USC Subchapter T

USC Subchapter T
in effect

26 U.S.C. § 1388 Definitions; special rules

(a) Patronage dividendFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “patronage dividend” means an amount paid to a patron by an organization to which part I of this subchapter applies—(1) on the basis of quantity or value of business done with or for such patron, (2) under an obligation of such organization to pay such amount, which obligation existed before the organization received the amount so paid, and (3) which is determined by reference to the net earnings of the organization from business done with or for its patrons. Such term does not include any amount paid to a patron to the extent that (A) such amount is out of earnings other than from business done with or for patrons, or (B) such amount is out of earnings from business done with or for other patrons to whom no amounts are paid, or to whom smaller amounts are paid, with respect to substantially identical transactions. For purposes of paragraph (3), net earnings shall not be reduced by amounts paid during the year as dividends on capital stock or other proprietary capital interests of the organization to the extent that the articles of incorporation or bylaws of such organization or other contract with patrons provide that such dividends are in addition to amounts otherwise payable to patrons which are derived from business done with or for patrons during the taxable year. (b) Written notice of allocationFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “written notice of allocation” means any capital stock, revolving fund certificate, retain certificate, certificate of indebtedness, letter of advice, or other written notice, which discloses to the recipient the stated dollar amount allocated to him by the organization and the portion thereof, if any, which constitutes a patronage dividend. (c) Qualified written notice of allocation(1) DefinedFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “qualified written notice of allocation” means—(A) a written notice of allocation which may be redeemed in cash at its stated dollar amount at any time within a period beginning on the date such written notice of allocation is paid and ending not earlier than 90 days from such date, but only if the distributee receives written notice of the right of redemption at the time he receives such written notice of allocation; and (B) a written notice of allocation which the distributee has consented, in the manner provided in paragraph (2), to take into account at its stated dollar amount as provided in section 1385(a). Such term does not include any written notice of allocation which is paid as part of a patronage dividend or as part of a payment described in section 1382(c)(2)(A), unless 20 percent or more of the amount of such patronage dividend, or such payment, is paid in money or by qualified check. (2) Manner of obtaining consentA distributee shall consent to take a written notice of allocation into account as provided in paragraph (1)(B) only by—(A) making such consent in writing, (B) obtaining or retaining membership in the organization after—(i) such organization has adopted (after October 16, 1962) a bylaw providing that membership in the organization constitutes such consent, and (ii) he has received a written notification and copy of such bylaw, or (C) if neither subparagraph (A) nor (B) applies, endorsing and cashing a qualified check, paid as a part of the patronage dividend or payment of which such written notice of allocation is also a part, on or before the 90th day after the close of the payment period for the taxable year of the organization for which such patronage dividend or payment is paid. (3) Period for which consent is effective(A) General ruleExcept as provided in subparagraph (B)—(i) a consent described in paragraph (2) (A) shall be a consent with respect to all patronage of the distributee with the organization occurring (determined with the application of section 1382(e)) during the taxable year of the organization during which such consent is made and all subsequent taxable years of the organization; and (ii) a consent described in paragraph (2) (B) shall be a consent with respect to all patronage of the distributee with the organization occurring (determined without the application of section 1382(e)) after he received the notification and copy described in paragraph (2)(B)(ii). (B) Revocation, etc.(i) Any consent described in paragraph (2)(A) may be revoked (in writing) by the distributee at any time. Any such revocation shall be effective with respect to patronage occurring on or after the first day of the first taxable year of the organization beginning after the revocation is filed with such organization; except that in the case of a pooling arrangement described in section 1382(e), a revocation made by a distributee shall not be effective as to any pool with respect to which the distributee has been a patron before such revocation. (ii) Any consent described in paragraph (2)(B) shall not be effective with respect to any patronage occurring (determined without the application of section 1382(e)) after the distributee ceases to be a member of the organization or after the bylaws of the organization cease to contain the provision described in paragraph (2)(B)(i). (4) Qualified checkFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “qualified check” means only a check (or other instrument which is redeemable in money) which is paid as a part of a patronage dividend, or as a part of a payment described in section 1382(c)(2)(A), to a distributee who has not given consent as provided in paragraph (2)(A) or (B) with respect to such patronage dividend or payment, and on which there is clearly imprinted a statement that the endorsement and cashing of the check (or other instrument) constitutes the consent of the payee to include in his gross income, as provided in the Federal income tax laws, the stated dollar amount of the written notice of allocation which is a part of the patronage dividend or payment of which such qualified check is also a part. Such term does not include any check (or other instrument) which is paid as part of a patronage dividend or payment which does not include a written notice of allocation (other than a written notice of allocation described in paragraph (1)(A)). (d) Nonqualified written notice of allocationFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “nonqualified written notice of allocation” means a written notice of allocation which is not described in subsection (c) or a qualified check which is not cashed on or before the 90th day after the close of the payment period for the taxable year for which the distribution of which it is a part is paid. (e) Determination of amount paid or receivedFor purposes of this subchapter, in determining amounts paid or received—(1) property (other than a written notice of allocation or a per-unit retain certificate) shall be taken into