Taxation: qualified heavy equipment.

The California Constitution authorizes the Legislature to classify personal property for differential taxation or for exemption by means of a statute approved by a 23 vote of the membership of each house. This bill would, pursuant to this constitutional authorization, on and after January 1, 2013, impose a tax on every qualified lessee, as defined, of qualified heavy equipment, as defined, for the privilege of leasing or renting qualified heavy equipment in this state at the rate of 1.25% of the gross receipts of the qualified lessee. This bill would provide that this tax shall be in lieu of any personal property tax on qualified heavy equipment. This bill would require the tax to be administered by the State Board of Equalization and to be collected pursuant to the procedures set forth in the Fee Collection Procedures Law. This bill would require all revenues, interest, penalties, and other amounts derived from the imposition of the tax to be deposited in the Heavy Equipment Revenue Fund in the State Treasury, established by this bill. This bill would require all revenues in the fund, upon appropriation by the Legislature, to be used to reimburse local entities for their loss of property tax revenues resulting from this bill. By expanding the application of the Fee Collection Procedures Law, the violation of which is a crime, this bill would impose a state-mandate local program. 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. 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.