Local government: assessors: county board of equalization: assessment appeals board: agents.

Existing law requires every assessor to assess all property subject to general property taxation at its full value on the lien date, as provided, and to prepare an assessment roll in which all property within the county which it is the assessor's duty to assess is required to be listed. Existing law requires a county board of equalization or an assessment appeals board to equalize the valuation of taxable property within the county for the purpose of taxation. Existing law authorizes a taxpayer, with respect to each assessment year, to file an application for a reduction in an assessment, as provided, with the county board, which is the county board of supervisors meeting as a county board of equalization of an assessment appeals board. This bill would, on and after January 1, 2014, require an agent, as defined, representing a taxpayer before the assessor, a county board of equalization, or an assessment appeals board, to register with a registering jurisdiction, as defined, prior to representing a taxpayer before that jurisdiction. This bill would require specified information to be included in the agent registration, and would authorize the registering jurisdiction to prescribe the procedures, forms, and means of filing the agent registration. This bill would require the registering jurisdiction to set, charge, and collect a fee in an amount necessary to recover the costs of registration, including the amendment and renewal of registrations. This bill would impose certain affirmative duties upon each agent, and would prohibit each agent from engaging in certain activities. This bill would authorize the registering jurisdiction to reprimand, suspend, or deregister any agent from representation before that jurisdiction under certain circumstances, and to impose a monetary penalty on any agent who engages in certain prohibited activities, as provided. By imposing new duties upon local county officials with respect to the registration of agents, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law makes it unlawful for a person to, among other things, make any untrue or misleading statements in any manner in connection with the offering or performance of an assessment reduction filing service or to offer to perform an assessment reduction filing service without making a specified disclosure. Existing law defines "assessment reduction filing service" for these purposes to mean any service performed or offered to be performed for compensation in connection with the preparation or completion of an application or request of any kind for reduction in assessment of residential property or in connection with the assistance in any manner of another person to either prepare or complete an application or request of any kind for reduction in assessment of residential property or to provide comparable sales information in connection with an application or request for reduction in assessment of residential property. This bill would, on and after January 1, 2014, require an offeror of an assessment reduction filing service, as described above, to register as an agent prior to the performance of the service. Existing law requires the State Board of Equalization to make surveys in each county and city and county to, among other things, determine the adequacy of the procedures and practices employed by the county assessor in the valuation of property for the purposes of taxation and in the performance generally of the assessor's duties. This bill would expand the requirements of the survey conducted by the State Board of Equalization to include a review of the procedures and practices that regulate the behavior of agents, as defined. 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.