MINOR MEMOS. The IRS business plan this year calls for rewriting so-called “true-lease guidelines” that the agency has used since 1975 . . . . The government is arguing in the US tax court that a payment a lessee made to cancel a lease is a capital loss . . . . Expect to see a “technical advice memorandum” this summer that explains when one can have a “like-kind exchange” of intangible property. A power contract is an example of intangible property. Ordinarily, converting an asset into something else triggers taxes. However, this is not true if the trade qualifies as a “like-kind exchange” . . . . The IRS continues to insist that favorable financing is not a separate asset. Thus, when one acquires a business and takes assets subject to liabilities with favorable financing terms, no part of the purchase price can be allocated to the favorable financing. The IRS made the statement in a “field service advice” to an agent in March.