Regulatory relief law may extend wait for regulations.

The debt limit extension bill signed by President Clinton on March 29 contained provisions intended to ease the federal regulatory burden on small business. The provisions, which are part of P.L. 104-121, apply to most of the regulations and other tax guidance issued by the Internal Revenue Service.

The new law provides for judicial review of the service's compliance with various federal disclosure requirements. It also gives Congress the authority to review--and approve or block--rules made by the IRS. Further, the law increases the IRS's paperwork burden--it must include more detailed explanations and analyses than under prior law. Letter rulings are exempt from the law's provisions.

Although some have praised the bill, detractors fear that the IRS's additional paperwork may further lengthen the process of promulgating tax guidance.

Note: In a recent press release (IR-96-16) the IRS encouraged individuals to submit comments on proposed regulations via the IRS home page on the World Wide Web at http://www.irs.ustreas.gov. Comments must be submitted within 90 days of a proposal's publication.