This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. Supportive team with long term staff. [13] Operations started in 1970 when about 400 American families moved to Central Australia. It is jointly operated by Australia and the United States, and since 1988 it has been officially called the Joint Defence Facility Pine Gap (JDFPG); previously, it was known as Joint Defence Space Research Facility. Terrifying reality of China war laid bare, Nautilus Institute for Security and Sustainability, Independent and Peaceful Australia Network argue Pine Gap and its value to the US makes us a target. Almost half of the workers are locals which includes government personnel, operations workers, AFP Protective Services officers, as well as Australian contractors. Alice Springs author and journalist Kieran Finnane will be launching her latest book this morning exploring local dissent against military operations at Pine Gap facilities. Q5. He said the teams would be working to build a "full order of battle". [7] Central Australia was chosen because it was too remote for spy ships passing in international waters to intercept the signal. The Pine Gap Agreement applies only to U.S. employees of U.S. federal government contractors at the JDFPG who went to Australia solely to work at JDFPG. Q7. ECT Mentor - offering you support and advice. As the employer, you would withhold and remit applicable U.S. and Australian taxes throughout the year to the IRS and ATO, respectively. foreign instrumentation signals intelligence, Movie and Television Review and Classification Board, "Premiere dates set for 'Pine Gap' and 'Fighting Season', "Mat King to direct 'Pine Gap' for the ABC and Netflix", "Pine Gap - Episodes Guide and Summaries", "Pine Gap review lots of yakkety yak and occasional scenes of bonking", Vietnam orders Netflix to remove Australian spy show Pine Gap over South China Sea map, Vietnam orders Netflix to remove Australian spy show over South China Sea map, "Netflix ordered to remove 'Pine Gap' episodes on China's nine-dash line DFA", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pine_Gap_(TV_series)&oldid=1135865167, English-language Netflix original programming, Australian Broadcasting Corporation original programming, Television shows set in the Northern Territory, Use Australian English from November 2021, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, The A-Crew intelligence team at the Pine Gap joint defence facility detects a missile launch in Myanmar that brings down a small passenger plane. [13], Pine Gap was removed from Netflix in Vietnam, following an order from the country's Authority of Broadcasting and Electronic Information, as a map with the nine-dash line was shown in two episodes of the series, albeit in a context in which characters criticised China's claim over the waters in on-screen dialogue. The West is making a big miscalculation when it comes to a conflict with China and it could be a very costly mistake. Do these FAQs and procedures apply to me? Pine Gap operations and maintenance contract up for renewal. Rudy and Ethan strongly believe Jas is the spy. An official website of the United States Government. 15 Wilkinson Street, Alice Springs NT 0870 Save Contact. Pine Gap Jobs in All Australia - SEEK What All work types paying $0 to $350K+ listedany time 3 jobs Sorted by relevance Receive new jobs for this search by email Create alert Lead Educator Queensland Childcare Services Pty Ltd 12d ago Crestmead, Brisbane QLD $27 - $31 per hour Education & Training Childcare & Outside School Hours Care The amount of withholding would depend on various circumstances, including the contents of the employees U.S. Forms W-4 and Form 673, and whether the employee has an Australian tax file number (TFN). Speaking to news.com.au, he said security around the facility was very tight with police patrols taking place every 10 minutes. By 2020 the population of the Alice Springs local government area, which reaches to the eastern boundary of the Pine Gap Prohibited Area, had increased by 10,000 since the early 1980s to 26,448. Officially, Pine Gap is a collaboration between the Australian Department of Defence and the Pentagon's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Pine Gap, an Australian armed thriller, premiered on Netflix (Ozark) on December 7, 2018. You are not obligated under U.S. or Australian taxation law to enter into a closing agreement; the IRS and ATO expect only that you properly report and pay U.S. and Australian taxes consistent with whether you entered into a closing agreement for the taxable period. What are the implications for me, as the employer, if my JDFPG employee enters into a closing agreement with the IRS in which the employee agrees not to claim the foreign earned income exclusion for JDFPG employment income? All employees transferred to Alice Springs on the O&M Program are provided good quality [Pine Gap] housing. In a statement, the Department of Defence said it would not comment on matters before the