Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 124 / Thursday, July 1, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 34957 

Subpart C—Approved American 

Viticultural Areas 

■ 2. Subpart C is amended by adding 

§ 9.278 to read as follows: 

§ 9.278 Ulupalakua AVA. 

(a) Name. The name of the viticultural 

area described in this section is 

‘‘Ulupalakua’’. For purposes of part 4 of 

this chapter, ‘‘Ulupalakua’’ is a term of 

viticultural significance. 

(b) Approved maps. The United States 

Geological Survey (USGS) 1:24,000 

scale topographic maps used to 

determine the boundary of the 

Ulupalakua viticultural area is titled 

‘‘Makena, Hawaii, 1983.’’ 

(c) Boundary. The Ulupalakua 

viticultural area is located on the island 

of Maui, in Hawaii. The boundary of the 

Ulupalakua viticultural area is as 

described in paragraphs (c)(1) through 

(6) of this section: 

(1) The beginning point is on the 

Makena, Hawaii, map at the intersection 

of an unnamed, light-duty road known 

locally as State Highway 37 and the 

northernmost unnamed, unimproved 

road in the Palauea land division (a land 

division is known as an ‘‘ahupua’a’’ in 

Hawaii). From the beginning point, 

proceed south along State Highway 37 

to the next unnamed, unimproved road 

in the Palauea land division; then 

(2) Proceed west in a straight line for 

approximately 2,700 feet to the 1,560- 

foot elevation contour; then 

(3) Proceed north along the 1,560-foot 

elevation contour to the northern 

boundary of the Palauea land division; 

then 

(4) Proceed east along the northern 

boundary of the Palauea land division to 

the 1,800-foot elevation contour; then 

(5) Proceed south along the 1,800-foot 

elevation contour for approximately 400 

feet to the point where the 1,800-foot 

elevation contour intersects with an 

imaginary line drawn from the terminus 

of the northernmost unnamed, 

unimproved road in the Palauea land 

division; then 

(6) Proceed east in a straight line for 

approximately 800 feet, returning to the 

beginning point. 

Signed: June 21, 2021. 

Mary G. Ryan, 

Administrator. 

Approved: June 21, 2021. 

Timothy E. Skud, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary (Tax, Trade, and 

Tariff Policy). 

[FR Doc. 2021–14058 Filed 6–30–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4810–31–P 

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY 

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade 

Bureau 

27 CFR Part 70 

[Docket No. TTB–2021–0004; T.D. TTB–169] 

RIN 1513–AC56 

Removal of Obsolete Regulation 

Regarding Rewards for Information 

Relating to Violations of Tax Laws 

Administered by the Alcohol and 

Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau 

AGENCY: Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and 

Trade Bureau, Treasury. 

ACTION: Final rule; Treasury decision. 

SUMMARY: In this final rule, the Alcohol 

and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau 

(TTB) is removing obsolete regulatory 

provisions related to whistleblower 

rewards. Under the Internal Revenue 

Code, individuals who provide 

information to the Treasury Department 

regarding underpayment of taxes or 

violations of internal revenue laws may 

file claims for monetary 

‘‘whistleblower’’ awards. Recent 

changes to the Code have made the TTB 

regulation regarding whistleblower 

rewards obsolete, and, therefore, TTB is 

removing that provision from its 

regulations. TTB has signed a 

memorandum of understanding with the 

Internal Revenue Service, under which 

the Internal Revenue Service will 

process whistleblower award claims for 

information regarding underpayment of 

taxes collected by TTB or violations of 

the internal revenue laws administered 

by TTB. 

DATES: This final rule is effective on July 

1, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Michael Hoover, Regulations and 

Rulings Division, Alcohol and Tobacco 

Tax and Trade Bureau, 1310 G Street 

NW, Box 12, Washington, DC 20005; 

202–453–1039, ext. 135. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background 

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and 

Trade Bureau (TTB) administers the 

following provisions of the Internal 

Revenue Code of 1986, as amended 

(IRC, 26 U.S.C.): Chapter 51 (imposing 

Federal excise tax on distilled spirits, 

wine, and beer), chapter 52 (imposing 

Federal excise tax on tobacco products 

and cigarette papers and tubes), and 

sections 4181–4182 (imposing Federal 

excise tax on firearms and ammunition). 

TTB administers these provisions 

pursuant to section 1111(d) of the 

Homeland Security Act of 2002, as 

codified at 6 U.S.C. 531(d). The 

Secretary of the Treasury (the Secretary) 

has delegated related IRC administrative 

and enforcement authorities to TTB 

through Treasury Order 120–01. The 

Secretary also has delegated 

administration and enforcement of other 

internal revenue laws to the Internal 

Revenue Service under Treasury Order 

150–10. 

