Property taxation: welfare exemption: low income housing.

The California Constitution authorizes the Legislature to exempt from taxation, in whole or in part, property that is used exclusively for religious, hospital, or charitable purposes, and is owned or held in trust by a nonprofit entity. Pursuant to this constitutional authority, existing law partially exempts from property taxation property used exclusively for rental housing and related facilities, if specified criteria are met, including that the owner is eligible for and receives low-income housing tax credits pursuant to specified provisions of the Internal Revenue Code. Existing law, through the 2027–28 fiscal year, treats a unit of property owned by an owner who is eligible for the federal low-income housing tax credit as occupied by a lower income household if the occupants were lower income households on the lien date in the fiscal year in which occupancy of the unit commenced and the unit continues to be rent restricted, notwithstanding an increase in the income of the occupants of the unit to 140% of area median income, but that the unit would cease to be treated as a lower income unit if the income of the occupants of the unit increases above 140% of area median income. Existing law, through the 2027–28 fiscal year, requires a claim for the welfare exemption on qualified property to be accompanied by an affidavit containing specified information regarding the units occupied by lower income households for which the exemption is claimed and provides that affidavit is not subject to public disclosure. This bill would extend indefinitely the treatment of a unit of property whose owner is eligible for specified federal low-income housing tax credits as occupied by a lower income household, as provided. By extending the duties of local tax officials, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires local agencies, for the purpose of ensuring public access to the meetings of public bodies and the writings of public officials and agencies, to comply with a statutory enactment that amends or enacts laws relating to public records or open meetings and contains findings demonstrating that the enactment furthers the constitutional requirements relating to this purpose. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. Existing constitutional provisions require that a statute that limits the right of access to the meetings of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies be adopted with findings demonstrating the interest protected by the limitation and the need for protecting that interest. This bill would make legislative findings to that effect. 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 with regard to certain mandates no reimbursement is required by this act for a specified reason. With regard to any other mandates, this bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs so mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to the statutory provisions noted above. Existing law requires the state 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 those provisions, 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.