Extraordinary items
Extraordinary items -
(1) General principles. Extraordinary items may not be prorated. The partnership must allocate extraordinary items among the partners in proportion to their interests in the partnership item at the time of day on which the extraordinary item occurred, regardless of the method (interim closing or proration method) and convention (daily, semi-monthly, or monthly) otherwise used by the partnership. These rules require the allocation of extraordinary items as an exception to the proration method, which would otherwise ratably allocate the extraordinary items across the segment, and the conventions, which could otherwise inappropriately shift extraordinary items between a transferor and transferee. However, publicly traded partnerships (as defined in section 7704(b)) that are treated as partnerships may, but are not required to, apply their selected convention in determining who held publicly traded units (as described in ยง 1.7704-1(b) or (c)(1)) at the time of the occurrence of an extraordinary item. Extraordinary items continue to be subject to any special limitation or requirement relating to the timing or amount of income, gain, loss, deduction, or credit applicable to the entire partnership taxable year (for example, the limitation for section 179 expenses).
(2) Definition. Except as provided in paragraph (e)(3) of this section, an extraordinary item is:
(i) Any item from the disposition or abandonment (other than in the ordinary course of business) of a capital asset as defined in section 1221 (determined without the application of any other rules of law);
(ii) Any item from the disposition or abandonment (other than in the ordinary course of business) of property used in a trade or business as defined in section 1231(b) (determined without the application of any holding period requirement);
(iii) Any item from the disposition or abandonment of an asset described in section 1221(a)(1), (a)(3), (a)(4), or (a)(5) if substantially all the assets in the same category from the same trade or business are disposed of or abandoned in one transaction (or series of related transactions);
(iv) Any item from assets disposed of in an applicable asset acquisition under section 1060(c);
(v) Any item resulting from any change in accounting method initiated by the filing of the appropriate form after a variation occurs;
(vi) Any item from the discharge or retirement of indebtedness (except items subject to section 108(e)(8) or 108(i), which are subject to special allocation rules provided in section 108(e)(8) and 108(i));
(vii) Any item from the settlement of a tort or similar third-party liability or payment of a judgment;
(viii) Any credit, to the extent it arises from activities or items that are not ratably allocated (for example, the rehabilitation credit under section 47, which is based on placement in service);
(ix) For all partnerships, any additional item if, the partners agree (within the meaning of paragraph (f) of this section) to consistently treat such item as an extraordinary item for that taxable year; however, this rule does not apply if treating that additional item as an extraordinary item would result in a substantial distortion of income in any partner's return; any additional extraordinary items continue to be subject to any special limitation or requirement relating to the timing or amount of income, gain, loss, deduction, or credit applicable to the entire partnership taxable year (for example, the limitation for section 179 expenses);
(x) Any item which, in the opinion of the Commissioner, would, if ratably allocated, result in a substantial distortion of income in any return in which the item is included;
(xi) Any item identified as an additional class of extraordinary item in guidance published in the Internal Revenue Bulletin.
(3) Small item exception. A partnership may treat an item described in paragraph (e)(2) of this section as other than an extraordinary item for purposes of this paragraph (e) if, for the partnership's taxable year the total of all items in the particular class of extraordinary items (as enumerated in paragraphs (e)(2)(i) through (xi) of this section, for example, all tort or similar liabilities, but in no event counting an extraordinary item more than once) is less than five percent of the partnership's gross income, including tax-exempt income described in section 705(a)(1)(B), in the case of income or gain items, or gross expenses and losses, including section 705(a)(2)(B) expenditures, in the case of losses and expense items; and the total amount of the extraordinary items from all classes of extraordinary items amounting to less than five percent of the partnership's gross income, including tax-exempt income described in section 705(a)(1)(B), in the case of income or gain items, or gross expenses and losses, including section 705(a)(2)(B) expenditures, in the case of losses and expense items, does not exceed $10 million in the taxable year, determined by treating all such extraordinary items as positive amounts.
(4) Examples. The following examples illustrate the provisions of this paragraph (e).
(f) Agreement of the partners. For purposes of paragraphs (a)(3)(iii) (relating to selection of the proration method), (c)(3) (relating to selection of the semi-monthly or monthly convention), (d) (relating to performance of regular monthly or semi-monthly interim closings), and (e)(2)(ix) (relating to selection of additional extraordinary items) of this section, the term agreement of the partners means either an agreement of all the partners to select the method, convention, or extraordinary item in a dated, written statement maintained with the partnership's books and records, including, for example, a selection that is included in the partnership agreement, or a selection of the method, convention, or extraordinary item made by a person authorized to make that selection, including under a grant of general authority provided for by either state law or in the partnership agreement, if that person's selection is in a dated, written statement maintained with the partnership's books and records. In either case, the dated written agreement must be maintained with the partnership's books and records by the due date, including extension, of the partnership's tax return.
(g) Effective/applicability date. Except with respect to paragraph (c)(3) of this section, this section applies for partnership taxable years that begin on or after August 3, 2015. The rules of paragraph (c)(3) of this section apply for taxable years of partnerships other than existing publicly traded partnerships that begin on or after August 3, 2015. For purposes of the immediately preceding sentence, an existing publicly traded partnership is a partnership described in section 7704(b) that was formed prior to April 14, 2009. For purposes of this effective date provision, the termination of a publicly traded partnership under section 708(b)(1)(B) due to the sale or exchange of 50 percent or more of the total interests in partnership capital and profits is disregarded in determining whether the publicly traded partnership is an existing publicly traded partnership.