Under section 7623 of the IRC (26 

U.S.C. 7623), individuals who provide 

information to the Department of the 

Treasury that is used to detect 

underpayments of Federal taxes or 

violations of internal revenue laws may 

be eligible for monetary 

‘‘whistleblower’’ awards under 

regulations issued by the Secretary. 

TTB had previously issued a 

whistleblower reward regulation at 27 

CFR 70.41. However, amendments to 

the Internal Revenue Code have made 

this regulation obsolete. See the 

amendments made to 26 U.S.C. 7623 by 

section 406 of the Tax Relief and Health 

Care Act of 2006 (Pub L. 109–432), 

section 41108 of the Balanced Budget 

Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115–123), and 

section 1405 of the Taxpayer First Act 

(Pub. L. 116–25). As a result of these 

statutory amendments, described more 

fully below, § 70.41 has become 

obsolete, and TTB is removing that 

section from its regulations in 27 CFR 

part 70, Procedure and Administration. 

Section 406 of the Tax Relief and 

Health Care Act of 2006 significantly 

revised 26 U.S.C. 7623 and required the 

Treasury Department to establish a 

‘‘Whistleblower Office’’ within the 

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to 

analyze information received by 

whistleblower claimants and determine 

the amount of any award under 26 

U.S.C. 7623(b). The IRS Whistleblower 

Office processes claims pertaining to 

underpayments of tax that are owed to 

the IRS or violations of internal revenue 

laws administered by the IRS that may 

be eligible for an award under 26 U.S.C. 

7623(a) and (b). See IRS Delegation 

Order 25–07 (delegation to the 

Whistleblower Office of the authority to 

approve IRS discretionary awards under 

section 7623(a)). Section 41108 of the 

Balanced Budget Act of 2018 then 

clarified the definition of ‘‘collected 

proceeds’’ from which the Treasury 

Department may make awards to 

whistleblowers. The Taxpayer First Act 

further amended 26 U.S.C. 7623 by 

establishing a notification process for 

whistleblowers and adding protections 

for whistleblowers against retaliation. 

To modernize the process for 

accepting, processing, and rewarding 

whistleblowers and to give effect to the 

statutory changes, TTB has entered into 


khammond on DSKJM1Z7X2PROD with RULES
34958 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 124 / Thursday, July 1, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 

a memorandum of understanding 

(MOU) with the IRS Whistleblower 

Office. As set forth in that MOU, the IRS 

Whistleblower Office will accept claims 

from whistleblowers via IRS Form 211, 

Application for Award for Original 

Information, and refer such information 

to TTB when applicable. TTB will 

determine if the information is 

actionable after any investigation 

undertaken, collect proceeds, and 

provide information, including an 

evaluation of the whistleblower’s 

contributions, to the IRS Whistleblower 

Office. The IRS Whistleblower Office 

will process all TTB-related 

whistleblower award claims filed under 

26 U.S.C. 7623 under the IRS 

regulations and procedures. Under the 

MOU, the IRS will consider references 

to the ‘‘Internal Revenue Service’’ or 

‘‘IRS’’ in the relevant IRS regulations 

and procedures to include TTB 

personnel and TTB actions when 

appropriate. 

Updated information on the 

whistleblower program, including how 

and where to file such claims with the 

IRS Whistleblower Office is available on 

the TTB website at www.ttb.gov. 

Regulatory Analysis and Notices 

Executive Order 12866 

It has been determined that this notice 

is not a significant regulatory action as 

defined in Executive Order 12866 of 

September 30, 1993. Therefore, a 

regulatory assessment is not necessary. 

Inapplicability of Prior Notice and 

Public Comment Procedures and 

Delayed Effective Date 

TTB is issuing this final rule without 

prior notice and opportunity for public 

comment pursuant to authority under 

section 4(a) of the Administrative 

Procedure Act, as amended (APA) (5 

U.S.C. 553(b)(B)). That provision 

authorizes an agency to issue a rule 

without prior notice when the agency 

for good cause finds that those 

procedures are ‘‘impracticable, 

unnecessary, or contrary to the public 

interest.’’ In this final rule, TTB is 

removing a regulatory provision that has 

become obsolete due to statutory 

changes, so TTB finds that prior notice 

is unnecessary. TTB also finds that it is 

unnecessary to provide a delayed 

effective date for revoking its obsolete 

regulation under section 4(c) of the APA 

(5 U.S.C. 553(d)); this rule is therefore 

effective immediately. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act 

Because no notice of proposed 

rulemaking is required, the provisions 

of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601 et seq.) do not apply. 

