Amended in Senate August 4, 2014

Amended in Senate June 24, 2014

Amended in Senate May 23, 2014

Amended in Assembly January 29, 2014

Amended in Assembly January 17, 2014

Amended in Assembly January 6, 2014

California Legislature—2013–14 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 919


Introduced by Assembly Member Williams

February 22, 2013


An act to add Section 6018.2 to the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to taxation, and making an appropriation therefor.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 919, as amended, Williams. Sales and use taxes: veterans: itinerant vendors: repayment.

Existing sales and use tax laws impose a tax on retailers measured by the gross receipts from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail in this state, or on the storage, use, or other consumption in this state of tangible personal property purchased from a retailer for storage, use, or other consumption in this state, measured by sales price. That law, with certain exceptions, defines a retailer as a seller who makes any retail sale of tangible personal property and as a person who makes more than 2 retail sales of tangible personal property during any 12-month period, and defines a retail sale as a sale of tangible personal property for any purpose other than resale in the regular course of business.

Existing law, from April 1, 2010, to January 1, 2022, provides that a qualified itinerant vendor, as defined, is a consumer, and not a retailer, of tangible personal property owned and sold by the qualified itinerant vendor, except for alcoholic beverages or items sold for more than $100, so that the retail sale subject to tax is the sale of tangible personal property to the qualified itinerant vendor and not the sale by the qualified itinerant vendor.

This bill would provide a procedure for a qualified veteran, who is a person who met specified requirements for being a qualified itinerant vendor, to submit a claim for qualified repayments, as defined, with the State Board of Equalization, as provided. This bill would, on or before March 1, 2016, require the board to certify to the Controller the amount of qualified repayments to be made to each qualified veteran, and would appropriate $50,000 from the General Fund to thebegin delete Controllerend deletebegin insert boardend insert to make the payments of qualified repayments. This bill would limit the total amount of money available to make qualified repayments to not more than $50,000. This bill would require the board to report to the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, the Assembly Committee on Revenue and Taxation, and the Senate Committee on Governance and Finance, the name of each qualified veteran who was issued a qualified repayment and the amount of the qualified repaymentbegin delete and would also require the board to report to the Controller the amount remaining, or that no amount remains, from the amount appropriated to the Controller after making qualified repaymentsend delete. This bill would require the Controller to transferbegin insert any balance remaining fromend insert the amountbegin delete, if any,end delete reported to the Controller back to the General Fund.

This bill would make findings regarding the public purpose served by the bill.

Vote: 23. Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

P2    1

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature finds and declares all of the
2following:

3(a) Prior to the enactment of Chapter 621 of the Statutes of 2009
4(Senate Bill 809 of the 2009-10 Regular Session), which became
5operative on April 1, 2010, there was considerable uncertainty
P3    1among honorably discharged veterans with respect to their
2responsibilities under California’s Sales and Use Tax Law. These
3veterans relied upon Section 16102 of the Business and Professions
4Code, which exempts honorably discharged veterans from payment
5of any license, tax or fee whatsoever, for their sales of goods,
6wares, or merchandise owned by them (except alcoholic
7beverages), and as a result, failed to pay sales tax or to collect sales
8tax reimbursement on their retail sales.

9(b) This uncertainty resulted in deficiency assessments by the
10State Board of Equalization against these veterans and subsequent
11payments to the board by these veterans of the tax, interest, and
12penalty for amounts that the board determined to be due.

13(c) For the public purpose of assuring equity in the payment of
14sales tax among qualified veterans for tangible personal property
15owned and sold by those veterans for one hundred dollars ($100)
16or less, excluding alcoholic beverages, it is the intent of the
17Legislature that the sales tax, interest, and any penalties paid by
18these veterans on those sales during the period on and after April
191, 2002, and before April 1, 2010, for which there was no sales
20 tax reimbursement collected from customers, be repaid in
21accordance with the provisions of this act.

22

SEC. 2.  

Section 6018.2 is added to the Revenue and Taxation
23Code
, to read:

24

6018.2.  

(a) A qualified veteran may receive from the state a
25qualified repayment if all provisions of this section are satisfied.

