BILL ANALYSIS
AB 1341
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 11, 2009
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON REVENUE AND TAXATION
Charles M. Calderon, Chair
AB 1341 (Saldana) - As Amended: April 2, 2009
Majority vote.
SUBJECT : Property taxation: disabled veterans' exemption.
SUMMARY : Deletes obsolete references to outdated disabled
veterans' exemption amounts and corrects an erroneous reference
to a non-existing section in the Revenue and Taxation Code
(R&TC). Specifically, this bill :
1)Deletes obsolete references to the disabled veterans' basic
exemption amount of $40,000 and the low-income exemption
amount of $60,000, which were increased by the Legislature in
1989 to $100,000 and $150,000, respectively.
2)Corrects a transposition error in R&TC Section 276, intending
a cross reference to R&TC Section 4985, rather than Section
4895, relating to a disabled veterans' partial exemption for
outstanding property taxes.
3)Makes a minor, technical change to the provision relating to
the procedure for canceling outstanding property taxes when a
claim for the exemption is filed late.
EXISTING LAW :
1.Authorizes a property tax exemption for the principal
residence of a disabled veteran or his/her spouse, including
an unmarried surviving spouse of a person who has died as a
result of a service-connected injury or death while on active
duty in military service.
2.Specifies that the amount of property tax exemption is equal
to the assessed value of the property, up to $100,000, as
adjusted. The amount of the property tax exemption is
increased to $150,000, as adjusted, for low-income claimants.
3.Provides that the exemption amounts and income limitation must
AB 1341
Page 2
be adjusted annually for the change in the California Consumer
Price Index for all items, as determined by the California
Department of Industrial Relations. For the 2008-09 fiscal
year, the basic exemption amount as adjusted for inflation was
$111,296, the low-income exemption amount, as adjusted for
inflation, was $166,944, and the maximum household income, as
adjusted for inflation, for low-income classification was
$49,969.
4.Requires that a claim for the disabled veterans' property tax
exemption be filed with the local county assessor, and
provides that, once granted, the basic exemption remains in
continuous effect unless any of the following conditions
occur:
a. The title to property changes;
b. The property is altered so the property no longer
qualifies as a dwelling;
c. The owner is no longer considered disabled; or,
d. The owner does not occupy the property as his/her
principal place of residence on the property tax lien
date.
5.Provides that a claim for low-income exemption be filed each
year to verify income eligibility. The annual filing period
is between January 1 and February 15; however, if a claim is
filed after the deadline, the claimant may still receive the
exemption at a reduced level.
FISCAL EFFECT : The Board of Equalization staff estimates that
this bill will have no revenue impact.
COMMENTS :
1)According to the author, the purpose of this bill is "to
delete a reference to outdated exemption amount levels as a
housekeeping measure" and to correct a transposition error in
R&TC Section 276, relating to the provisions of law for
canceling taxes due.
2)Related Legislation .
AB 1341
Page 3
SB 824 (Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee), introduced in
the 2009-10 Legislative Session, contains, among other
provisions, a provision that is identical to AB 1341 - it
deletes the outdated disabled veterans' exemption amounts and
corrects the same erroneous cross-reference in R&TC Section
276.
SB 1777 (Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee), introduced in
the 2007-08 Legislative Session, would have deleted the
obsolete reference to the outdated exemption amounts and would
have corrected the transposition error in R&TC Section 276
intending a cross reference to Section 4985, rather than
Section 4895. SB 1777 was vetoed by the Governor.
"I am returning Senate Bill 1777 without my signature.
"The historic delay in passing the 2008-2009 State
Budget has
Forced me to prioritize the bills sent to my desk at
the end of the
year's legislative session. Given the delay, I am
only signing bills that
are the highest priority for California. This bill
does not meet
that standard and I cannot sign it at this time."
SB 320 (Royce), Chapter 1077, Statutes of 1989, and SB 2195
(Soto), Chapter 1086, Statutes of 1989, permanently increased
the amounts for the disabled veterans' exemption from $40,000
and $60,000 to $100,000 and $150,000, respectively.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by : Oksana Jaffe / REV. & TAX. / (916)
319-2098
AB 1341
Page 4