BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 1534|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 1534
Author: Committee on Revenue and Taxation
AmendedAmended:4/30/15 in Assembly
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FIN. COMMITTEE: 7-0, 6/24/15
AYES: Hertzberg, Nguyen, Beall, Hernandez, Lara, Moorlach,
Pavley
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE: 7-0, 8/27/15
AYES: Lara, Bates, Beall, Hill, Leyva, Mendoza, Nielsen
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 6/2/15 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT: Assessment analyst: certification
SOURCE: Author
DIGEST: This bill bars assessors employees from making
decisions regarding changes of ownership without holding a valid
assessment analyst certificate; and specifies the certificate
training program.
ANALYSIS:
Existing law:
1) Creates the Board of Equalization (BOE) to equalize
property tax rates and assessment practices among counties.
2) Directs BOE to administer the property tax certification
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program, which imposes certification and annual training
requirements on property tax appraisers and
auditor-appraisers who are county employees.
This bill:
1) Bars any state or county employee from making decisions
with regard to changes in ownership or property tax
exemptions, except the homeowners' exemption, unless he or
she is the holder of a valid BOE assessment analyst
certificate.
2) Establishes a process to certify an assessment analyst,
and creates three additional certificates: temporary,
interim, and advanced. To implement the program, BOE must:
a) Create an examination for applicants seeking an
assessment analyst certificate, and may contract with the
California Department of Human Resources to give the
examinations.
b) Prepare the exam with the advice and assistance of a
committee of five assessors selected by the California
Assessors' Association.
c) Issue a certificate to only to persons who attain a
passing grade in the examination and demonstrate that he
or she is competent to make change in ownership or
exemption decisions, but allows individuals denied a
certificate to ask for a review under the Administrative
Procedures Act
d) Exempts individuals currently holding a valid
appraiser's or advanced appraiser's certificate from its
requirements.
3) Requires every certified assessment analyst to complete at
least 24 hours of continuing education training conducted or
approved by BOE each year; however, any training time in
excess of the 24-hour minimum that is accumulated in any one
year is carried over as credit for future training
requirements, with a limit of three years in which the
carryover time may be credited. Failure to complete
training shall constitute grounds for revocation of a
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certificate, and a proceeding to revoke shall be conducted
in accordance with the Administrative Procedure Act.
4) Requires BOE issue an advanced assessment analyst
certificate for an applicant that has held an assessment
analysts certificate for at least three years and has:
a) Completed an advanced course of study prepared by
BOE with the assistance of five assessors selected by the
California Assessors' Association, and passed an advanced
level examination.
b) Requires every advanced assessment analyst to
complete at least 12 hours of continuing education
training conducted or approved by BOE each year; however,
any training time in excess of the 12-hour minimum that
is accumulated in any one year is carried over as credit
for future training requirements, with a limit of two
years in which the carryover time may be credited.
Failure to complete training shall constitute grounds for
revocation of a certificate, and a proceeding to revoke
shall be conducted in accordance with the Administrative
Procedure Act.
5) Allows BOE to issue a temporary certificate to a person
who is newly employed by the state or county to allow the
person time to pass the exam, but it can't last more than
one year, unless the person has been duly elected or
appointed to the office of assessor, but bars BOE from
renewing a temporary certificate.
6) Allows BOE to issue an interim certificate to a person who
is currently employed by the state or county who is making
change in ownership or exemption decisions to allow the
person time to pass the exam, but prohibits BOE from
renewing, or issuing an interim certificate for a duration
that exceeds four years, unless the person has been duly
elected or appointed to the office of assessor.
7) Requires applicants to disclose financial interests in any
legal entity at the time of initial certification, and must
complete the form annually, and deems a duplicate of a
filing to the Fair Political Practices Commission to meet
the requirement.
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8) Bars BOE from charging counties to implement the program.
9) Clarifies that the bill's provisions do not impede an
assessor from managing his or her staff resources
efficiently, and in a manner that allows non-certificated
staff to prepare and work with exemption applications and
change in ownership documents, provided that the
non-certificated staff are not responsible for making
exemption or change in ownership decisions.
10) Makes legislative findings and declarations supporting its
purposes, and renumbers the section of law allowing for
contract employees.
Related Legislation
AB 1534 is almost identical to AB 2756 (Committee on Revenue and
Taxation, 2014), which was approved by the Legislature, but
subsequently vetoed by the Governor. In his veto message,
Governor Brown stated that state providing training and
certification should be something the assessors "can and should
be doing without a state mandate." In response, AB 1534 states
that its provisions only become effective in counties or cities
and counties that have enacted a resolution upon recommendation
of the assessor to require the measure's certification. While
Legislative Counsel didn't key either bill a state-mandated
local program, granting counties the authority to opt-in to the
measure's requirements speaks directly to the Governor's
message.
FISCAL EFFECT: Appropriation: No Fiscal
Com.:YesLocal: No
According to Senate Appropriations, AB 1534 would result in BOE
incurring annual costs of up to $175,000 (General Fund) annually
to implement the costs of the bill. BOE indicates that the bill
would not impact property tax revenues.
SUPPORT: (Verified8/28/15)
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California Assessors Association
Organization of SMUD Employees
San Bernardino Public Employees Association
San Luis Obispo County Employees Association
OPPOSITION: (Verified8/28/15)
None received
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT: According to the Author, "Since
current law requires appraisers to be certified, similar
certification procedures are needed for state and local
government employees making decisions in regard to change in
ownership and property tax exemptions. Change in ownership and
exemption decisions are highly complex, requiring a thorough
understanding of different legal documents, statutes,
regulations, and court decisions. This bill is intended to
ensure that employees making change in ownership and exemption
decisions are adequately trained and educated.
ASSEMBLY FLOOR: 79-0, 6/2/15
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Travis Allen, Baker, Bigelow, Bloom,
Bonilla, Bonta, Brough, Brown, Burke, Calderon, Campos, Chang,
Chau, Chiu, Chu, Cooley, Cooper, Dababneh, Dahle, Daly, Dodd,
Eggman, Frazier, Beth Gaines, Gallagher, Cristina Garcia,
Eduardo Garcia, Gatto, Gipson, Gomez, Gonzalez, Gordon, Gray,
Grove, Hadley, Harper, Roger Hernández, Holden, Irwin, Jones,
Jones-Sawyer, Kim, Lackey, Levine, Linder, Lopez, Low,
Maienschein, Mathis, Mayes, McCarty, Medina, Melendez, Mullin,
Nazarian, Obernolte, O'Donnell, Olsen, Patterson, Perea,
Quirk, Rendon, Ridley-Thomas, Rodriguez, Salas, Santiago,
Steinorth, Mark Stone, Thurmond, Ting, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wilk, Williams, Wood, Atkins
NO VOTE RECORDED: Chávez
Prepared by:Colin Grinnell / GOV. & F. / (916) 651-4119
8/31/15 16:57:06
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