courts or between another company and its employees. Belle has an affair with Zhou, whose gas mining deal with the Arrenrte people has been approved by the Australian authorities. Politics and a joint defense intelligence base at Pine Gap are the main themes in this movie. For the TV series, see, Alleged CIA involvement in the Whitlam Dismissal, "Australian outback station at forefront of US spying arsenal", "Mission Ground Station Declassification (NRO)", The Base: Pine Gap's Role in US Warfighting, The U.S. Spy Hub in the Heart of Australia, "An American Spy Base Hidden in Australia's Outback", "Expanded Communications Satellite Surveillance and Intelligence Activities utilising Multi-beam Antenna Systems", "Pine Gap's role in US drone strikes should be investigated rights groups", "Tantalising secrets of Australia's intelligence world revealed", "The British-American coup that ended Australian independence", "Gough Whitlam dismissal: What we know so far about the palace letters and Australian PM's sacking", http://nautilus.org/publications/books/australian-forces-abroad/defence-facilities/pine-gap/pine-gap-protests/protests-hist/, http://www.readperiodicals.com/201001/2224850971.html#b, "AABCC Pine Gap Protest Sept 2002 report", "Christian Pacifists Challenge Pine Gap In Court", "The Queen v Law & Ors [2008] NTCCA 4 (19 March 2008)", An Agreement to extend the period of operation of the Joint Defence Facility at Pine Gap, "Pine Gap gears for war with eye on Iraq", "Judge rejects Pine Gap house arrest bid", "Pine Gap protest linked to Iraq war, pacifists tell court", Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, Australian Geospatial-Intelligence Organisation, Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission, Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre, Secretaries Committee on National Security, National Intelligence Coordination Committee, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Defence Strategic Policy and Intelligence Group, Inspector-General of Intelligence and Security, Parliamentary Joint Committee on Intelligence and Security, Independent National Security Legislation Monitor, Inspector-General of the Australian Defence Force, 1st Division (Deployable Joint Force Headquarters), Australian Defence Force ranks and insignia, Sexual orientation and gender identity in the Australian military, Australian Defence Force Basic Flying Training School, Australia, New Zealand, United States Security Treaty, Defending Australia in the Asia Pacific Century White Paper, Review of Australia's Defence Capabilities Report, Australian National University Strategic and Defence Studies Centre, Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, Australian Defence Force colours, standards and guidons, History of the Royal Australian Air Force, Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands, Military intervention against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, Official History of Australia in the War of 19141918, The Official History of Australia's Involvement in Southeast Asian Conflicts 19481975, Official History of Australian Peacekeeping, Humanitarian and Post-Cold War Operations, Australian military involvement in peacekeeping, Ambassadors of Australia to the United States, Ambassadors of the United States to Australia, AustraliaUnited States Free Trade Agreement, Friends of Australia Congressional Caucus, United States presidential visits to Australia, U.S./Australia Parliamentary Friendship Group, Implications of U.S. gene patent invalidation on Australia, International Maritime Security Construct, 2018 FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup Final, Category:AustraliaUnited States relations, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pine_Gap&oldid=1142284672, Buildings and structures in Alice Springs, AustraliaUnited States military relations, Military installations of the United States in Australia, Military installations in the Northern Territory, Articles with dead external links from March 2023, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English, Articles with unsourced statements from November 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Mission 8300 with 4 geosynchronous satellites that covered the former Soviet Union, China, South Asia, East Asia, the Middle East, Eastern Europe, and countries on the Atlantic Ocean, On 11 November 1983, Aboriginal women led 700 women to the Pine Gap gates where they fell silent for 11 minutes to commemorate, On 57 October 2002 a number of groups (including Quakers and the. The union representing the employees said it believed the Joint Defence Facility may be preferencing the employment of Americans over Australians. Do these FAQs and procedures apply to me? Professor Tanter said Putin's threat of nuclear weapons hadcatapulted world politics back to the Cold War. The CIA is a US government agency that provides information (what we call "intelligence") on foreign countries to the President, the National Security Council, and other US government officials to help them make good decisions about national security issues. [1], The station is partly run by the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), US National Security Agency (NSA), and US National Reconnaissance Office (NRO) and is a key contributor to the NSA's global interception/surveillance effort, which included the ECHELON program. What if I do not enter into a closing agreement with the IRS? Lead your team to success. Q4. In one of the letters, John Kerr describes his alleged CIA connections as 'Nonsense of course', and assured the Queen of his continued loyalty.