BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SB 1159
Page 1
SENATE THIRD READING
SB 1159 (Lara)
As Amended August 22, 2014
Majority vote
SENATE VOTE : 32-0
APPROPRIATIONS 13-4 BUSINESS & PROFESSIONS 10-3
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|Ayes:|Gatto, Bocanegra, |Ayes:|Bonilla, Bocanegra, |
| |Bradford, | |Campos, Dickinson, |
| |Ian Calderon, Campos, | |Gordon, Holden, |
| |Eggman, Gomez, Holden, | |Maienschein, Mullin, |
| |Linder, Pan, Quirk, | |Skinner, Ting |
| |Ridley-Thomas, Weber | | |
| | | | |
|-----+--------------------------+-----+--------------------------|
|Nays:|Bigelow, Donnelly, Jones, |Nays:|Jones, Hagman, Wilk |
| |Wagner | | |
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SUMMARY : Prohibits licensing boards under the Department of
Consumer Affairs (DCA) from denying licensure to an applicant
based on his or her citizenship or immigration status, and
requires a licensing board and the State Bar to require, by
January 1, 2016, that an applicant for licensure provide his or
her individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN) or a social
security number (SSN) for an initial or renewal license.
Specifically, this bill :
1)Requires a board, as defined, the State Bar, and the Bureau of
Real Estate to require, by January 1, 2016, that an individual
applicant for licensure provide either an ITIN or SSN.
2)Prohibits any entity within DCA from denying licensure to an
applicant based on his or her citizenship or immigration
status.
3)Requires every board to implement all required regulatory or
procedural changes by January 1, 2016, and authorizes a board
to implement these provisions prior to that date.
4)Requires a board to report to the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) a
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licensee who fails to provide his or her ITIN, and subjects a
licensee who fails to provide that information after
notification to a penalty, as specified.
5)In addition to that penalty, prohibits a board from processing
an application for an initial license unless the applicant
provides his or her ITIN, where requested on the application.
6)Requires a board, upon request of the FTB, to furnish to the
FTB specified information, including the licensee's ITIN.
7)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.
8)Provides that if the board uses a national examination to
issue a license, and if a reciprocity agreement or comity
exists between California and the state requesting release of
the ITIN, the board may release the ITIN to an examination or
licensing entity, only for the purpose of verification of
licensure or examination status.
9)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.
10)Authorizes 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.
11)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 failure to provide that information
within 30 days will result in the assessment of a penalty of
$100.
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12)Makes conforming statutory changes to remove the requirement
of citizenship, legal admission, or documentary evidence
thereof for the following authorizations to practice or other
licensure actions:
a) Allow a foreign medical graduate to be eligible for a
physician's and surgeon's certificate;
b) Allow a foreign medical graduate to participate in
professional activities in a medical school as a "visiting
fellow," and to participate in a fellowship program in
specified hospitals or clinics;
c) Allow a foreign medical graduate who does not
immediately qualify for a physician and surgeon's
certificate of registration to practice medicine and who is
offered a full-time faculty position at a medical school to
be granted a certificate in connection with his or her
position;
d) Allow the Naturopathic Medicine Committee under the
Osteopathic Medical Board to grant a certificate to
practice naturopathic medicine to a person who does not
hold a naturopathic doctor's license but who is offered a
faculty position in a naturopathic medical education
program; and,
e) Allow an individual to be licensed as a professional
fiduciary.
13)Finds and declares that it is in the best interests of the
state to provide persons who are not lawfully present in the
United States (U.S.) with the state benefits provided by all
licensing acts of entities within DCA.
14)Makes other conforming and technical amendments.
FISCAL EFFECT : According to the Assembly Appropriations
Committee:
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.
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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 prohibits licensing boards
from denying licensure to an applicant based on his or her
citizenship or immigration status, and requires licensing
boards to require an ITIN or SSN for an individual applicant
for licensure. This bill is intended to provide additional
identification options to applicants and licensees, thereby
increasing access to California professional licenses to
otherwise qualified individuals regardless of their
immigration status. 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 AB 1822 (Bill Berryhill) [Chapter 317] in 2012
and AB 1024 (Gonzalez) [Chapter 573] 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 self-sufficiency.
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"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)Federal Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity
Reconciliation Act. Federal law, the Personal Responsibility
and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA), P.L 104-193,
prohibits certain categories of individuals not lawfully
present in the U.S. from receiving certain public benefits,
including "any grant, contract, loan, professional license, or
commercial license provided by an agency of a State or local
government or by appropriated funds of a State or local
government." (8 United States Code Section 1621) (emphasis
added). However, the PRWORA also authorizes a state to make
those individuals eligible for any state or local public
benefit for which he or she would not otherwise be eligible by
affirmatively providing for those benefits through an
enactment of state law.
Professional licenses issued by licensing boards under DCA
constitute a public benefit, as defined under federal law, and
licensing boards under DCA are considered agencies of the
state, thereby triggering the federal requirement in the
PRWORA for an enactment of state law to provide those
benefits. Accordingly, this bill seeks to affirmatively
provide this eligibility to obtain a professional license to
individuals who are not lawfully present in the U.S.
4)Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers. An ITIN is a tax
processing identification number issued by the U.S. Internal
Revenue Service (IRS) for 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 U.S. resident alien, and
dependents or spouses of U.S. citizens or resident aliens, or
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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.
5)This bill does not affect FTB or DCSS's ability to track
licensees. The purpose of requiring an SSN or federal
employer identification number 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)
319-3301
FN: 0005562