Voluntary Self-Identification of Race and Ethnicity; Policies and Procedures on Use and Security of Data

# (1)

(1) Tax preparation software development. To be approved by the department, software vendors must agree to and comply with the requirements outlined in the annual Oregon Department of Revenue Income Tax Letter of Intent.

# (2)

(2)Prohibition on use of race and ethnicity data by tax software vendors and professionals.Information about a taxpayer's race or ethnicity obtained for the purpose of completing the schedule cannot be used or retained beyond the extent necessary to assist the taxpayer in preparing or filing the taxpayer's return.

(a) Prohibited actions include, but are not limited to:

(A) Transmission of a taxpayer's race or ethnicity information to a third party;

(B) Use of a taxpayer's race or ethnicity information for marketing purposes; or

(C) Storage of such information for use in pre-populating any field on a taxpayer's tax return for a later tax year.

(b) Engaging in any prohibited action is a violation of the agreement to the terms of the Letter of Intent, which may result in the department revoking an approved software provider status and rejecting any electronic or paper returns submitted using its product.

(c) Tax professionals are prohibited from filing the schedule without their customers' consent and must only include race and ethnicity information directly provided by the taxpayer.