President Signs Homebuyer Credit and NOL Carryback Extension Lesiglation

One day after Congressional passage on November 5th, President Obama, on November 6, 2009, signed the Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009. Besides an extension of unemployment benefits, the legislation includes an extension and expansion of the homebuyer credit and an extension and expansion of the five-year carryback of net operating losses. To pay for these provisions, the legislation includes a delay in the application of worldwide allocation of interest, an increase in the penalties for failure to file partnership and S corporation returns, and an acceleration of corporate estimated tax payments. The legislation also expands the requirement for electronic filing by return preparers. November 6, 2009, therefore becomes the enactment date for the legislation. The enactment date is also the effective date for several of the key new provisions involving the homebuyer credit and net operating loss carryback.