California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly BillNo. 821


Introduced by Assembly Member Gipson

February 26, 2015


An act to add Section 6369.6 to the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to taxation, to take effect immediately, tax levy.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 821, as introduced, Gipson. Sales and use taxes: exemption: medical marijuana: terminally ill patient.

Existing sales and use tax laws impose taxes 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 and provides various exemptions from those taxes. Existing law relieves the seller from liability for the sales tax if an exemption certificate is taken in good faith, and imposes liability for sales tax on the purchaser if the tangible personal property purchased is used in a manner or for a purpose not qualifying for the exemption, as provided.

This bill would exempt from those taxes the gross receipts from the sale of, and the storage, use, or other consumption of, medical marijuana for consumption by a terminally ill patient, and would require the purchaser to provide an exemption certificate as provided.

The Bradley-Burns Uniform Local Sales and Use Tax Law authorizes counties and cities to impose local sales and use taxes in conformity with the Sales and Use Tax Law, and existing law authorizes districts, as specified, to impose transactions and use taxes in accordance with the Transactions and Use Tax Law, which conforms to the Sales and Use Tax Law. Amendments to state sales and use taxes are incorporated into these laws.

Section 2230 of the Revenue and Taxation Code provides that the state will reimburse counties and cities for revenue losses caused by the enactment of sales and use tax exemptions.

This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2230 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse any local agencies for sales and use tax revenues lost by them pursuant to this bill.

This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy, but its operative date would depend on its effective date.

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

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

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SECTION 1.  

Section 6369.6 is added to the Revenue and
2Taxation Code
, to read:

3

6369.6.  

(a) There are exempted from the taxes imposed by
4this part the gross receipts from the sale of, and the storage, use,
5or other consumption in this state of, medical marijuana for
6consumption by a terminally ill patient.

7(b) (1) No exemption shall be allowed under this section unless
8the purchaser furnishes the retailer with a medical marijuana
9exemption certificate, completed in accordance with any
10instructions or regulations as the board may prescribe, and the
11retailer retains the exemption certificate in its records. The medical
12marijuana exemption certificate shall contain the cost of the
13medical marijuana that is exempt pursuant to subdivision (a),
14identification card serial number, and any other information
15deemed necessary by the board.

16(2) The board shall establish and maintain a program for the
17issuance of a medical marijuana exemption certificate. A medical
18marijuana exemption certificate shall be issued to a person or his
19or her primary caregiver upon satisfactory proof of terminal illness,
20and shall be valid for the same period as the identification card
21issued to the terminally ill patient pursuant to Article 2.5
22(commencing with Section 11362.7) of Chapter 6 of Division 10
23of the Health and Safety Code and may be renewed once, unless
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2pursuant to this section.

3(c) A person who seeks a medical marijuana exemption
4certificate shall provide all of the following to the board, in a
5manner as determined by the board:

6(1) The name of the terminally ill patient.

7(2) Written documentation by the patient’s attending physician
8that certifies the patient is terminally ill based on the circumstances
9and information available to the physician at the time of diagnosis.

10(3) The name, office address, office telephone number, and
11California medical license number of the patient’s attending
12physician.

13(4) The name and the duties of the primary caregiver.

14(5) A government-issued photo identification card of the person
15and of the designated primary caregiver, if any.

16(6) The identification card issued by the Department of Public
17Health.

18(7) Any other information deemed necessary by the board.

19(d) For purposes of this section:

20(1) “Attending physician” has the same meaning as that term
21is defined in Section 11362.7 of the Health and Safety Code.

22(2) “Marijuana” has the same meaning as that term is defined
23in Section 11018 of the Health and Safety Code.

24(3) “Medical marijuana” means marijuana used for medical
25purposes in accordance with Sections 11362.5 and 11362.7 of the
26Health and Safety Code.

27(4) “Primary caregiver” has the same meaning as that term is
28defined in Section 11362.7 of the Health and Safety Code.

29(5) “Terminally ill” has the same meaning as that term is defined
30in subdivision (c) of Section 11159.2 of the Health and Safety
31Code.

32(6) “Written documentation” means certification by the attending
33physician that the patient is terminally ill.

34(e) Any person that uses a medical marijuana exemption
35certificate in a manner contrary to the requirements of this section
36shall be liable for payment of sales tax as if the purchaser were a
37retailer making a retail sale of the property at the time of that use
38and the cost of the marijuana to the purchaser shall be deemed the
39gross receipts from the retail sale.

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SEC. 2.  

Notwithstanding Section 2230 of the Revenue and
2Taxation Code, no appropriation is made by this act and the state
3shall not reimburse any local agency for any sales and use tax
4revenues lost by it under this act.

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SEC. 3.  

This act provides for a tax levy within the meaning of
6Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect.
7However, the provisions of this act shall become operative on the
8first day of the first calendar quarter commencing more than 90
9days after the effective date of this act.



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