BILL ANALYSIS
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1568|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1568
Author: Salas (D)
Amended: 9/4/09 in Senate
Vote: 21
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : Not relevant
SUBJECT : Taxation: disaster relief: Medi-Cal
SOURCE : Author
DIGEST : This bill provides that any dwelling that
qualified for a homeowners property tax exemption prior to
the commencement dates of the wildfires that were the
subject of the Governor's proclamations in October 2008,
November 2008, and May 2009, that was damaged or destroyed
by the wildfires in the Counties of Los Angeles, Orange,
Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, and Santa Barbara, and
that has not changed ownership since the commencement date
of those wildfires, may not be denied the exemption solely
on the basis that the dwelling was temporarily damaged or
destroyed or was being reconstructed by the owner, or was
temporarily uninhabited as a result of restricted access to
the property due to wildfires. This bill provides that the
funds in the Children's Health and Human Services Special
Fund, created by AB 1422 (Bass), will go to the Healthy
Families Program.
ANALYSIS :
CONTINUED
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I. Existing property tax law provides, pursuant to a
specified provision of the California Constitution, for
a homeowner's property tax exemption in the amount of
$7,000 of the full value of a "dwelling," as defined.
This bill also provides that any dwelling that qualified
for the exemption prior to the commencement dates of the
wildfires that were the subject of the Governor's
proclamations in October 2008, November 2008, and May
2009, that was damaged or destroyed by the wildfires in
the Counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San
Bernardino, Ventura, and Santa Barbara, and that has not
changed ownership since the commencement date of those
wildfires, may not be denied the exemption solely on the
basis that the dwelling was temporarily damaged or
destroyed or was being reconstructed by the owner, or
was temporarily uninhabited as a result of restricted
access to the property due to wildfires.
The California Constitution requires the Legislature, in
each fiscal year, to reimburse local governments for the
revenue losses incurred by those governments in that
fiscal year as a result of the homeowners' property tax
exemption.
This bill states the intent of the Legislature to make
this required reimbursement in the annual Budget Act.
This bill provides that, if the Commission on State
Mandates determines that the bill contains costs
mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs
shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.
The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law
provide for the carryover to specified taxable years of
specified losses sustained as a result of certain
disasters occurring in California in an area determined
by the President of the United States to warrant
specified federal assistance, or proclaimed by the
Governor to be in a state of emergency.
This bill extends Personal Income Tax Law and the
Corporation Tax Law carryover losses as a result of
certain disasters occurring in California, as specified,
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to losses sustained in the Counties of Los Angeles,
Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, and Santa
Barbara as a result of the wildfires that commenced in
October 2008, November 2008, or May 2009. This bill
authorizes a taxpayer to make an election to claim a
deduction for those losses on the tax return for the
preceding year.
II.Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program,
administered by the Department of Health Care Services
(DHCS), under which health care services are provided to
qualified low-income recipients.
Existing law creates the Healthy Families Program,
administered by the Managed Risk Medical Insurance
Board, to arrange for the provision of health care
services to children less than 19 years of age who meet
certain criteria, including having a limited gross
household income.
Existing law imposes various taxes, including a tax at a
specified rate on the gross premiums of an insurer, as
defined.
AB 1422 (Bass), 2009-10 Session, until January 1, 2011,
imposes that tax on the total operating revenue, as
specified, of a Medi-Cal managed care plan, as defined.
AB 1422 continuously appropriates the proceeds from the
tax (1) to the DHCS for purposes of the Medi-Cal program
in an amount equal to 38.41 percent of the proceeds from
the tax and (2) to the Managed Risk Medical Insurance
Board for purposes of the Healthy Families Program in an
amount equal to 61.59 percent of the proceeds from the
tax.
This bill, if AB 1422 is enacted and becomes operative
during the 2009 portion of the 2009-10 Session, creates
the Children's Health and Human Services Special Fund in
the State Treasury, into which revenues derived from the
tax on Medi-Cal managed care plans, net of refunds, will
be deposited. This bill requires the moneys in the Fund
to be used exclusively for the purposes of the Medi-Cal
program and the Healthy Families Program, as prescribed
in AB 1422.
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FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
DLW:mw 9/11/09 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: NONE RECEIVED
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