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301.6404-2T(b)(1), Temporary Proced. & Admin. Regs.,
52 Fed. Reg. 30163 (Aug. 13, 1987).]
Acts that are not ministerial are either managerial or arise out
of general administrative decisions. Abatement is not available
for managerial acts during the tax years in question and has
never been available for actions or nonactions attributable to
general administrative decisions. The House committee report on
the 1996 amendments made by the Taxpayer Bill of Rights 2 (TBOR
2)(under which relief was expanded prospectively to include
managerial acts as well as ministerial acts) explains:
The bill permits the IRS to abate interest with respect
to any unreasonable error or delay resulting from
managerial acts as well as ministerial acts. * * * On
the other hand, interest would not be abated for delays
resulting from general administrative decisions. For
example, the taxpayer could not claim that the IRS’s
decision on how to organize the processing of tax
returns or its delay in implementing an improved
computer system resulted in an unreasonable delay in
the Service’s action on the taxpayer’s tax return, and
so the interest on any subsequent deficiency should be
waived. [H. Rept. 104-506, at 27-28 (1996), 1996-3 C.B.
49, 75-76; emphasis added.]
Originally, the Commissioner had the discretion not to abate
interest even when the statutory requirements were met: “The
bill gives the IRS the authority to abate interest but does not
mandate that it do so”. S. Rept. 99-313 (1986), 1986-3 C.B.
(Vol. 3) 208-209. TBOR 2 gave the Tax Court authority under
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