account at its fair market value, and (2) a qualified written notice of allocation or qualified per-unit retain certificate shall be taken into account at its stated dollar amount. (f) Per-unit retain allocationFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “per-unit retain allocation” means any allocation, by an organization to which part I of this subchapter applies, to a patron with respect to products marketed for him, the amount of which is fixed without reference to the net earnings of the organization pursuant to an agreement between the organization and the patron. (g) Per-unit retain certificateFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “per-unit retain certificate” means any written notice which discloses to the recipient the stated dollar amount of a per-unit retain allocation to him by the organization. (h) Qualified per-unit retain certificate(1) DefinedFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “qualified per-unit retain certificate” means any per-unit retain certificate which the distributee has agreed, in the manner provided in paragraph (2), to take into account at its stated dollar amount as provided in section 1385(a). (2) Manner of obtaining agreementA distributee shall agree to take a per-unit retain certificate into account as provided in paragraph (1) only by—(A) making such agreement in writing, or (B) obtaining or retaining membership in the organization after—(i) such organization has adopted (after November 13, 1966) a bylaw providing that membership in the organization constitutes such agreement, and (ii) he has received a written notification and copy of such bylaw. (3) Period for which agreement is effective(A) General ruleExcept as provided in subparagraph (B)—(i) an agreement described in paragraph (2)(A) shall be an agreement with respect to all products delivered by the distributee to the organization during the taxable year of the organization during which such agreement is made and all subsequent taxable years of the organization; and (ii) an agreement described in paragraph (2)(B) shall be an agreement with respect to all products delivered by the distributee to the organization after he received the notification and copy described in paragraph (2)(B)(ii). (B) Revocation, etc.(i) Any agreement described in paragraph (2)(A) may be revoked (in writing) by the distributee at any time. Any such revocation shall be effective with respect to products delivered by the distributee on or after the first day of the first taxable year of the organization beginning after the revocation is filed with the organization; except that in the case of a pooling arrangement described in section 1382(e) a revocation made by a distributee shall not be effective as to any products which were delivered to the organization by the distributee before such revocation. (ii) Any agreement described in paragraph (2)(B) shall not be effective with respect to any products delivered after the distributee ceases to be a member of the organization or after the bylaws of the organization cease to contain the provision described in paragraph (2)(B)(i). (i) Nonqualified per-unit retain certificateFor purposes of this subchapter, the term “nonqualified per-unit retain certificate” means a per-unit retain certificate which is not described in subsection (h). (j) Special rules for the netting of gains and losses by cooperativesFor purposes of this subchapter, in the case of any organization to which part I of this subchapter applies—(1) Optional netting of patronage gains and losses permittedThe net earnings of such organization may, at its option, be determined by offsetting patronage losses (including any patronage loss carried to such year) which are attributable to 1 or more allocation units (whether such units are functional, divisional, departmental, geographic, or otherwise) against patronage earnings of 1 or more other such allocation units. (2) Certain netting permitted after section 381 transactionsIf such an organization acquires the assets of another such organization in a transaction described in section 381(a), the acquiring organization may, in computing its net earnings for taxable years ending after the date of acquisition, offset losses of 1 or more allocation units of the acquiring or acquired organization against earnings of the acquired or acquiring organization, respectively, but only to the extent—(A) such earnings are properly allocable to periods after the date of acquisition, and (B) such earnings could have been offset by such losses if such earnings and losses had been derived from allocation units of the same organization. (3) Notice requirements(A) In generalIn the case of any organization which exercises its option under paragraph (1) for any taxable year, such organization shall, on or before the 15th day of the 9th month following the close of such taxable year, provide to its patrons a written notice which—(i) states that the organization has offset earnings and losses from 1 or more of its allocation units and that such offset may have affected the amount which is being distributed to its patrons, (ii) states generally the identity of the offsetting allocation units, and (iii) states briefly what rights, if any, its patrons may have to additional financial information of such organization under terms of its charter, articles of incorporation, or bylaws, or under any provision of law. (B) Certain information need not be providedAn organization may exclude from the information required to be provided under clause (ii) of subparagraph (A) any detailed or specific data regarding earnings or losses of such units which such organization determines would disclose commercially sensitive information which—(i) could result in a competitive disadvantage to such organization, or (ii) could create a competitive advantage to the benefit of a competitor of such organization. (C) Failure to provide sufficient noticeIf the Secretary determines that an organization failed to provide sufficient notice under this paragraph—(i) the Secretary shall notify such organization, and (ii) such organization shall, upon receipt of such notification, provide to its patrons a revised notice meeting the requirements of this paragraph. Any such failure shall not affect the treatment of the organization under any provision of this subchapter or section 521. (4) Patronage earnings or losses definedFor purposes of this subsection, the terms “patronage earnings” and “patronage losses” means 11 So in original. Probably should be “mean”. earnings and losses, respectively, which are derived from business done with or for patrons of the organization. (k) Cooperative marketing includes value-added processing involving animalsFor purposes of section 521 and this subchapter, the marketing of the products of members or other producers shall include the feeding of such products to cattle, hogs, fish, chickens, or other animals and the sale of the resulting animals or animal products.

