The table below lists the commonly-used acronyms in Joint Committee cases.

The JCT is a nonpartisan committee of the United States Congress, originally established under the Revenue Act of 1926. JCT formally consists of ten Members of Congress: five from the Senate Committee on Finance; and five Members from the House Committee on Ways and Means. The JCT monitors the operation of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and its administration of the tax laws. The JCT’s duties are set forth in IRC 8022 which include consideration of possible changes in the tax laws leading to their clarification, simplification or revision to prevent undue hardships or the granting of unintended benefits.

In addition, concerns over the potential for corruption and favoritism prompted the enactment of IRC 6405. IRC 6405 provides the JCT with oversight (as opposed to approval) authority of refunds of income, estate and gift taxes, and certain excise taxes in excess of a statutorily prescribed amount. It is to these refund cases that these procedures apply.

The JCR program is part of the IRS and not a part of JCT. The Large Business and International (LB&I) Division of IRS provides the support function for the servicewide JCR program. JCR oversees the preparation of Joint Committee reports for all agreed examined/surveyed cases for IRC 6405 refunds of income, estate and gift taxes, and certain excise taxes in excess of the statutory threshold.

JCR includes specialists located in various posts of duty around the country. Staffing of the program will vary depending on case workload.

A refund or credit subject to Joint Committee review can arise from an examination, an unpaid claim, or tentative allowances in excess of the jurisdictional amount. The examiner is responsible for determining whether a case falls under Joint Committee jurisdiction. The fact that a return or examination must be reported to JCT does not alter the nature of the examination that may be conducted, nor does it limit the examiner’s ability to survey the return if this is the action deemed appropriate.

House of Representative’s bill (H.R. 5771) was signed by the President and became law effective December 19, 2014 to increase the JC threshold for C Corporations. The jurisdictional amount for C Corporations is in excess of $5 million and for all other taxpayers the jurisdictional amount is in excess of $2 million.

JCR oversees the preparation of Joint Committee reports for all agreed, partially agreed, and no-change cases and surveyed cases, regardless of the business operating division. A Joint Committee Specialist (JCS) reviews the case files for procedural, computational and technical accuracy and prepares the report that is submitted to the JCT refund staff for review.

The JCT staff attorneys (also known as Refund Counsel) will review the Joint Committee report and other documentation as deemed necessary. Should the staff attorney have questions, they are usually resolved informally through phone calls or e-mails to the JCR. In some instances, a written inquiry may be issued. When JCR is notified that the staff attorney has no further questions or concerns, the case can be processed. In the event the JCT disagrees with or questions the position taken in the report, the case is, generally, as a matter of agency policy, not processed pending the resolution of the dispute. JCT will issue either a clearance letter or Staff Review Memorandum (SRM) upon completion of their review.

IRM 4.36 is organized to follow the processing of a Joint Committee case from inception to completion. IRM 4.36.2 discusses determining if a case falls under JCT jurisdiction. It also outlines the procedure for determining whether a multi-year examination case with deficiencies and overassessments falls under JCT jurisdiction.

IRM 4.36.3 describes the examiner's responsibilities, including documentation requirements and statute control. It also addresses examination procedures for issue support and dispute resolution.

IRM 4.36.4 provides guidance for the JC specialist's review and report preparation responsibilities, including procedures relating to issue support and dispute resolution.

IRM 4.36.5 describes the various JC reports that may be submitted to the JCT.

The JCR program’s website at http://lmsb.irs.gov/hq/pqa/4/home.asp contains a wealth of information about all the various aspects of a Joint Committee case, including frequently asked questions, job aids, contact information, and JC forms. It is a place to visit for valuable tools and resources.