[22]. Pine Gap is an international political thriller which is set around the Australian and American joint defence intelligence facility at Pine Gap, south-west of the town of Alice Springs, Australia. . Professor Tanter said Pine Gap would certainly be a nucleartarget in the unlikely case of a war between Russia and the United States. The work of the jointly run US and Australian base known as Joint Defence Facility Pine Gap is vital after Russian President Vladimir Putin puthis country's nuclear deterrent forces on "high alert". AEST = Australian Eastern Standard Time which is 10 hours ahead of GMT (Greenwich Mean Time), abc.net.au/news/pine-gap-defence-contractor-sued-employees-raytheon-secretive-nt/10959388, Help keep family & friends informed by sharing this article, Australia's biggest drug bust: $1 billion worth of cocaine linked to Mexican cartel intercepted, 'Pincers are closing': Ukrainian forces under pressure as Russians shell roads out of Bakhmut, Four in hospital after terrifying home invasion by gang armed with machetes, knives, hammer, 'We have got the balance right': PM gives Greens' super demands short shrift, Crowd laughs as Russia's foreign minister claims Ukraine war 'was launched against us', The tense, 10-minute meeting that left Russia's chief diplomat smoking outside in the blazing sun, 'Celebrity leaders': Mike Pompeo, Nikki Haley take veiled jabs at Donald Trump in CPAC remarks. What Lies Below Pine Gap Australia? Or, depending on your Form W-4 on file, your employer might over- or under-withhold U.S. taxes on your income.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: IRS, A6. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data. "It also collects the thermal imagery, that heat bloom, of missiles launching.". Today, there are 1,000 workers at Pine Gap, about half of whom are believed to be Australians, including the base's deputy commander. These FAQs do not apply to U.S. citizen and resident alien employees of U.S. federal government contractors at locations other than JDFPG because the Pine Gap Agreement does not apply to them. "Pine Gap collects two main sources of intelligence," Professor Tanter, from Melbourne University,said. As a U.S. citizen or resident alien, you must report your worldwide income, including your JDFPG employment income, to the IRS on a timely filed tax return. Now Australia has made a promise. Discontented with her husband Ethan's secrecy, Belle befriends Zhou Lin while visiting an Arrernte sacred site. If your JDFPG employment income is taxed in Australia, that income is considered foreign-source income for U.S. tax purposes and may be eligible for a foreign tax credit on your U.S. tax return, subject to any applicable limitations, including the restrictions on claiming foreign tax credits if you choose to exclude foreign earned income from your U.S. income. The facility, which marks its 50th anniversary this year and has conjured up its share of supporters and critics, maintains as big a presence in Central Australia as Uluru. Conversely, both U.S. and Australian tax would be withheld if the employee does not enter into a closing agreement.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: ATO/IRS, A3. Q2. Article 9 of the Pine Gap Agreement addresses how U.S. citizens and resident aliens, who are not also Australian citizens, working at the facility are taxed by the United States and Australia. [20][21] Victor Marchetti, a CIA officer who had helped run the facility, said that this consideration "caused apoplexy in the White House, [and] a kind of Chile [coup] was set in motion", with the CIA and MI6 working together to get rid of the Prime Minister. The facility does, however, employ hundreds of workers and make up a large part of the Alice Springs economy. Join us for a flyby of the Pine Gap Joint Defence Facility near Alice Springs. Pursuant to the Pine Gap Agreement, Australia exempts your employees income from employment at JDFPG from Australia tax if the employee went to Australia solely to work at JDFPG and the income is not exempt, and is brought to tax, in the United States. Overview []. Pine Gap features prominently in the third and fourth thriller novels of the Jack West Jr. seriesThe Five Greatest Warriors and The Four Legendary Kingdoms, respectivelyby the Australian writer Matthew Reilly. Pine Gap is the commonly used name for a satellite tracking station approximately 18 kilometres (11 mi) south-west of the town of Alice Springs in the centre of Australia which is operated by both Australia and the United States. Does the Treaty supersede the Pine Gap Agreement? If your employer does not have proof that you entered into the closing agreement, your employer must withhold Australian taxes on your JDFPG employment income, which would then require you to apply for any applicable refund in Australia. In addition, if you provide a fringe benefit to the employee you may be liable for Australian fringe benefits tax (FBT) on its taxable value.