26 U.S.C. § 1385 Amounts includible in patron’s gross income

(a) General ruleExcept as otherwise provided in subsection (b), each person shall include in gross income—(1) the amount of any patronage dividend which is paid in money, a qualified written notice of allocation, or other property (except a nonqualified written notice of allocation), and which is received by him during the taxable year from an organization described in section 1381(a), (2) any amount, described in section 1382 (c)(2)(A) (relating to certain nonpatronage distributions by tax-exempt farmers’ cooperatives), which is paid in money, a qualified written notice of allocation, or other property (except a nonqualified written notice of allocation), and which is received by him during the taxable year from an organization described in section 1381(a)(1), and (3) the amount of any per-unit retain allocation which is paid in qualified per-unit retain certificates and which is received by him during the taxable year from an organization described in section 1381(a). (b) Exclusion from gross incomeUnder regulations prescribed by the Secretary, the amount of any patronage dividend, and any amount received on the redemption, sale, or other disposition of a nonqualified written notice of allocation which was paid as a patronage dividend, shall not be included in gross income to the extent that such amount—(1) is properly taken into account as an adjustment to basis of property, or (2) is attributable to personal, living, or family items. (c) Treatment of certain nonqualified written notices of allocation and certain nonqualified per-unit retain certificates(1) Application of subsectionThis subsection shall apply to—(A) any nonqualified written notice of allocation which—(i) was paid as a patronage dividend, or (ii) was paid by an organization described in section 1381(a)(1) on a patronage basis with respect to earnings derived from business or sources described in section 1382(c)(2)(A), and (B) any nonqualified per-unit retain certificate which was paid as a per-unit retain allocation. (2) Basis; amount of gainIn the case of any nonqualified written notice of allocation or nonqualified per-unit retain certificate to which this subsection applies, for purposes of this chapter—(A) the basis of such written notice of allocation or per-unit retain certificate in the hands of the patron to whom such written notice of allocation or per-unit retain certificate was paid shall be zero, (B) the basis of such written notice of allocation or per-unit retain certificate which was acquired from a decedent shall be its basis in the hands of the decedent, and (C) gain on the redemption, sale, or other disposition of such written notice of allocation or per-unit retain certificate by any person shall, to the extent that the stated dollar amount of such written notice of allocation or per-unit retain certificate exceeds its basis, be considered as ordinary income.

