Notice 2006-64: Guidance on the Application of Section 409A to Accelerated Payments to Satisfy Federal Conflicts of Interest

The legislative history to section 409A provides that it was intended that the Secretary of Treasury would provide limited exceptions to the prohibition on acceleration of payments under 409A. The IRS has issued Notice 2006-64 to clarify that section 409A may permit acceleration of the time or schedule of payment as is necessary to satisfy requirements established pursuant to a written determination by the Office of Government Ethics that a divestiture of the financial interest or termination of the financial arrangement “is reasonably necessary to comply with any Federal conflict of interest statute, regulation, rule or executive order, or as is requested by a congressional committee as a condition of confirmation.”