LIFO; price indexes; department stores. The April 2004 Bureau of Labor Statistics price indexes are accepted for use by department stores employing the retail inventory and last-in, first-out inventory methods for valuing inventories for tax years ended on, or with reference to, April 30, 2004.

Business expenses; timber fertilization. The costs incurred by a timber grower for the post-establishment fertilization of an established timber stand are ordinary and necessary business expenses deductible under section 162 of the Code. This ruling also provides procedures for a taxpayer to automatically change its method of accounting for post-establishment fertilization costs to the method provided in this ruling. Rev. Proc. 2002-9 modified and amplified.