26 U.S.C. § 1381 Organizations to which part applies

(a) In generalThis part shall apply to—(1) any organization exempt from tax under section 521 (relating to exemption of farmers’ cooperatives from tax), and (2) any corporation operating on a cooperative basis other than an organization—(A) which is exempt from tax under this chapter, (B) which is subject to the provisions of—(i) part II of subchapter H (relating to mutual savings banks, etc.), or (ii) subchapter L (relating to insurance companies), or (C) which is engaged in furnishing electric energy, or providing telephone service, to persons in rural areas. (b) Tax on certain farmers’ cooperativesAn organization described in subsection (a)(1) shall be subject to the tax imposed by section 11. (c) Cross referenceFor treatment of income from load loss transactions of organizations described in subsection (a)(2)(C), see section 501(c)(12)(H).

26 U.S.C. § 1382 Taxable income of cooperatives

(a) Gross incomeExcept as provided in subsection (b), the gross income of any organization to which this part applies shall be determined without any adjustment (as a reduction in gross receipts, an increase in cost of goods sold, or otherwise) by reason of any allocation or distribution to a patron out of the net earnings of such organization or by reason of any amount paid to a patron as a per-unit retain allocation (as defined in section 1388(f)). (b) Patronage dividends and per-unit retain allocationsIn determining the taxable income of an organization to which this part applies, there shall not be taken into account amounts paid during the payment period for the taxable year—(1) as patronage dividends (as defined in section 1388(a)), to the extent paid in money, qualified written notices of allocation (as defined in section 1388(c)), or other property (except nonqualified written notices of allocation (as defined in section 1388(d))) with respect to patronage occurring during such taxable year; (2) in money or other property (except written notices of allocation) in redemption of a nonqualified written notice of allocation which was paid as a patronage dividend during the payment period for the taxable year during which the patronage occurred; (3) as per-unit retain allocations (as defined in section 1388(f)), to the extent paid in money, qualified per-unit retain certificates (as defined in section 1388(h)), or other property (except nonqualified per-unit retain certificates, as defined in section 1388(i)) with respect to marketing occurring during such taxable year; or (4) in money or other property (except per-unit retain certificates) in redemption of a nonqualified per-unit retain certificate which was paid as a per-unit retain allocation during the payment period for the taxable year during which the marketing occurred. For purposes of this title, any amount not taken into account under the preceding sentence shall, in the case of an amount described in paragraph (1) or (2), be treated in the same manner as an item of gross income and as a deduction therefrom, and in the case of an amount described in paragraph (3) or (4), be treated as a deduction in arriving at gross income. (c) Deduction for nonpatronage distributions, etc.In determining the taxable income of an organization described in section 1381(a)(1), there shall be allowed as a deduction (in addition to other deductions allowable under this chapter)—(1) amounts paid during the taxable year as dividends on its capital stock; and (2) amounts paid during the payment period for the taxable year—(A) in money, qualified written notices of allocation, or other property (except nonqualified written notices of allocation) on a patronage basis to patrons with respect to its earnings during such taxable year which are derived from business done for the United States or any of its agencies or from sources other than patronage, or (B) in money or other property (except written notices of allocation) in redemption of a nonqualified written notice of allocation which was paid, during the payment period for the taxable year during which the earnings were derived, on a patronage basis to a patron with respect to earnings derived from business or sources described in subparagraph (A). (d) Payment period for each taxable yearFor purposes of subsections (b) and (c)(2), the payment period for any taxable year is the period beginning with the first day of such taxable year and ending with the fifteenth day of the ninth month following the close of such year. For purposes of subsections (b)(1) and (c)(2)(A), a qualified check issued during the payment period shall be treated as an amount paid in money during such period if endorsed and cashed on or before the 90th day after the close of such period. (e) Products marketed under pooling arrangementsFor purposes of subsection (b), in the case of a pooling arrangement for the marketing of products—(1) the patronage shall (to the extent provided in regulations prescribed by the Secretary) be treated as patronage occurring during the taxable year in which the pool closes, and (2) the marketing of products shall be treated as occurring during any of the taxable years in which the pool is open. (f) Treatment of earnings received after patronage occurredIf any portion of the earnings from business done with or for patrons is includible in the organization’s gross income for a taxable year after the taxable year during which the patronage occurred, then for purposes of applying paragraphs (1) and (2) of subsection (b) to such portion the patronage shall, to the extent provided in regulations prescribed by the Secretary, be considered to have occurred during the taxable year of the organization during which such earnings are includible in gross income. (g) Use of completed crop pool method of accounting(1) In generalAn organization described in section 1381(a) which is engaged in pooling arrangements for the marketing of products may compute its taxable income with respect to any pool opened prior to March 1, 1978, under the completed crop pool method of accounting if—(A) the organization has computed its taxable income under such method for the 10 taxable years ending with its first taxable year beginning after December 31, 1976, and (B) with respect to the pool, the organization has entered into an agreement with the United States or any of its agencies which includes provisions to the effect that—(i) the United States or such agency shall provide a loan to the organization with the products comprising the pool serving as collateral for such loan, (ii) the organization shall use an amount equal to the proceeds of such loan to make price support advances to eligible producers (as determined by the United States or such agency), to defray costs of handling, processing, and storing such products, or to pay all or part of any administrative costs associated with the price support program, (iii) an amount equal to the net proceeds (as determined under such agreement) from the sale or exchange of the products in the pool shall be used to repay such loan until such loan is repaid in full (or all the products in the pool are disposed of), and (iv) the net gains (as determined under such agreement) from the sale or exchange of such products shall be distributed to eligible producers, except to the extent that the United States or such agency permits otherwise. (2) Completed crop pool method of accounting definedFor purposes of this subsection, the term “completed crop pool method of accounting” means a method of accounting under which gain or loss is computed separately for each crop year pool in the year in which the last of the products in the pool are disposed of.

