserves the right to use a copy of all data provided under this agreement.

6. The requester may cancel this agreement only by giving the Service written notice 30 days before cancellation. Payment to the Service shall include actual costs to the date of cancellation. The Service will exercise due diligence to prevent incurring costs after the cancellation date. However, payment shall also be made for unavoidable commitments up to the date the agreement would have expired.