BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                            



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                                    THIRD READING


          Bill No:  SB 1464
          Author:   Senate Governance and Finance Committee
          Amended:  As introduced
          Vote:     21

           
           SENATE GOVERNANCE & FINANCE COMMITTEE  :  7-0, 4/24/14
          AYES:  Wolk, Knight, Beall, DeSaulnier, Hernandez, Liu, Walters


           SUBJECT  :    Property taxation

           SOURCE  :     State Board of Equalization


           DIGEST  :    This bill makes four technical, consensus changes to  
          property tax law suggested by the State Board of Equalization  
          (BOE).

           ANALYSIS  :    This bill contains four changes to property tax law  
          suggested by the BOE:

          I.  Name Change  .  State law directs the BOE to determine the  
             interest rate on the capitalization rate that assessors use  
             to value historic property using data published by the  
             Federal Home Finance Board.  However, the Federal Home  
             Finance Board changed its name to the Federal Home Finance  
             Agency.

             This bill updates the law to reflect the change.

          II  Consistent Terms  .  When taxpayers file property tax appeals,  
             the appellate body can be either the county board of  
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             supervisors sitting as the county board of equalization, or  
             the board can create an assessment appeals board consisting  
             of members with specified qualifications.  Unfortunately,  
             some parts of property tax law don't consistently refer to  
             both terms, including disaster relief law.

             This bill provides that when assessors notify taxpayers that  
             they're potentially eligible to appeal valuation changes  
             resulting from a disaster, they can appeal to the assessment  
             appeals board in addition to the county board of  
             equalization.  

          III.  Cross reference  .  Current law allows for changes in  
             ownership without reassessment, including when a parent or  
             child transfers property to a disabled ward or a child by  
             will, devise, or inheritance.  Revenue and Taxation Code  
             Section 62, which allows the transfers, relies on a  
             definition for "disability" in subdivision (e) of Section  
             12304 of the Health and Safety Code, but in 1991, the  
             Legislature re-lettered the definition to subdivision (d) of  
             that section.

             This bill corrects the cross-reference.  

          IV.  Delete superfluous term  .  The Public Resources Code uses the  
             term "nonprofit organization" when it allows groups to  
             operate state parks on behalf of the state, but the  
             cross-referenced Revenue and Taxation Code currently uses  
             both "nonprofit corporation" and "nonprofit organization"  
             when exempting these groups from the possessory interest tax.  
              

             Because nonprofit organizations need not incorporate to  
             qualify under the Public Resources Code, the bill deletes  
             "nonprofit corporation" from the Revenue and Taxation Code  
             section.  

           Comments
           
          This bill is this year's omnibus property tax law cleanup bill,  
          and makes four technical, consensus changes intended to improve  
          tax administration for taxpayers, assessors, and the BOE.  By  
          combining four changes into one bill, there's no need for  
          individual legislative bills for each change.  This bill is a  







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          consensus project should anyone object to any provision of the  
          bill, it's removed.

           FISCAL EFFECT  :    Appropriation:  No   Fiscal Com.:  No   Local:  
           No

          According to the Senate Governance and Finance Committee, the  
          BOE states that this bill has no impact on property tax  
          revenues.

           SUPPORT  :   (Verified  4/29/14)

          State Board of Equalization (source)


          AB:d  4/30/14   Senate Floor Analyses 

                           SUPPORT/OPPOSITION:  SEE ABOVE

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