26 U.S.C. § 1383 Computation of tax where cooperative redeems nonqualified written notices of allocation or nonqualified per-unit retain certificates

(a) General ruleIf, under section 1382(b)(2) or (4), or (c)(2)(B), a deduction is allowable to an organization for the taxable year for amounts paid in redemption of nonqualified written notices of allocation or nonqualified per-unit retain certificates, then the tax imposed by this chapter on such organization for the taxable year shall be the lesser of the following:(1) the tax for the taxable year computed with such deduction; or (2) an amount equal to—(A) the tax for the taxable year computed without such deduction, minus (B) the decrease in tax under this chapter for any prior taxable year (or years) which would result solely from treating such nonqualified written notices of allocation or nonqualified per-unit retain certificates as qualified written notices of allocation or qualified per-unit retain certificates (as the case may be). (b) Special rules(1) If the decrease in tax ascertained under subsection (a)(2)(B) exceeds the tax for the taxable year (computed without the deduction described in subsection (a)) such excess shall be considered to be a payment of tax on the last day prescribed by law for the payment of tax for the taxable year, and shall be refunded or credited in the same manner as if it were an overpayment for such taxable year. (2) For purposes of determining the decrease in tax under subsection (a)(2)(B), the stated dollar amount of any nonqualified written notice of allocation or nonqualified per-unit retain certificate which is to be treated under such subsection as a qualified written notice of allocation or qualified per-unit retain certificate (as the case may be) shall be the amount paid in redemption of such written notice of allocation or per-unit retain certificate which is allowable as a deduction under section 1382(b)(2) or (4), or (c)(2)(B) for the taxable year. (3) If the tax imposed by this chapter for the taxable year is the amount determined under subsection (a)(2), then the deduction described in subsection (a) shall not be taken into account for any purpose of this subtitle other than for purposes of this section.