BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 754
Page 1
ASSEMBLY THIRD READING
AB 754 (Muratsuchi)
As Amended April 29, 2013
Majority vote
REVENUE & TAXATION 9-0 APPROPRIATIONS 17-0
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|Ayes:|Bocanegra, Dahle, Gordon, |Ayes:|Gatto, Harkey, Bigelow, |
| |Wagner, Mullin, Nestande, | |Bocanegra, Bradford, Ian |
| |Pan, | |Calderon, Campos, |
| |V. Manuel Pérez, Ting | |Donnelly, Eggman, Gomez, |
| | | |Hall, Ammiano, Linder, |
| | | |Pan, Quirk, Wagner, Weber |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
| | | | |
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SUMMARY : Allows taxpayers to contribute their own funds to the
California Beach and Coastal Enhancement Account (Account)
through a designation on the state personal income tax (PIT)
return. Specifically, this bill provides that all money
transferred to the Account, upon appropriation by the
Legislature, shall be allocated to the:
1)Franchise Tax Board (FTB) and the State Controller for
reimbursement of all administrative costs incurred.
2)California Coastal Commission (CCC) to support eligible
programs awarded grants under the selection criteria CCC has
established for the Whale Tail Grants Program (Program), and
for direct Program-related expenses.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Establishes the Account in the California Environmental
License Plate Fund.
2)Allows taxpayers to designate on their PIT returns a
contribution to any of 18 voluntary contribution funds (VCFs).
3)Provides a specific sunset date for each VCF, except for the
California Seniors Special Fund and the State Parks Protection
Fund.
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FISCAL EFFECT : The FTB estimates that this bill would reduce
General Fund revenues by $10,000 annually beginning in fiscal
year 2014-15.
COMMENTS :
1)The author has provided the following statement in support of
this bill:
[AB 754] would allow taxpayers who value coastal
conservation programs to make a contribution to the
[California Beach and Coastal Enhancement Account]
when filing their state income tax return. The funds
would be distributed to existing grant programs that
have a proven record of success and that have much
higher demand than resources available. The Whale
Tail coastal conservation and education grant programs
are very popular and worthy of increased public
support. AB 754 is an opportunity to bring more
funding to these programs without spending scarce
general fund resources.
2)This bill is supported by the CCC, which notes:
The [CCC's] WHALE TAIL License Plate was established
as a mechanism through which the public can contribute
funds to coastal and marine education programs in
California. As of December 31, 2012, a total of
210,763 license plates have been sold. WHALE TAIL
License Plate sales and renewal fees (plus
miscellaneous other small fees) have contributed $20.2
million to the [Account], and $49.3 million to the
[Environmental License Plate Fund]. (The additional
fees that are charged for personalized plates go to
the [Environmental License Plate Fund].)
The [CCC] launched the WHALE TAIL License Plate Grants
Program in 1998 to support local marine and coastal
education efforts in California. The first fourteen
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years of the program have provided a combined total of
$7.7 million, supporting a total of 461 projects
throughout the state of California, which are
estimated to have reached a total of 11.6 million
people.
3)Assembly Revenue and Taxation Committee staff comments:
a) The Whale Tail Grants Program : The Program currently
distributes funds from sales of California's "Whale Tale"
license plate. Grants support programs that teach
California's children and the general public to value and
improve the health of the state's marine and coastal
resources. Adopt-A-Beach programs, as well as other beach
maintenance and coastal habitat restoration programs, are
also eligible for grant funding.
b) So many causes, so little space : There are countless
worthy causes that would benefit from the inclusion of a
new VCF on the state's income tax returns. At the same
time, space on the returns is limited. Thus, it could be
argued that the current system for adding and retaining
VCFs on the form is subjective and essentially rewards
causes whose proponents can convince the Legislature to
include their fund on the form.
c) Related legislation : The following related bills have
been introduced in the current legislative session:
i) AB 247 (Wagner) would extend the repeal date of the
California Fund for Senior Citizens until December 1,
2020. AB 247 is pending in the Senate.
ii) AB 394 (Yamada) would extend the repeal date of the
California Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders
Research Fund from January 1, 2015, to December 1, 2020.
AB 394 is pending in the Senate Governance and Finance
Committee.
iii) AB 511 (Pan) would establish the American Red Cross,
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California Chapters Fund. AB 511 is pending in the
Senate Governance and Finance Committee.
iv) AB 1286 (Skinner) would suspend the annual
adjustment of the minimum contribution amount threshold
for the California Breast Cancer Research Fund. AB 1286
is pending in the Senate.
v) SB 116 (Liu) would extend the repeal date of the
Emergency Food for Families Fund indefinitely and would
remove the minimum contribution requirements. SB 116 is
pending in the Assembly.
vi) SB 571 (Price) would establish and allow taxpayers
to make voluntary contributions to the Keep Arts in
Schools Fund. SB 571 is pending in the Senate
Appropriations Committee.
Analysis Prepared by : Edward Beeby and M. David Ruff / REV. &
TAX. / (916) 319-2098
FN: 0000650