BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1159
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1159 (Lara)
As Amended August 4, 2014
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE :32-0
BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 12-2 APPROPRIATIONS 13-4
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|Ayes:|Bonilla, Bocanegra, |Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |
| |Campos, Dickinson, | |Bradford, Ian Calderon, |
| |Eggman, Gordon, Hagman, | |Campos, Eggman, Gomez, |
| |Holden, Maienschein, | |Holden, Linder, Pan, |
| |Mullin, Skinner, Ting | |Quirk, Ridley-Thomas, |
| | | |Weber |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Jones, Wilk |Nays:|Bigelow, Donnelly, Jones, |
| | | |Wagner |
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SUMMARY : Authorizes a board, as defined, the State Bar and the
Bureau of Real Estate to accept an application containing an
individual's taxpayer identification number (ITIN) in lieu of a
social security number (SSN) for an initial or renewal license.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Authorizes an applicant to provide his or her ITIN instead of
his or her SSN for purposes of existing law that requires each
board under the Department of Consumer Affairs (DCA), the
State Bar, and Bureau of Real Estate, at the time of issuance
of an initial or renewal license, to require that an
individual applicant to provide his or her SSN.
2)Requires a licensing board to report a licensee who fails to
provide his or her ITIN to be reported by the licensing board
to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB), and makes a licensee who
fails to provide that information after notification to be
subject to a penalty, as specified.
3)Authorizes, in addition to that penalty, a licensing board to
not process an application for an initial license unless the
applicant provides his or her ITIN, where requested on the
application.
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4)Requires a licensing board, upon request of the FTB, to
furnish to the FTB specified information, including the
licensee's ITIN.
5)Provides that an ITIN furnished pursuant to this bill is not
deemed a public record and shall not be open to the public for
inspection.
6)Provides that if the licensing board uses a national
examination to issue a license, and if a reciprocity agreement
or comity exists between the California and the state
requesting release of the ITIN, the licensing board may
release the ITIN to an examination or licensing entity, only
for the purpose of verification of licensure or examination
status.
7)For purposes of enforcing child support payment provisions,
requires any board, the State Bar, and the Bureau of Real
Estate to require that each licensee provide the ITIN of each
individual licensed on the license and any person who
qualifies for the license.
8)Authorizes all boards, as specified, to collect an ITIN
instead of a SSN for purposes of existing law that requires
all boards, as specified, to collect SSNs from applicants for
the purposes of matching the names on a certified list,
provided by the Department of Child Support Services (DCSS),
of persons who are found to be out of compliance with a
judgment or order for support, as specified.
9)Authorizes the FTB to require any board, the State Bar, the
Bureau of Real Estate, and the Insurance Commissioner to
provide to the FTB the licensee's ITIN, and to send a notice
to any licensee failing to provide that number that describes
the information that was missing, the penalty associated with
not providing it, and that the failure to provide that
information within 30 days will result in the assessment of a
penalty of $100.
10)Declares Legislative intent and makes other conforming and
technical amendments.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
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1)One-time costs to the Department of Consumer Affairs of up to
$130,000 (various special funds) to update forms,
publications, and information technology.
2)Unknown potential costs, likely minor, to DCA's boards and
bureaus to ensure that new applicants using ITINs are
complying with child support judgments. DCA's boards and
bureau's currently perform this function using applicants'
social security numbers.
3)The bill would likely result in an increase in individuals
applying for licenses at the various boards and bureaus within
DCA, leading to increased licensing revenues. The amount of
the increase is unknown.
COMMENTS :
1)Purpose of the bill. This bill allows applicants or licensees
to provide an ITIN in lieu of a SSN to a licensing board.
This bill resolves inconsistencies throughout the code and
provides additional identification options to applicants and
licensees, thereby increasing access to California
professional licenses. This bill is author-sponsored.
2)Author's statement. According to the author, "Many immigrants
come to the [US] as children and attend California's public
elementary and secondary schools, as well as public and
private colleges and universities. Despite the high cost of
higher education and limited resources, with hard work, a
strong spirit of determination, and the assistance of state
laws that provide access to nonresident tuition exemptions,
state financial aid, and graduate school admissions tests,
these students are now able to attend, participate in, and
graduate from California colleges and universities.
"Recently, the Legislature has begun to recognize the need to
address arbitrary restrictions on professional licenses with
the passage of SB 1822 (Bill Berryhill) in 2012 and AB 1024
(Gonzalez) in 2013. However, ambiguity in other sections of
state law, in particular [BPC] 30 pertaining to the issuance
of professional licenses has created barriers to access, and
created an artificial wall that deprives many Californians of
their only effective means of economic mobility and
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self-sufficiency.
"Authorizing the use of a social security number or ITIN, if one
has been issued, for the application of a professional license
would ensure the collection and reporting of information to
the [FTB] while clarifying inconsistent laws and removing
arbitrary barriers to professional licenses."
3)Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers. An ITIN is a tax
processing identification number issued by the US Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) in the administration of tax laws. An
ITIN consists of nine digits, beginning with the number nine
(i.e. 9XX-XX-XXX). Since 1996, the IRS has issued ITINs to
taxpayers and their dependents that are not eligible to obtain
a SSN. The IRS issues ITINs because all wage earners,
regardless of their immigration status, are required to pay
federal taxes. ITINs allow people who are ineligible for a
SSN to comply with tax laws, and are issued regardless of
immigration status. Examples of individuals who need ITINs
include nonresident aliens, a United States (U.S.) resident
alien, and dependents or spouses of U.S. citizens or resident
aliens, or of nonresident alien visa holders. To obtain an
ITIN, an individual must complete an IRS form which requires
documentation substantiating an individual's foreign or alien
status and the true identity of the individual.
4)This bill does not affect FTB or DCSS's ability to track
licensees. The purpose of requiring SSN or federal employer
identification numbers is to identify persons with outstanding
tax liabilities or who are out of compliance with child
support orders. Existing law authorizes the suspension of a
delinquent taxpayer's occupational or professional license
once a delinquency is at least five months old, and specified
notices have been issued by the FTB. Existing law also
authorizes license denials and suspensions for failure to pay
court-ordered child support debt. According to both the FTB
and DCSS, this bill would not affect the ability of the FTB or
DCSS to identify persons with outstanding tax liabilities or
child support payments because both entities have the
capability to identify those persons using their ITIN.
Analysis Prepared by : Eunie Linden / B., P. & C.P. / (916)
SB 1159
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319-3301
FN: 0004765