BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    �



                                                                  AB 188
                                                                  Page  1

          Date of Hearing:   April 6, 2011

                        ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
                                Felipe Fuentes, Chair

                  AB 188 (Block) - As Introduced:  January 25, 2011


          Policy Committee:                              Revenue and 
          Taxation     Vote:                            9-0

          Urgency:     No                   State Mandated Local Program: 
          Yes    Reimbursable:              No

           SUMMARY  

          This bill ensures that the disabled veterans' property tax 
          exemption received by a surviving spouse for a principal 
          residence will continue to be available for the spouse when he 
          or she is confined to a hospital or other care facility, 
          provided that the spouse has not remarried.  Specifically, this 
          bill: 

          1)Extends the disabled veterans' property tax exemption to a 
            disabled veteran's surviving spouse who has not remarried and 
            who is confined to a hospital or other care facility.   

          2)Applies for property tax lien dates, i.e. January 1, for 
            fiscal years beginning with 2012-13.

          3)Takes effect immediately as a tax levy.

           FISCAL EFFECT  

          Board of Equalization (BOE) staff estimates that the fiscal 
          impact of this bill will be negligible.  One of the reasons the 
          estimated revenue loss is small is that many counties already 
          allow the exemption to continue, according to BOE staff. There 
          are no state costs because the disabled veterans' exemption, 
          unlike the homeowners' exemption, does not require the state to 
          reimburse the counties for the amount of property tax revenues 
          lost.  

           COMMENTS  









                                                                  AB 188
                                                                  Page  2

           1)Rationale.   This bill will ensure that surviving spouses who 
            are not remarried and are is currently receiving the disabled 
            veterans' exemption on their home will continue to receive the 
            exemption if they must enter a hospital or other care 
            facility.  According to BOE, the bill's sponsor, this bill 
            corrects an inadvertent oversight that occurred with the 
            enactment of the legislation.
             
           2)Previous legislation.  
                
            AB 322 (Parra), Chapter 278, Statutes of 2003, established 
            that a disabled veteran, who is confined to a hospital or 
            other care facility, continues to receive the disabled 
            veterans' property tax exemption.

           Analysis Prepared by  :    Roger Dunstan / APPR. / (916) 319-2081