March 06,2002

Grassley Comment on the Enron Tax Records Disclosure Agreement


Sen. Chuck Grassley, ranking member of the Committee on Finance, made the followingcomment on the committee’s agreement with the Enron Corp. on the disclosure of the company’stax documents.

“We had an agreement three weeks ago, but the devil was in the details. It took three weeksof negotiations to reach today’s consent agreement. That took too long, but the negotiations arefinally over. Now we can stop negotiating and start investigating. I’m committed to trying to getto the bottom of what Enron did. This information will be important as we consider legislation torein in corporate tax shelters. The sooner this investigation gets under way, the better.”

Note: A copy of the disclosure agreement between Enron Corp., the Senate Committee onFinance and the Chief of Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation and a copy of the agreementbetween Enron Corp and the Internal Revenue Service follows statement.

Statement by Senators Max Baucus and Chuck Grassley
Senate Committee on Finance
United States Senate
March 6, 2002

Last month, we announced the Enron Corp.’s agreement to cooperate fully with the SenateFinance Committee's investigation into the company's downfall. The terms of this agreementincluded Enron’s decision to waive Federal privacy laws governing disclosure of their tax recordsso that Congress and the public could have a clearer understanding of Enron’s tax practices.Today, with negotiations between Enron Corp. and Committee investigators complete, weare releasing the details of this agreement and those aspects guiding public disclosure of documents.

This agreement paves the way for a thorough and comprehensive probe to determine whetherEnron may have engaged in aggressive tax planning to improperly avoid paying Federal incometaxes or exploited loopholes in our tax system.

Above all, it will allow members of the Committee, the Senate and the public to examine thefindings of this investigation so that Congress and the American public can have a clearer pictureof the events surrounding Enron’s demise and its implications for sound legislation concerning taxand pension policy.

___________________________________________________________________Disclosure Agreement between the Enron Corp., the Senate
Committee on Finance and the Chief of Staff of the Joint
Committee on Taxation
March 6, 2002

Whereas, by letter dated February 15, 2002, the Senate Committee on Finance ("the FinanceCommittee") has directed the Chief of Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation ("the JointCommittee") to assist the Finance Committee by conducting a review of the tax returns and relatedinformation and employee benefit and compensation programs of Enron Corp. ("Enron") and relatedentities; and Whereas, the goal of this review is to conduct an orderly, efficient, professional examinationof the activities and transactions related to Enron's tax returns and employee benefit andcompensation programs in order to inform the Finance Committee, the Senate, and the public of taxpolicy and administration issues arising out of Enron's circumstances that may lead torecommendations for reform of the federal tax and pension laws; and Whereas, to further the goal of this review, the Finance Committee has requested that Enron provide to the Finance Committee and the Joint Committee written consent to the public disclosure of its tax return and return information; and Whereas, Enron has advised the Finance Committee that it wishes to cooperate fully with this review, while at the same time assuring respect for its legitimate interests in taxpayer confidentiality;and Whereas, the Finance Committee and the Joint Committee share an understanding of the significant benefit that the principle of taxpayer confidentiality contributes to furthering values of proper tax administration:

It is, accordingly, hereby agreed by and among the Finance Committee, the Joint Committee,and Enron as follows:

1. Enron agrees to provide to the Finance Committee and the Joint Committee, promptlyand upon request from the Chairman of the Finance Committee or from the Joint Committee,respectively, copies of all federal income tax returns and related information of Enron and affiliatedor related entities that are not included in Enron's consolidated tax returns, and that are withinEnron's possession, custody, or control, for all years from 1985 through 2001, except for anydocuments for which Enron elects to assert any applicable privilege or legal objection, any assertionof which shall be accompanied by a document-by-document index sufficiently detailed to enablethe Finance Committee and/or the Joint Committee to evaluate Enron's assertion. Enron furtheragrees to use its reasonable efforts to provide any tax return and related information not in itspossession, custody or control related to affiliated or related entities. Enron may also submit to theFinance Committee or the Joint Committee, in the course of the review described in this agreement,any additional information that Enron believes will be helpful to either Committee.

