Notice 2009-35

Section 1521(a) of Title I of Division B of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Pub. L. No. 111-5, 123 Stat. 115 (2009) (“Act”) added new § 54F to the Code, setting forth program provisions for QSCBs. The Act amended § 54A(d)(1) to provide that the term “qualified tax credit bond” means, in part, a qualified school construction bond that is part of an issue that meets the requirements of §§ 54A(d)(2), (3), (4), (5), and (6) regarding expenditures of bond proceeds, information reporting, arbitrage, maturity limitations, and prohibitions against financial conflicts of interest, respectively. The Act also amended § 54A(d)(2) to provide that, for purposes of § 54A(d)(2)(C), the term “qualified purpose” for a QSCB means a purpose specified in § 54F(a)(1) described below.

The Act added § 54F(c) to provide a national bond limitation authorization for QSCBs of $11 billion for 2009 and $11 billion for 2010 (each, a “calendar year volume cap” and together “volume cap”). Section 54F(c)(3) provides that except for carryforwards provided for in § 54F(e), there is no calendar year volume cap for calendar years after 2010.

Section 54F(a) defines a “qualified school construction bond” to mean any bond issued as part of an issue if —

(1) 100 percent of the available project proceeds of such issue are to be used for the construction, rehabilitation, or repair of a public school facility or for the acquisition of land on which such a facility is to be constructed with part of the proceeds of such issue,

(2) the bond is issued by a State or local government within the jurisdiction of which such school is located, and

(3) the issuer designates such bond for purposes of this section.

Section 54F(b) provides that the maximum aggregate face amount of bonds issued during any calendar year that may be designated under § 54F(a) by any issuer shall not exceed the portion of the calendar year volume cap allocated to such issuer for the calendar year under § 54F(d).

Section 54F(d)1) provides that, except as provided in § 54F(d)(2)(C), the calendar year volume cap shall be allocated by the Treasury among the States in proportion to the respective amounts each State is eligible to receive under § 1124 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6333) (the “Education Act”) for the most recent fiscal year ending before the calendar year. Section 54F(d)(1) further provides that the calendar year volume cap amount allocated to each State is to be further allocated by the State to the issuers within the State.

Section 54F(d)(2)(A) provides that 40 percent of the calendar year volume cap for any calendar year is to be allocated under § 54F(d)(2)(B) by the Treasury among local educational agencies that are large local agencies for the calendar year. Section 54F(d)(2)(B) provides that 40 percent of the calendar year volume cap is to be allocated among large local educational agencies in proportion to the respective amounts each such agency received under § 1124 of the Education Act for the most recent fiscal year ending before the calendar year.

Section 54F(d)(2)(C) provides that the allocation of calendar year volume cap to any State under § 54F(d)(1) is reduced by the aggregate amount of allocations under § 54F(d)(2) to large local educational agencies within the State.

Section 54F(d)(2)(D) provides the amount of calendar year volume cap allocated to a large local educational agency for any calendar year may be reallocated by such agency to the State in which such agency is located for the calendar year. Section 54F(d)(2)(D) further provides that any amount reallocated to a State by a large local educational agency may be further allocated by the State to issuers within the State.

Section 54F(d)(2)(E) defines a large local educational agency as any local educational agency if such agency is: (1) among the one hundred local educational agencies with the largest number of children aged 5 through 17 from families living below the poverty level, as determined by the Treasury using the most recent data available from the Department of Commerce that are satisfactory to the Treasury; or (2) one of not more than twenty-five additional local educational agencies that the Secretary of Education determines (based on the most recent data available satisfactory to the Treasury) are in particular need of assistance, based on a low level of resources for school construction, a high level of enrollment growth, or such other factors as the Treasury deems appropriate.

Section 54F(d)(3) provides that the amount allocated under § 54F(d)(1) to any United States possession other than Puerto Rico is an amount that would have been allocated to such possession if all allocations under § 54F(d)(1) were made on the basis of respective populations of individuals below the poverty line (as defined by the Office of Management and Budget). Section 54F(d)(3) further provides that in making the other allocations, the amount to be allocated under § 54F(d)(1) to the States is reduced by the aggregate amount allocated under § 54F(d)(3) to the United States possessions.

Section 54F(d)(4) provides for additional calendar year volume cap amounts of $200 million for calendar year 2009 and $200 million for calendar year 2010 (each an “Indian tribal government calendar year volume cap” and together the “Indian tribal government volume cap”) to be allocated by the Secretary of Interior for purposes of the construction, rehabilitation, and repair of schools funded by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. This $ 200 million Indian tribal government calendar year volume cap allocated to the Indian tribal governments does not reduce the $11 billion calendar year volume cap allocated to the States and the large local educational agencies. Section 54F(d)(4) further provides that, for amounts of Indian tribal government volume cap allocated, Indian tribal governments (as defined in § 7701(a)(40)) are to be treated as qualified issuers.

