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Memorandum of Disapproval of Bill for the Relief of Philip Cooperman, Aron Shriro, and Samuel Stackman.
September 7, 1957

I AM WITHHOLDING my approval of H. R. 1733, "For the relief of Philip Cooperman, Aron Shriro, and Samuel Stackman."

The bill would provide that, for the purpose of determining the individual liability for income taxes for the taxable year 1951 of Philip Cooperman, Aron Shriro, and Samuel Stackman, the elections of said Philip Cooperman, Aron Shriro, and Samuel Stackman, sole stockholders of Queens Syndicate, Incorporated, which was liquidated pursuant to a plan of complete liquidation adopted on the first day of September 1951, to have the benefits of section 112 (b) (7) (A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1939 would be considered to have been filed within thirty days after the date of adoption of such plan. The bill states that the benefits of section 112 (b) (7) were denied to the stockholders because the mailing of the elections was delayed, without negligence or fault on the part of the stockholders, until after the thirtieth day following the adoption of the plan of complete liquidation.

Section 112 (b) (7) provides a special rule in the case of certain complete liquidations of domestic corporations occurring withinone calendar month for the treatment of gain on the shares of stock owned by qualified electing shareholders. The effect of this section is to permit deferral of tax upon unrealized appreciation in the value of the property distributed in liquidation. An election to be governed by section 112 ( b ) ( 7 ) must be filed by the shareholder or by the liquidating corporation with the Commissioner of Internal Revenue on or before midnight of the thirtieth day after adoption of the plan of liquidation. Essentially, H. R.
1733 would waive this requirement for the named taxpayers.

The records of the Treasury Department disclose that it was not involved in the untimely filing by these taxpayers of the elections. These records show that on September 1, 1951, Queens Syndicate, Incorporated, adopted a plan of complete liquidation. On November 18, 1951, elections on Form 964, signed by the electing shareholders, were received by the office of the District Director of Internal Revenue, Brooklyn, New York. Accordingly, the filing of the elections was delayed for more than six weeks after the 30-day period prescribed by law for the filing of such elections.

The granting of special relief in this case would constitute an unfair discrimination against other taxpayers similarly situated and would create an undesirable precedent which might encourage other taxpayers to seek relief in the same manner.

Under the circumstances, therefore, I am constrained to withhold my approval of the bill.
DWIGHT D. EISENHOWER