Pursuant to 26 U.S.C. 7805(f), TTB 

submitted this final rule to the Chief 

Counsel for Advocacy of the Small 

Business Administration (SBA) for 

comment on the impact of the 

regulations on small businesses. TTB 

received no comments from SBA in 

response to this final rule. 

Paperwork Reduction Act 

This final rule imposes no new 

collection of information. The IRS will 

account for any burden associated with 

additional respondents to its 

information collection, IRS Form 211, 

Application for Reward for Original 

Information (20,000 annual respondents 

and 15,000 burden hours), which has 

been previously reviewed and approved 

by OMB and assigned control number 

1545–0409. 

Drafting Information 

Michael Hoover of the Regulations 

and Rulings Division drafted this 

document with the assistance of other 

Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade 

Bureau personnel. 

List of Subjects in 27 CFR Part 70 

Administrative practice and 

procedure, Claims, Excise taxes, 

Freedom of information, Law 

enforcement, Penalties, Reporting and 

recordkeeping requirements, Surety 

bonds. 

Amendments to the Regulations 

For the reasons discussed in the 

preamble, TTB is amending 27 CFR 

chapter I, part 70 as follows: 

PART 70—PROCEDURE AND 

ADMINISTRATION 

■ 1. The authority citation for part 70 

continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301 and 552; 26 U.S.C. 

4181, 4182, 5123, 5203, 5207, 5275, 5367, 

5415, 5504, 5555, 5684(a), 5741, 5761(b), 

5802, 6020, 6021, 6064, 6102, 6155, 6159, 

6201, 6203, 6204, 6301, 6303, 6311, 6313, 

6314, 6321, 6323, 6325, 6326, 6331–6343, 

6401–6404, 6407, 6416, 6423, 6501–6503, 

6511, 6513, 6514, 6532, 6601, 6602, 6611, 

6621, 6622, 6651, 6653, 6656–6658, 6665, 

6671, 6672, 6701, 6723, 6801, 6862, 6863, 

6901, 7011, 7101, 7102, 7121, 7122, 7207, 

7209, 7214, 7304, 7401, 7403, 7406, 7423, 

7424, 7425, 7426, 7429, 7430, 7432, 7502, 

7503, 7505, 7506, 7513, 7601–7606, 7608– 

7610, 7622, 7623, 7653, 7805. 

§ 70.41 [Removed and Reserved] 

■ 2. Section 70.41 is removed and 

reserved. 

Signed: June 21, 2021. 

Mary G. Ryan, 

Administrator. 

Approved: June 21, 2021. 

Timothy E. Skud, 

Deputy Assistant Secretary (Tax, Trade and 

Tariff Policy). 

[FR Doc. 2021–14050 Filed 6–30–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 4810–31–P 

DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND 

SECURITY 

Coast Guard 

33 CFR 165 

[Docket Number USCG–2021–0439] 

RIN 1625–AA00 

Safety Zone; Caruso Affiliated 

Holdings Fireworks Event, Newport 

Beach, California 

AGENCY: Coast Guard, DHS. 

ACTION: Temporary final rule. 

SUMMARY: The Coast Guard is 

establishing a temporary safety zone 

near Balboa Pier, Newport Beach 

Harbor, California, around the fireworks 

launch barge SWOB–1, during the 

loading of pyrotechnics at Los Angeles 

Berth 184, the transit of the barge from 

LA Berth 184 to the display location in 

vicinity of Southeast of Balboa Pier and 

for the duration of the fireworks display, 

on July 4, 2021. This temporary safety 

zone is necessary to provide for the 

safety of the waterway users by keeping 

them clear of potential harmful debris 

within the fall out zone during the 

fireworks display scheduled to take 

place within Newport Beach Harbor, 

and the loading and transit of the 

explosives. Entry of persons or vessels 

into this temporary safety zone is 

prohibited unless specifically 

authorized by the Captain of the Port, 

Los Angeles—Long Beach, or her 

designated representative. 

DATES: This rule is effective from 7 p.m. 

through 11 p.m. on July 4, 2021. 

ADDRESSES: To view documents 

mentioned in this preamble as being 

available in the docket, go to http://

www.regulations.gov, type USCG–2021– 

0439 in the ‘‘SEARCH’’ box and click 

‘‘SEARCH.’’ Click on Open Docket 

Folder on the line associated with this 

rule. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: If 

you have questions about this proposed 

rulemaking, call or email the LCDR 

Maria Wiener, U.S. Coast Guard Sector 

Los Angeles—Long Beach; telephone 


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