2. The Finance Committee and the Joint Committee agree to seek tax returns and returninformation for years after 1995 in the first instance from the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to26 U.S.C. Section 6103(f) and to request such information from Enron pursuant to paragraph oneof this agreement only to the extent either Committee is unable to obtain this informationexpeditiously from the Secretary of the Treasury.

3. Enron consents to the disclosure by the Finance Committee or the Joint Committee oftax returns and return information, obtained by either Committee from the Secretary of the Treasurypursuant to 26 U.S.C. Section 6103, through official reports, meetings, or hearings of eitherCommittee, provided that, with respect to tax returns and return information for years after 1995,Enron consents to such public disclosure no earlier than June 10, 2002, in accordance with theexecuted consent waiver attached hereto. Enron further agrees to use its reasonable efforts to obtainsimilar consent waivers from its affiliated or related entities that are not included in Enron'sconsolidated federal tax returns.

4. The Finance Committee and the Joint Committee agree that they will not publiclydisclose nonpublic documents or information obtained pursuant to paragraphs one and two of thisagreement, except through official reports, meetings, or hearings of either Committee, as eitherCommittee deems appropriate to fulfill the goal of the review described above in this agreement, andthat neither Committee will publicly disclose any such information that would be return informationif it were in the possession of the Internal Revenue Service, for years after 1995 earlier than June10, 2002.

5. The Finance Committee or the Joint Committee may inform Enron, in the course of thereview described in this agreement, about the topics of the review and their priorities, to the extentthe Committees believe it will be helpful to Enron's ability to respond expeditiously to theCommittees' requests for information and in order to relieve unnecessary burden on Enron incomplying with the Committees' requests for information.

In witness whereof, each of the parties hereto has caused this agreement to be executedeffective as of this 7th day of March, 2002:

Senator Max Baucus
Chairman
Senate Committee on Finance
Dated: March 6, 2002

Senator Charles E. Grassley
Ranking Member
Senate Committee on Finance
Dated: March 6, 2002

Lindy L. Paull
Chief of Staff
Joint Committee on Taxation
Dated: March 6, 2002

Raymond P. Bowen, Jr.
Executive Vice President &
Chief Financial Officer
Enron Corp.
Dated: March 6, 2002

_______________________________________________________________________Consent to Disclosure of Tax Information between Enron Corp. and the Internal Revenue ServiceMarch 6, 2002

Pursuant to 26 U.S.C. Section 6103, I hereby authorize the Internal Revenue Service, the SenateCommittee on Finance, and the Chief of Staff of the Joint Committee on Taxation to disclose thereturns and return information, as those terms are defined in 26 U.S.C. Section 6103(b), of EnronCorp., as common parent of all the members of the affiliated group with which it files a consolidatedincome tax return for the tax years below, in the course of the official business of the SenateCommittee on Finance and the Joint Committee on Taxation regarding the events and transactionspreceding and surrounding the bankruptcy of Enron Corp., to be limited to disclosures in officialreports, hearings, and meetings of either the Senate Committee on Finance or the Joint Committeeon Taxation, and, with respect to the returns and return information for years after 1995, suchdisclosures may be made no earlier than June 10, 2002. I realize that these disclosures may be madeduring the course of public proceedings and that any information so disclosed may be made publiclyavailable.

Except to the extent disclosure is authorized herein, the returns and return information of thetaxpayer named below are confidential and are protected by law under the Internal Revenue Code.I certify that I have authority to execute this consent to disclose on behalf of the taxpayer namedbelow.

Name of Taxpayer: Enron Corp.
Employer Identification Number: 47-0255140
Address of Taxpayer: 1400 Smith Street, Houston Texas 77002
Type of Matters: Income tax, employment tax, excise tax, and qualified and nonqualified employee benefit plans and trusts and any other compensation plans, agreements, trusts or other arrangements whether or not deferred.
Tax Years: 1985 through 2001
Name and Title of Individual Raymond M. Bowen Jr
Executing Consent:
Signature: Raymond M. Bowen Jr