Bill Text: CA AB1140 | 2019-2020 | Regular Session | Amended

California Assembly Bill 1140 (Prior Session Legislation)

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

Bill Title: Public Employees’ Retirement System: contracting agencies: consolidation.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2-0)

Status: (Passed) 2020-09-11 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 65, Statutes of 2020. [AB1140 Detail]

Download: California-2019-AB1140-Amended.html

Amended IN Assembly April 01, 2019

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2019–2020 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 1140

Introduced by Assembly Member Mark Stone

February 21, 2019

An act to add Section 22252.2 to the Business and Professions Code, relating to business.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 1140, as amended, Mark Stone. Tax preparers: disclosures.

Existing law, the Tax Preparation Act, requires a tax preparer to register with the California Tax Education Council and, among other things, requires a tax preparer to provide specified written disclosures to a client in connection with tax preparation services, including written disclosures relating to refund anticipation loans. A violation of the provisions of the act is a misdemeanor, except as specified.

This bill would require a tax preparer to make specified written disclosures to a client who is ~~applying for~~ claiming the California Earned Income Tax Credit or the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, including the total amount of all costs and fees being charged by the tax ~~preparer and the amount of the tax refund the client would receive without paying the tax preparer’s fees.~~ preparer. The bill would also require a tax prepare to make the written disclosures available in English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog, Vietnamese, and Korean. ~~Because a violation of the bill’s provisions would be a crime, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program.~~ The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to develop and post on its internet website a model disclosure form.

This bill would exempt violation of these provisions from the existing criminal sanctions, and would instead make a violation of the provisions subject to a warning by the council for a first violation and, for a 2nd or subsequent violation, a fine of $750 and discipline by the council, as specified. The bill would require the penalty money collected pursuant to those provisions to be used, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for the federal Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program and Earned Income Tax Credit outreach efforts.

The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
~~This bill would provide that no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason.~~

Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: ~~YES~~NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

SECTION 1.

Section 22252.2 is added to the Business and Professions Code, to read:

22252.2.

(a) Before preparing a tax return for a client who is ~~applying for~~ claiming the California Earned Income Tax Credit or the federal Earned Income Tax Credit, a tax preparer shall provide a written disclosure to the client that contains all of the following information:

(1) The total amount of all costs and fees being charged by the tax ~~preparer.~~ preparer, which shall be itemized and presented in a table format.

~~(2)An estimate of the amount of the tax refund the client would receive without paying the tax preparer’s fees.~~
~~(3)~~

(2) A statement that the client may be eligible for free tax preparation services through the Internal Revenue Service Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, and the Internal Revenue Service’s internet website where the client may find additional information.

(3) The tax preparer’s federal preparer tax identification number.

(b) The disclosures required by this section shall be on a single sheet of paper and written in not less than 20-point type, and shall be signed and dated by the client. The tax preparer shall retain the document for at least 3 three years.

(c) The written disclosures required to be provided in this section shall be made available in English and the five languages listed in Section 1632 of the Civil Code.

(d) The Franchise Tax Board shall develop a model disclosure form, which shall be made available on the Franchise Tax Board’s internet website.
(e) A violation of this section is not subject to subdivision (b) of Section 22256 or Section 22257. A tax preparer who violates this section is subject to the following penalties:
(1) For a first violation, the tax preparer is subject to a warning by the council.
(2) For a second or subsequent violation, the tax preparer is subject to a fine of seven hundred fifty dollars ($750) and discipline by the council under Section 22253.3. Moneys collected pursuant to this section shall, upon appropriation by the Legislature, be used to fund the federal Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program and Earned Income Tax Credit outreach efforts.

SEC. 2.
No reimbursement is required by this act pursuant to Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution because the only costs that may be incurred by a local agency or school district will be incurred because this act creates a new crime or infraction, eliminates a crime or infraction, or changes the penalty for a crime or infraction, within the meaning of Section 17556 of the Government Code, or changes the definition of a crime within the meaning of Section 6 of Article XIII B of the California Constitution.