SB 1458, as amended, Bates. Property taxation: exemptions: disabled veterans.
Existing property tax law provides, pursuant to the authorization of the California Constitution, a disabled veteran’s property tax exemption for the principal place of residence of a veteran or a veteran’s spouse, including an unmarried surviving spouse, if the veteran, because of an injury incurred in military service, is blind in both eyes, has lost the use of 2 or more limbs, or is totally disabled, as those terms are defined, or if the veteran has, as a result of a service-connected injury or disease, died while on active duty in military service. That law defines a veteran for its purposes as a person who, among other things, is serving in or has served in and has been discharged under honorable conditions from service in the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard.
This bill would expand that definition of
veteran to include a person who has been discharged in other than dishonorable conditions from service under those samebegin delete conditions.end deletebegin insert conditions and who has been determined by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs to be eligible for federal veterans’ health and medical benefits.end insert
Section 2229 of the Revenue and Taxation Code requires the Legislature to reimburse local agencies annually for certain property tax revenues lost as a result of any exemption or classification of property for purposes of ad valorem property taxation.
This bill would provide that, notwithstanding Section 2229 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, no appropriation is made and the state shall not reimburse local agencies for property tax revenues lost by them pursuant to the bill.
This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 205.5 of the Revenue and Taxation Code
2 is amended to read:
(a) Property that constitutes the principal place of
4residence of a veteran, that is owned by the veteran, the veteran’s
5spouse, or the veteran and the veteran’s spouse jointly, is exempted
6from taxation on that part of the full value of the residence that
7does not exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), as
8adjusted for the relevant assessment year as provided in subdivision
9(h), if the veteran is blind in both eyes, has lost the use of two or
10more limbs, or if the veteran is totally disabled as a result of injury
11or disease incurred in military service. The one hundred thousand
12dollar ($100,000) exemption shall be one hundred fifty thousand
13dollars ($150,000), as adjusted for the relevant assessment year as
14provided in subdivision (h), in the
case of an eligible veteran whose
15household income does not exceed the amount of forty thousand
16dollars ($40,000), as adjusted for the relevant assessment year as
17provided in subdivision (g).
18(b) (1) For purposes of this section, “veteran” means either of
19the following:
20(A) A person who is serving in or has served in and has been
21discharged under other than dishonorable conditions from service
22in the United States Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, or
23Coast Guard, and served either in time of war or in time of peace
24in a campaign or expedition for which a medal has been issued by
25Congress, or in time of peace and because of a service-connected
26disability was released from activebegin delete duty.end deletebegin insert
duty, and who has been
27determined by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs
28to be eligible for federal veterans’ health and medical benefits.end insert
P3 1(B) Any person who would qualify as a veteran pursuant to
2
subparagraph (A) except that he or she has, as a result of a
3service-connected injury or disease, died while on active duty in
4military service. The United States Department of Veterans Affairs
5shall determine whether an injury or disease is service connected.
6(2) For purposes of this section, property is deemed to be the
7principal place of residence of a veteran, disabled as described in
8subdivision (a), who is confined to a hospital or other care facility,
9if that property would be that veteran’s principal place of residence
10were it not for his or her confinement to a hospital or other care
11facility, provided that the residence is not rented or leased to a
12third party. For purposes of this paragraph, a family member who
13resides at the residence is not a third party.
14(c) (1) Property that is owned by, and that constitutes the
15principal place of residence of, the unmarried surviving spouse of
16a deceased veteran is exempt from taxation on that part of the full
17value of the residence that does not exceed one hundred thousand
18dollars ($100,000), as adjusted for the relevant assessment year as
19provided in subdivision (h), in the case of a veteran who was blind
20in both eyes, had lost the use of two or more limbs, or was totally
21disabled provided that either of the following conditions is met:
22(A) The deceased veteran during his or her lifetime qualified
23
for the exemption pursuant to subdivision (a), or would have
24qualified for the exemption under the laws effective on January 1,
251977, except that the veteran died prior to January 1, 1977.
26(B) The veteran died from a disease that was service connected
27as determined by the United States Department of Veterans Affairs.
28The one hundred thousand dollar ($100,000) exemption shall
29be one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000), as adjusted for
30the relevant assessment year as provided in subdivision (h), in the
31case of an eligible unmarried surviving spouse whose household
32income does not exceed the amount of forty thousand dollars
33($40,000), as adjusted for the relevant assessment year as provided
34in subdivision (g).
