BILL ANALYSIS �
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 948|
|Office of Senate Floor Analyses | |
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CONSENT
Bill No: SB 948
Author: Senate Governance and Finance Committee
Amended: 4/27/11
Vote: 21
SENATE GOVERNANCE & FINANCE COMMITTEE : 9-0, 5/4/11
AYES: Wolk, Huff, DeSaulnier, Fuller, Hancock, Hernandez,
Kehoe, La Malfa, Liu
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : Senate Rule 28.8
SUBJECT : Property taxation
SOURCE : California Association of County Treasurer-Tax
Collectors
DIGEST : This bill consolidates twelve items that make
minor, technical changes to property tax law.
ANALYSIS : Currently, treasurer-tax collectors (TTCs)
must provide notice to the right to claim proceeds to the
last known parties of interest in a tax sale that exceeds
$150. If the treasurer-tax collector cannot obtain the
address, he/she must publish notice in a newspaper of
general circulation in the county.
This bill allows treasurer-tax collectors not to publish
the notice in a newspaper of general circulation if the
costs of publication exceed the amount of the tax sale's
proceeds.
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Third party agents occasionally seek to recover excess
proceeds on behalf of individuals, and submit blanket
claims to treasurer-tax collectors with only the name of an
individual, but not the source of the proceeds that he/she
may be entitled to receive. The agents file the claims
hoping to find proceeds that can then be marketed to the
individual contingent on a finder's fee, often exceeding 50
percent. Treasurer-tax collectors are concerned that they
are able to locate these taxpayers without the agents, and
will benefit taxpayers by sending proceeds without the
finder's fee.
This bill requires agents to submit proof of the source of
excess proceeds to which the individual is entitled, so
that agents that know specific sources of proceeds can
claim proceeds unhindered, but those who don't cannot
submit blanket claims.
Currently, the treasurer-tax collector must publish
specified notices in newspapers or three public places in
each township.
This bill allows a board of supervisors to enact a
resolution authorizing the treasurer-tax collector to post
these notices on the TTC's regularly maintained Web site.
The treasurer-tax collector must continue to publish a
shortened notice in a newspaper stating that the full
notice is available on the TTC's Web site.
Taxpayers file property tax protests with the county
clerks, and make payments to treasurer-tax collectors;
however, Revenue and Taxation Code Section 620 states that
taxpayers must submit payments and protest claims with the
TTC.
This bill clarifies that taxpayers file protests with the
county clerk, and pay taxes to the treasurer-tax collector.
Revenue and Taxation Code Section 5150.5 requires counties
to pay interest to taxpayers when a court allows the
taxpayer to recover a penalty previously assessed under
paragraphs (1), (2), or (3) of subdivision (a) of Section
830. However, the referenced penalties are in subdivision
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(c) of Section 830.
This bill corrects the cross-reference.
State law prohibits assessors from disclosing information
and records, unless specifically exempted.
This bill allows assessors to disclose information that
assists treasurer-tax collectors with tax sales, such as
notifying potential parties of interest. The treasurer
tax-collector must submit a written request certifying that
he/she needs the information to help administer the tax
sale law, which cannot include social security numbers.
The assessor may charge the treasurer-tax collector for
his/her costs, which the treasurer-tax collector must add
to the delinquent tax amount.
The Government Code allows any county department, officer,
or employee that collects taxes, penalties, or other costs
to file an application for a "discharge of accountability"
whenever the costs of collection exceed the revenue
collected. Section 25257, 25258, 25259, and 25259.5
describe the process for county officials to file the
application, and were recently updated by the Legislature
(SB 857 �Senate Budget and Fiscal Review Committee],
Chapter 720, Statutes of 2010). However, corresponding
Revenue and Taxation Code Section 2611.1 still contains
language allowing for discharges of accountability which
conflicts with the updated Government Code sections.
This bill amends the Revenue and Taxation Code section
regarding discharges of accountability to require
discharges under that section to comply with the updated
Government Code sections.
When a taxpayer overpays tax by more than $10, the
treasurer-tax collector must notify the taxpayer of the
overpayment.
This bill clarifies that the treasurer-tax collector
determines whether an overpayment exists takes place at the
time the date and time the payment is received. The bill
also states that the tax collector may process a refund
without requesting that the taxpayer file a refund claim.
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Occasionally, taxpayers or their agents make payments on
the wrong property. If the taxpayer or his or her agent
can convince the treasurer-tax collector by substantial
evidence that the payment was intended for another
property, the treasurer-tax collector cancels the credit on
the unintended property and applies it to the correct
property within a specified time period. Treasurer-tax
collectors cancel the payment and refund the amount when
the taxpayer does not intend the payment to apply to
another piece of property.
This bill requires the treasurer-tax collector to transfer
the payment to the intended property or refund the payment
to the taxpayer within 60 days of verifying the mistake, or
the date that the payment is not subject to chargeback,
dishonor, or reversal. The bill additionally specifies
that interest shall only be paid if the treasurer-tax
collector does not transfer or refund the payment after
that date.
Revenue and Taxation Code Section 5096 provides for that
taxed paid before or after delinquency shall be refunded if
the payments exceed the equalized value of the property
determined by the county board of equalization.
This bill changes the reference for the section from the
county board of equalization to a recently updated section
that requires the county clerk to record changes each month
made by the assessment appeals board. This bill also
provides that the treasurer-tax collector shall refund
payments, as long as the overpayment exceeds $10.
If a treasurer-tax collector makes an error in a
publication, he/she may correct the error in a
supplementary publication lasting at least ten days in the
same manner as the original publication.
This bill recasts this section to specify that the
treasurer-tax collector has 60 days after the original
publication to republish. This bill specifies that the
republication shall not affect the right of a taxpayer,
assesse, or other private party in a material way.
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Currently, whenever a treasurer-tax collector proposes
property for a tax sale, the TTC may remove the parcel upon
the recommendation from the county counsel that the removal
is in the best interest of the county. The treasurer-tax
collector must notify the controller whenever he/she
removes a parcel.
This bill removes the requirement to notify the Controller.
Comments
Each year, the former Revenue and Taxation Committee
authored a bill to enact several changes to Property Tax
Law sponsored by the California Association of County
Treasurer-Tax Collectors, who collect property tax
payments, execute tax sales, and manage local agencies'
money. Many of these bills are technical in nature, and
enacting them in separate measures isn't warranted.
Although this bill may not be germane under a strict
interpretation of the single-subject and germaneness rules
presented in Californians for an Open Primary v. McPherson
(2006), it implements important and necessary changes to
property tax laws without taxing legislative resources.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: Yes
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/17/11)
California Association of County Treasurer-Tax Collectors
(source)
AGB:do 5/17/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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