26(b) The procedures set forth in this section shall be the procedure
27and remedy for the claims for a repayment of taxes, interest, or
28penalties paid by a qualified veteran under the Sales and Use Tax
29Law (Part 1 (commencing with Section 6001)), Section 35 of
30Article XIII of the California Constitution, local sales tax imposed
31in accordance with the Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and
32Use Tax Law (Part 1.5 (commencing with Section 7200)), and
33local transactions and use taxes imposed in accordance with the
34Transactions and Use Tax Law (Part 1.6 (commencing with Section
357251)) during the eight-year period beginning on and after April
361, 2002, and before April 1, 2010.

37(c) (1) For purposes of this section, a “qualified veteran” means
38a person who meets all of the following requirements:

P4    1(A) The person met the requirements of a qualified itinerant
2vendor as set forth in Section 6018.3 during the period in which
3the sales were made.

4(B) The person paid to the board taxes imposed under the Sales
5and Use Tax Law (Part 1 (commencing with Section 6001)),
6Section 35 of Article XIII of the California Constitution, taxes
7imposed in accordance with the Bradley-Burns Uniform Local
8Sales and Use Tax Law (Part 1.5 (commencing with Section
9 7200)), and transactions and use taxes imposed in accordance with
10the Transactions and Use Tax Law (Part 1.6 (commencing with
11Section 7251)) during the period beginning April 1, 2002, and
12before April 1, 2010, for which no sales tax reimbursement was
13collected from customers, and also paid any interest or penalties
14associated with those tax liabilities.

15(2) “Qualified repayment” means an amount equal to the amount
16described in subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1), less any amounts
17previously refunded, credited, or paid to a qualified veteran through
18any means whatsoever.

19(d) (1) Before January 1, 2016, a qualified veteran may file a
20claim for a qualified repayment with the board.

21(2) The claim shall be in writing, and shall be completed in
22accordance with any instructions or regulations as the board may
23prescribe, including, but not limited to, proof of payment of the
24tax, interest, or penalties described in subparagraph (B) of
25paragraph (1) of subdivision (c).

26(3) On or before March 1, 2016, the board shall certify to the
27Controller the amount of qualified repayments to be made to each
28qualified veteran pursuant to this section. The total amount of
29money available to make qualified repayments shall not exceed
30fifty thousand dollars ($50,000). If the total amount of claims filed
31exceeds fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), the board shall determine
32the pro rata share due to each qualified veteran based on the
33proportion each claim bears to the total amount of claims and shall
34report that amount for certification.

35(4) There is hereby appropriated fifty thousand dollars ($50,000)
36from the General Fund to thebegin delete Controllerend deletebegin insert boardend insert to make the
37payments of qualified repayments to qualified veterans.

38(5) No interest shall be paid on any qualified repayment made
39pursuant to this section.

P5    1(6) (A) On or before May 1, 2016, the board shall reportbegin delete both
2of the following:end delete

3begin delete(i)end deletebegin deleteend deletebegin deleteToend deletebegin insert toend insert the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, the Assembly
4Committee on Revenue and Taxation, and the Senate Committee
5on Governance and Finance, the name of each qualified veteran
6who was issued a qualified repayment pursuant to this section and
7the amount of the qualified repayment.

begin delete

8(ii) To the Controller, the amount remaining, or that no amount
9remains, from the amount appropriated to Controller pursuant to
10paragraph (4) after making qualified repayments.

end delete

11(B) The requirement for submitting a report imposed under
12subparagraph (A) is inoperative on May 1, 2020, pursuant to
13Section 10231.5 of the Government Code, andbegin insert the reportend insert shall be
14submitted in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government
15Code.

16(7) begin deleteThe end deletebegin insertUpon notification by the board, the end insertController shall
17transferbegin insert any balance remaining fromend insert the amountbegin delete, if any, reported
18to the Controller pursuant to clause (ii) of subparagraph (A) of
19paragraph (6),end delete
begin insert appropriated in paragraph (4)end insert back to the General
20Fund.

21

SEC. 3.  

The Legislature finds and declares that the addition of
22Section 6018.2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code by this act
23serves a public purpose, as described in Section 1 of this act, and
24does not constitute a gift of public funds within the meaning of
25Section 6 of Article XVI of the California Constitution.



O

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