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: ATO/IRS, Page Last Reviewed or Updated: 07-Feb-2023, Request for Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) and Certification, Employers engaged in a trade or business who pay compensation, Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS). Ball described the facility as the ground control and processing station for geosynchronous satellites engaged in signals intelligence collection, outlining four categories of signals collected: Ball described the operational area as containing three sections: Satellite Station Keeping Section, Signals Processing Station and the Signals Analysis Section, from which Australians were barred until 1980. The job of the satellites controlled from Pine Gap was to eavesdrop on Soviet missile tests. A former US agent lifts the lid on some of the top secret projects he worked on while at Australia's remote Pine Gap "spy station". According to the paper, Pine Gap makes a critical contribution to the security interests of Australia and the United States, delivering information on intelligence priorities such as terrorism, the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, and military and weapons developments, while contributing to the verification of arms control and disarmament agreements. Q5. If you enter into a closing agreement with the IRS, your employer has no obligation to withhold Australian taxes on your income from employment at JDFPG for the taxable period(s) covered by the closing agreement, and you are not required to file an Australian tax return for that income. In 1982 the Australian band Midnight Oil released "Power and the Passion", which contains a reference to Pine Gap. I am a U.S. citizen or resident alien employee of a U.S. federal government contractor working outside the United Statesbut not at JDFPG. "One is telephone transmissions, radar transmissions, any kind of electronic transmissions, communications or otherwise. Pine Gap is one of the largest ground satellite stations in the world, at the present time the facility currently contains eight large radomes, an extremely large computer room and 20 or so service, support buildings. The one thing researchers know does exist is the huge amount of PC power inside the facility. As explained above, if you enter into a closing agreement with the IRS, your employer will not withhold Australian taxes on your JDFPG employment income, and you are not required to file an Australian tax return for that income. As explained in FAQ Q2, above, income earned as the employee of a U.S. federal government contractor is not exempt from Australian tax under Article 19 (Governmental Remuneration) of the United States-Australia income tax treatyPDF.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: ATO/IRS, A10. "Once their positions were made redundant they were retrenched, they were entitled to redundancy payment.". A union has claimed Pine Gap has been increasing the preferencing of US workers to help run the base Six former employees of Raytheon said that when the company lost its contract to complete specialised IT work at the Joint Defence Facility Pine Gap near Alice Springs they were offered jobs with the organisation well below their level of expertise. Your employees U.S. and Australian reporting and payment obligations will differ depending on whether he or she elects to exclude some or all of this income from U.S. tax under the foreign earned income exclusion in section 911 of the Internal Revenue Code.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: ATO/IRS, A2. Starring: Parker Sawyers, Jacqueline McKenzie, Steve Toussaint. 159.89.19.14 As a U.S. citizen or resident alien, do I have to pay income tax to the United States or Australia on JDFPG employment income? Pursuant to the closing agreements terms and section 7121 of the Internal Revenue Code, a closing agreement that is properly executed by a taxpayer and an IRS official is a final agreement and may not be reopened, except in the event of fraud, malfeasance, or misrepresentation of material fact.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: IRS, A9. The Deputy Project & Construction Manager is responsible for the coordination and execution of the projects in development, through Linfox Alice Springs site require a HR driver to join the team for local pick up and deliveries. A4. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page. The base is staffed by both Americans and Australians, who monitor satellite and communication transmissions in the area for potential threats to either country. Naval Security Group Detachment, Alice Spring was established in October, 1998. He said the average person would be lucky to get within a kilometre of it. "It is disappointing that a company this well-resourced is still trying to dodge their responsibilities and pay the redundancies entitled to these workers.". "The enterprise agreement doesn't allow Raytheon to redeploy them to other positions, particularly inferior positions. They are broken by a further, larger granite cleft - Heavitree Gap, or "the Gap." Alice Springs is spread out on the other side of the ranges like a baseball diamond, its bottom tip cradled in the Gap. Two words showed something was wrong with the system, After centuries of Murdaugh rule in the Deep South, the family's power ends with a life sentence for murder, With Prince Andrew's sweetheart mansion rental ending, King Charles offers compromise that shocks his son, Flooding in southern Malaysia forces 40,000 people to flee homes. How long does the closing agreement apply? The intent of the agreement was to ensure that the income earned by these individuals would be taxed only in the United States, rather than in both jurisdictions. Pine Gap. Alice Springs News co-founder Kieran Finnane (pictured) appeared in the program. Jas lands herself in trouble with Jacob when she hacks into the Australian Prime Ministers Chief of Staff Robert Boyles email account. [9]:p 4546[10], The location is strategically significant because it controls United States spy satellites as they pass over one-third of the globe, including China, the Asian parts of Russia, and the Middle East. It's a 3 day drive from Sydney to Alice Springs. Pine Gap is a satellite surveillance base and Australian Earth station approximately 18km (11mi) south-west of the town of Alice Springs, Northern Territory in the center of Australia. This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 15:22. [7], Since the end of the Cold War, the station has mainly been employed to intercept and record weapons and communications signals from countries in Asia, such as China and North Korea. When you step into this role, you'll be the one. FROM employing hundreds of Aussies to playing a key role in the US defence missile shield. Indeed, Pine Gap had no neighbours close enough to do that, and ASIO advised Canberra that Alice Springs was a "clear area" of local communists. Can the dogs of Chernobyl teach us new tricks when it comes to our own survival? Looking for an Early Childhood Teacher to inspire a room full of eager little learners. Zhou is courting the Arrernte people for the gas extraction project, promising jobs. A highly secretive defence intelligence facility, on the outskirts of Alice Springs, is likely gathering information about the escalating situation in Ukraine. Professor Tanter said the bases would also be collecting information about Russian military movement in Belarus, communication from politicians and the military's high command. 1986 - Over 300 people arrested at a Pine Gap Protest Rally at the gates of Pine Gap. Following a confrontation with Kath, Ethan manages to defuse the South China Sea standoff by convincing President Kerr that the Chinese would deploy nuclear weapons if the US were to use armed forces to rescue their downed pilot. Q12. This service may include material from Agence France-Presse (AFP), APTN, Reuters, AAP, CNN and the BBC World Service which is copyright and cannot be reproduced. [10] Helen Razer of the Daily Review also gave the TV series a negative review, disparaging it as "a poor attempt at promoting favourable propaganda about AustraliaUnited States relations". The spy base has been operating in Australia for more than 50 years, yet little is known about its activities. He also criticised the series for what he regarded as its poor story-writing and unsatisfactory acting, giving it one out of five stars. Pine Gap contributes to and collects data used for US drones in the Middle East and Pakistan. subClassification: Childcare & Outside School Hours Care. No. Route 1023 (Nature Run Road) in Ligonier Township from Hall Road to Kissell Springs Road due . The IRS and the Australian Taxation Office cooperated to develop these FAQs. In December 2005 six members of the Christians Against All Terrorism group staged a protest outside Pine Gap. Developments at the United States-Australian satellite intelligence base at Pine Gap near Alice Springs give the US an unprecedented capability to . Lawyer for the workers, Giri Sivaraman from Maurice Blackburn, said despite the base's secretive activities, he saw the dispute as a typical workers' rights conflict. The Alice Springs News enhanced the background of the photo but the shadow of Ms Golding's hand on the base of the antenna shows the picture is authentic. 