Section 54F(e) provides that if for any calendar year, the amount of calendar year volume cap allocated under § 54(d) to any State or the amount of Indian tribal government calendar year volume cap allocated to an Indian tribal government exceeds the amount of QSCBs issued during the calendar year pursuant to such allocation, the amount of such excess shall to be carried over to the following calendar year and shall increase the calendar year volume cap or the Indian tribal government calendar year volume cap allocation for the following calendar year for the State or Indian tribal government.

Pending the promulgation and effective date of future administrative or regulatory guidance, taxpayers may rely on the interim guidance provided in this notice.

For QSCBs issued under §§ 54A and 54F, the maximum maturity and the credit rate are determined as of the date that there is a binding, written contract for the sale or exchange of the bond. The applicable maximum maturity, the discount rate for determining the maturity, and QSCB credit rate are published for that date by the Bureau of Public Debt on its Internet site for State and Local Government Series securities at: https://www.treasurydirect.gov. For further information regarding the methodology and procedures that the Treasury uses to determine these credit rates, see Notice 2009-15, 2009-6 I.R.B. 449 (February 9, 2009).

Section 54A(d)(4)(C) provides that an issue shall not be treated as failing to meet the requirements of § 148 by reason of any fund that is expected to be used to repay the issue if: (i) the fund is funded at a rate not more rapid than equal annual installments; (ii) the fund is funded in a manner reasonably expected to result in an amount not greater than an amount necessary to repay the issue; and (iii) the yield on such fund is not greater than the discount rate determined under § 54A(d)(5)(B) (the “permitted sinking fund yield”).

The permitted sinking fund yield is determined under § 54A(d)(5)(B) by using a rate equal to 110 percent of the long-term adjusted federal rate (“AFR”), compounded semiannually, for the month in which the bond is sold. The IRS publishes the long-term adjusted AFR, compounded semiannually, each month in a revenue ruling published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin. The Bureau of Public Debt publishes the permitted sinking fund yield for each month on its Internet site for State and Local Government Series securities at: https://www.treasurydirect.gov.

Section 54A(d)(3) requires issuers of QSCBs to submit information reporting returns to the IRS similar to those required to be submitted under § 149(e) for tax-exempt State or local governmental bonds. These information reporting returns are required to be submitted at the same time and in the same manner as those under § 149(e) on such forms as shall be prescribed by the IRS for such purpose. Pending further guidance from the IRS regarding the applicable forms to be used for such information reporting for QSCBs, in the case of an issue of QSCBs, the issuer must submit to the IRS an information return on Form 8038, at the same time and in the same manner as required under § 149(e), with modifications as described below. Issuers of QSCBs should complete Part II of Form 8038 by checking Line 20c (Other), writing “QSCBs” in the space provided for the bond description, and entering the issue price of the QSCBs in the Issue Price column on Line 20c. For purposes of this notice, the term “issue” has the meaning used for tax-exempt bond purposes in § 1.150-1(c) of the Income Tax Regulations.

For purposes of the § 54F(a)(1) requirement that all available proceeds of QSCBs be spent on construction, rehabilitation, or repair of a public school facility or for the acquisition of land on which such a facility is to be constructed with part of the proceeds of such issue, eligible expenditures include, among other things, expenditures for costs of acquisition of equipment to be used in such portion or portions of the public school facility that is being constructed, rehabilitated, or repaired with the proceeds of QSCBs.

Eligible issuers of QSCBs include States, political subdivisions as defined for purposes of § 103, large local educational agencies that are State or local governmental entities, and entities empowered to issue bonds on behalf of any such entity under rules similar to those for determining whether a bond issued on behalf of a State or political subdivision constitutes an obligation of that State or political subdivision for purposes of § 103 and § 1.103-1(b), Income Tax Regs. Further, eligible issuers include otherwise-eligible issuers in conduit financing issues (as defined in § 1.150-1(b), Income Tax Regs.) An eligible issuer may issue QSCBs based on a volume cap allocation received by the eligible issuer itself or by a conduit borrower or other ultimate beneficiary of the issue of QSCBs. In all events, the eligible costs of public school facilities financed with the proceeds of an issue of QSCBs under § 54F(a)(1) must relate to public school facilities that are located within both the jurisdiction of the issuer of the QSCBs and the jurisdiction of the authorized entity that allocates volume cap to the issue of QSCBs for the financing of those public school facilities. Authorized entities that may allocate volume cap consist of those entities that receive volume cap allocations under § 54F(d). Thus, for example, a large local educational agency that has received a volume cap allocation under § 54F(d)(2) either may issue QSCBs with respect to that volume cap itself or it may be a beneficiary of proceeds of an issue issued by another eligible issuer with respect to that volume cap, provided that, in either event, the public school facilities to be financed with the proceeds of the issue of QSCBs are located within both the jurisdiction of the issuer of the QSCBs and the jurisdiction of the large local educational agency that allocated volume cap to the issue of QSCBs for the financing of those public school facilities.