This notice publishes a tentative determination under § 809 of the Internal Revenue Code of the “recomputed differential earnings rate” for 2004. This rate is used by mutual life insurance companies to calculate their federal income tax liability for taxable years beginning in 2005.

The Job Creation and Worker Assistance Act of 2002, Pub. L. 107-147, § 611, amended § 809 by adding new paragraph (j). Section 809(j) provides that the differential earnings rate shall be treated as zero for purposes of computing both the differential earnings amount and the recomputed differential earnings amount for a mutual life insurance company’s taxable years beginning in 2001, 2002, or 2003. See Notice 2002-33, 2002-1 C.B. 989. Subsequently, the Pension Funding Equity Act of 2004, Pub. L. 108-218, § 205, repealed § 809 of the Code for taxable years beginning after December 31, 2004. Therefore, the Internal Revenue Service is required to determine a differential earnings rate for 2004 and a recomputed differential earnings rate for 2004. The differential earnings rate for 2004 was zero. See Rev. Rul. 2005-58, 2005-36 I.R.B. 465.

The tentative determination of the rates is set forth in Table 1.

For additional background concerning the tentative recomputed differential earnings rate, see Notice 2002-19, 2002-1 C.B. 619.