BILL ANALYSIS Ó
Senate Appropriations Committee Fiscal Summary
Senator Christine Kehoe, Chair
AB 404 (Gatto) - Lobbyists: County Assessors
Amended: August 9, 2012 Policy Vote: GF 5-3
Urgency: No Mandate: Yes
Hearing Date: August 16, 2012
Consultant: Maureen Ortiz
SUSPENSE FILE.
Bill Summary: AB 404 requires any county that has an existing
ordinance regulating lobbying before the board of supervisors to
amend the ordinance to apply its provisions to persons who lobby
the county assessor.
Fiscal Impact: Unknown, likely over $50,000 in state
reimbursable costs (General)
AB 404 will require the state to reimburse local governments for
the costs of amending their ordinances to include provisions
that include tax agents who lobby county assessors, as
specified.
Background: In recent years, as property values have declined,
the number of property tax appeals has risen dramatically. The
Legislative Analyst's Office estimates that tax appeals have
increased from approximately 44,000 in 2006-07 to 173,000 in
2010-11. Individual taxpayers may appeal an assessor's
valuation of a property, or can hire a tax agent to represent
them in the appeal. The conduct of tax agents before assessor
and assessment appeals boards is largely unregulated unless the
individual is an attorney licensed by the State Bar, or an
accountant regulated by the California Board of Accountancy.
The Board of Equalization does require tax agents to file a
Property Tax Rule 305 form which authorizes the agent to
represent the taxpayer.
Currently there are only six counties that have adopted a local
ordinance regulating lobbying activities before the county board
of supervisors or other county positions, and which would
immediately be affected by the requirements in AB 404. Those
six counties are Los Angeles, Orange, San Francisco, Santa
AB 404 (Gatto)
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Clara, San Diego, and San Mateo although they differ
significantly in the manner in which lobbying activities are
regulated. Some of the ordinances restrict campaign
contributions, gifts, and employing county officials, and
prohibit intentionally deceiving elected officials or
misrepresenting themselves or their clients. All of the six
county ordinances require lobbyist registration and include
reporting requirements for gifts and campaign contributions.
According to recent news reports, a Los Angeles County District
Attorney investigation led to the arrest of a property appraiser
who formerly worked for Los Angeles County Assessor John Noguez
on charges of illegally reducing assessments on properties
totaling $172 million. That investigation is ongoing.
Proposed Law: AB 404 provides that tax agents must register as
lobbyists in any county that regulates lobbying by ordinance.
The bill requires those county boards to amend their ordinance
to include any person who represents a taxpayer for compensation
before the county assessor, employees of the county assessor,
the county assessment appeals board, the county board of
equalization, or any assessment hearing officer who makes
recommendations to the county board of equalization or the
county assessment appeals board.
The lobbying registration requirement will not apply to a
property owner. AB 404 specifically provides that its
provisions will not prohibit a tax agent from charging a
contingency fee in connection with any matter before a county
assessor, employees of the county assessor, the county
assessment appeals board, the county board of equalization, or
any assessment hearing officer who makes recommendations to the
county board of equalization or the county assessment appeals
board.