35(2) Commencing with the 1994-95 fiscal year, property that is
36owned by, and that constitutes the principal place of residence of,
37the unmarried surviving spouse of a veteran as described in
38subparagraph (B) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (b) is exempt
39from taxation on that part of the full value of the residence that
40does not exceed one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), as
P4 1adjusted for the relevant assessment year as provided in subdivision
2(h). The one hundred thousand dollar ($100,000) exemption shall
3be one hundred fifty thousand dollars ($150,000), as adjusted for
4the relevant assessment year as provided in subdivision (h), in the
5case of an eligible unmarried surviving spouse whose household
6income does not exceed the amount of forty thousand dollars
7($40,000), as adjusted for the relevant assessment year as provided
8in subdivision (g).
9(3) Beginning with the 2012-13 fiscal year and for each fiscal
10year thereafter, property is deemed to be the principal place of
11residence of the unmarried surviving spouse of a deceased veteran,
12who is confined to a hospital or other care facility, if that property
13would be the unmarried surviving spouse’s principal place of
14residence were it not for his or her confinement to a hospital or
15other care facility, provided that the residence is not rented or
16leased to a third party. For purposes of this paragraph, a family
17member who resides at the residence is not a third party.
18(d) As used in this section, “property that is owned by a veteran”
19or “property that is owned by the veteran’s unmarried surviving
20spouse” includes all of the following:
21(1) Property owned by
the veteran with the veteran’s spouse as
22a joint tenancy, tenancy in common, or as community property.
23(2) Property owned by the veteran or the veteran’s spouse as
24separate property.
25(3) Property owned with one or more other persons to the extent
26of the interest owned by the veteran, the veteran’s spouse, or both
27the veteran and the veteran’s spouse.
28(4) Property owned by the veteran’s unmarried surviving spouse
29with one or more other persons to the extent of the interest owned
30by the veteran’s unmarried surviving spouse.
31(5) So much of the property of a corporation as constitutes the
32principal place of residence of a veteran or a veteran’s unmarried
33surviving
spouse when the veteran, or the veteran’s spouse, or the
34veteran’s unmarried surviving spouse is a shareholder of the
35corporation and the rights of shareholding entitle one to the
36possession of property, legal title to which is owned by the
37corporation. The exemption provided by this paragraph shall be
38
shown on the local roll and shall reduce the full value of the
39corporate property. Notwithstanding any law or articles of
40incorporation or bylaws of a corporation described in this
P5 1paragraph, any reduction of property taxes paid by the corporation
2shall reflect an equal reduction in any charges by the corporation
3to the person who, by reason of qualifying for the exemption, made
4possible the reduction for the corporation.
5(e) For purposes of this section, being blind in both eyes means
6having a visual acuity of 5/200 or less, or concentric contraction
7of the visual field to 5 degrees or less; losing the use of a limb
8means that the limb has been amputated or its use has been lost
9by reason of ankylosis, progressive muscular dystrophies, or
10paralysis; and being totally disabled means that the United States
11Department of
Veterans Affairs or the military service from which
12the veteran was discharged has rated the disability at 100 percent
13or has rated the disability compensation at 100 percent by reason
14of being unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful
15occupation.
16(f) An exemption granted to a claimant
pursuant to this section
17shall be in lieu of the veteran’s exemption provided by subdivisions
18(o), (p), (q), and (r) of Section 3 of Article XIII of the California
19Constitution and any other real property tax exemption to which
20the claimant may be entitled. No other real property tax exemption
21may be granted to any other person with respect to the same
22residence for which an exemption has been granted pursuant to
23this section; provided, that if two or more veterans qualified
24pursuant to this section coown a property in which they reside,
25each is entitled to the exemption to the extent of his or her interest.
26(g) Commencing on January 1, 2002, and for each assessment
27year thereafter, the household income limit shall be compounded
28annually by an inflation factor that is the annual percentage change,
29measured from February to
February of the two previous
30assessment years, rounded to the nearest one-thousandth of 1
31percent, in the California Consumer Price Index for all items, as
32determined by the California Department of Industrial Relations.
33(h) Commencing on January 1, 2006, and for each assessment
34year thereafter, the exemption amounts set forth in subdivisions
35(a) and (c) shall be compounded annually by an inflation factor
36that is the annual percentage change, measured from February to
37February of the two previous assessment years, rounded to the
38nearest one-thousandth of 1 percent, in the California Consumer
39Price Index for all items, as determined by the California
40Department of Industrial Relations.
Notwithstanding Section 2229 of the Revenue and
2Taxation Code, no appropriation is made by this act and the state
3shall not reimburse any local agency for any property tax revenues
4lost by it pursuant to this act.
This act provides for a tax levy within the meaning of
6Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into immediate effect.
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