An Act to allow a charitable deduction for certain bequests.
PL 84-1011 (H.R.11834), enacted 08/06/1956

70 S T A T . ] 
PUBLIC LAW 1011-AUG. 6, 1956 
1075 
Public Law 1011 
CHAPTER 1020 
A N A C T 
August 6, 1956 
To allow a charitable deduction for certain bequests. 
[H. R. ti834] 
Estate tax. 
B e q u e s t s 
i n 
Be it enacted hy the Senate and House of Representatives 
of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled, That section 2055 
(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (estate tax deduction for tnTst 
transfers for public, charitable, and religious uses) is amended by 
26'^i<f*2055(b). 
inserting "(1) GENERAL RULE.—" before "Property" at the beginning 
thereof and by adding at the end thereof the following new para-
graph : 
"(2) 
SPECIAL RULE FOR CERTAIN BEQUESTS SUBJECT TO POWER OF 
APPOINTMENT.—For purposes of this section, in the case of a 
bequest in trust, if the surviving spouse of the decedent is entitled 
for life to all of the net income from the trust and such surviving 
spouse has a power of appointment over the corpus of such trust 
exercisable by will in favor of, among others, organizations 
described in subsection (a) (2), such bequest in trust, reduced 
by the value of the life estate, shall, to the extent such power is 
exercised in favor of such organizations, be deemed a transfer to 
such organizations by the decedent if— 
"(A) no part of the corpus of such trust is distributed to 
a beneficiary during the life of the surviving spouse; 
"(B) such surviving spouse was over 80 years of age at the 
date of the decedent's death; 
"(C) such surviving spouse by affidavit executed within 
one year after the death of the decedent specifies the organi-
zations described in subsection (a) (2) in favor of which he 
intends to exercise the power of appointment and indicates 
the amount or proportion each such organization is to i-eceive; 
and 
"(D) the power of appointment is exercised in favor of 
such organizations and in the amounts or proportions speci-
fied in the affidavit required under subparagraph (C). 
The affidavit referred to in subparagraph (C) shall be attached 
to the estate tax return of the decedent and shall constitute a 
sufficient basis for the allowance of the deduction under this 
paragraph in the first instance subject to a later disallowance of 
the deduction if the conditions herein specified are not complied 
with." 
SEC. 2. Section 6503 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954 (suspen- ,^£^^0" eifodof 
sion of running of period of limitations) is amended by redesignating i^tatf ons^*' 
subsection (e) (cross references) as subsection (f) and inserting the 
26'ul<f*6503!' 
following new subsection: 
"(e) 
CERTAIN POWERS OF APPOINTMENT.—The running of 
the 
period of limitations for assessment or collection of any tax imposed 
by chapter 11 shall be suspended in respect of the estate of a decedent 
ae'uicf ch^^u 
claiming a deduction under section 2055 (b) (2) until 30 days after supra. 
the expiration of the period for assessment or collection of the tax 
imposed by chapter 11 on the estate of the surviving spouse." 
SEC. 3. The amendments made by this Act shall apply in the case 
Effective date. 
of decedents dying after August 16,1954. 
Approved August 6, 1956.