8a-5p (PT no Benefits) Big Stone Gap, VAJob Code:MSHA000AZALocation:LONESOME PINE HOSPITAL, Big Stone. Even so, sometimes the old girl does us proud. [20][21], In 2020, previously confidential private correspondences between the Palace and the Governor-General were released. Under the closing agreement, you agree that you will not claim the foreign earned income exclusion for your JDFPG employment income earned during the taxable period(s) covered by the closing agreement. 32 Pine Gap Australia Photos and Premium High Res Pictures - Getty Images CREATIVE FILTERS CREATIVE EDITORIAL VIDEO 32 Pine Gap Australia Premium High Res Photos Browse 32 pine gap australia stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. "These employees have the benefit of an enterprise agreement, and Raytheon has to comply with this enterprise agreement," he said. The six-part series is written and created by Greg Haddrick and Felicity Packard with Mat King directing all six episodes. [1] Cast [ edit] Parker Sawyers as Gus Thomson, an American mission director In addition, you would be required to file an income tax return reporting your JDFPG employment income to the ATO. While government ministers denied that Australia was a nuclear target, bureaucrats in Canberra secretly planned for Armageddon in the suburbs of Alice Springs. "What that tells them [is]where the Russian forces areand then how they're moving and what they're planning to do.". The IRS has recently revised the pro forma closing agreement and consent to disclose document for employees of U.S. federal government contractors who wish to enter into closing agreements with respect to their employment income earned at the JDFPG. Executes Internal Security Controls for the Joint Defense Facility Pine Gap (JDFPG) Alice Springs, Australia through performance of compliance assessment reviews and self-inspections to ensure . Cloudflare Ray ID: 7a2b9694dfad3836 [3] The series is produced by Screentime. But Melbourne-based photographer Kristian Laemmle-Ruff got closer than most people when he snapped a series of photos of the facility last year. 29 days ago Access Control - TS/SCI with Poly new Leidos - Alice Springs NT Missing: defence Originally code-named MERINO, it is the ground station for a satellite network that intercepts telephone, radio, data links, and other communications around the world. "All those Russian tanks, those armoured cars, those aircraft they have to communicate one way or another," he said. See FAQ Q3 for further information about the effects of this election.Added: 05-22-2019 Source: ATO/IRS, A2. In short, Pine Gap collects a huge amount of data from signals intelligence as well as providing information on early warning of ballistic missile launches. Pursuant to the Pine Gap Agreement, Australia exempts your JDFPG employment income from Australia tax if you are in Australia solely to work at JDFPG and that income is not exempt, and is brought to tax, in the United States. It is taxable in Australia because your employee earned the income while working in Australia. [15][16], The Menwith Hill Station (MHS) in the UK is operated by the NSA and also serves as ground station for these satellite missions. The refund is considered an erroneous refund and must be paid back to the IRS. Q4. "They'll be listening to Russian military activity nationwide, precisely because that nuclear alert, they'll be watching all nuclear facilities," he said. Suggestions will appear below the field as you type, Listed more than thirty two thousand twenty three days ago, subClassification: Teaching - Early Childhood. Can I revoke a closing agreement that I have executed with the IRS? Gus and Jas repair their relationship and Zhou meets with Immy, hinting that she is working for Chinese intelligence. A1. Pine Gap is featured in the 2018 Australian television series of the same name. Pine Gap spy base contractor Raytheon locked in redundancy payout dispute. [11], Pat LaMarco of The Daily Free Press described the series as a "dull and sluggish attempt at a thriller". Boeing Defence Australia has revealed it is bidding to regain an operations contract for the Pine Gap satellite intelligence facility near Alice Springs that it lost to rival Raytheon almost seven years ago. As the serie progresses, the tension on the world stage increases and that means tension in A-crew increases as well. [2][3][4][5] The classified NRO name of the Pine Gap base is Australian Mission Ground Station (AMGS), while the unclassified cover term for the NSA function of the facility is RAINFALL. "Successive governments on both political persuasions have consistently endorsed, once they have been briefed on the capability and that iswhat Pine Gap delivers in terms of bolstered defence capabilitiesmore than offsets the remote risk of vulnerability," he said. One such authorized disclosure is the disclosure of tax returns and return information to a competent authority of a foreign government that has an income tax treaty with the United States to the extent allowed by that treaty.