In a previously unannounced development, the U.S. Department of the Treasury issued a policy statement on the tax regulatory process on March 5, 2019, announcing significant changes related to regulations and subregulatory guidance. The policy statement addresses four areas, which are discussed below.

Commitment to Notice-and-Comment Rulemaking -

Under the Administrative Procedure Act, agency rules can be either legislative or interpretive. Legislative rules are binding and carry the force of law while interpretive rules are intended only to advise the public of the agency’s position on what the law means. The APA generally requires that legislative rules go through the notice-and-comment process before becoming effective.