The Corporation Tax Law imposes, among other taxes, taxes according to or measured by the net income of the taxpayer for the taxable year at specified rates, but not less than the minimum franchise tax of $800, as specified. Existing law imposes an annual minimum franchise tax of $800, except as provided, on every corporation incorporated in this state, qualified to transact intrastate business in this state, or doing business in this state. Existing law also imposes an annual tax in an amount equal to the minimum franchise tax on specified entities doing business in this state, as specified. Existing law imposes interest and penalties for failing to timely pay the tax due under those laws. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2020, suspend the payment requirement of the taxes imposed under the Corporation Tax Law and the annual tax for small businesses, as defined, until the state of emergency declared by the Governor on March 4, 2020, related to the COVID-19 virus, has ended. The bill would also suspend the accrual of any penalties or interest related to the payment of those taxes for the specified taxable years for small businesses. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Sponsored bills
The Personal Income Tax Law, in modified conformity with federal law, generally defines "gross income" as income from whatever source derived, except as specifically excluded, and provides various exclusions from gross income for purposes of computing tax liability. Existing law requires any bill authorizing a new tax expenditure to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax expenditure will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements. This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2026, would provide an exclusion from gross income for all survivor benefits or payments received on or after January 1, 2021, and before January 1, 2026, under the federal Survivor Benefit Plan. The bill would require the Franchise Tax Board to submit, on or before December 1, 2025, a report to the Legislature on the income brackets of taxpayers who claimed this exclusion, and would provide findings and declarations relating to the goals, purposes, and objectives of this exclusion. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.
Existing law, the Gambling Control Act, provides for the licensure and regulation of various legalized gambling activities and establishments by the California Gambling Control Commission and the investigation and enforcement of those activities and establishments by the Department of Justice. Under existing law, the commission is composed of 5 members who are appointed by the Governor, subject to confirmation by the Senate. Existing law requires the Governor to fill any vacancies on the commission, subject to confirmation by the Senate, within 60 days of the date of the vacancy. This bill would reduce the time to fill a vacancy to within 45 days of the date of the vacancy. Existing law authorizes the Governor to remove a member of the commission for incompetence, neglect of duty, or corruption upon first giving the member a copy of the charges and an opportunity to be heard. This bill would require the Governor to notify the Legislature of the removal of a member of the commission.
The Z'berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973 prohibits a person from conducting timber operations, as defined, unless a timber harvesting plan prepared by a registered professional forester has been submitted to, and approved by, the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The act authorizes the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection to exempt from some or all of those provisions of the act a person engaging in specified forest management activities, as prescribed, including the cutting or removal of trees on the person's property that eliminates the vertical continuity of vegetative fuels and the horizontal continuity of tree crowns for the purpose of reducing flammable materials and maintaining a fuel break, known as the Small Timberland Owner Exemption. The act provides that the Small Timberland Owner Exemption is applicable to small forestland owners within the northern forest district or the southern forest district who own 100 acres or less of timberland within a single planning watershed. The act limits the authority of the department to grant the Small Timberland Owner Exemption to each landowner to 3 exemptions. The act makes the Small Timberland Owner Exemption operative for a period of 5 years after the adoption of emergency regulations by the State Board of Forestry and Fire Protection. This bill would increase the acreage owned by a small forestland owner within the northern forest district and southern forest district to which the Small Timberland Owner Exemption is applicable to 300 acres or less. The bill would repeal the limitation on authority of the department to grant no more than 3 Small Timberland Owner Exemptions to each landowner. The bill would authorize the construction or reconstruction of temporary roads on slopes of 30 percent or less that meet certain requirements under the Small Timberland Owner Exemption.
Existing law regulates the wages, hours, and working conditions of any worker employed in any occupation, trade, or industry, whether compensation is measured by time, piece, or otherwise, except as specified. This bill would authorize an employee working from home or a remote location not at the physical location of the employer to receive legally required notices and postings electronically and sign or acknowledge certain documents electronically. The bill would also authorize an employee who works from home or a remote location to have any wages due at the time of separation of employment mailed to the employee using the address the employer has on file for the employee for sending notices. The bill would require the wages to be deemed paid on the date of mailing.
Existing law, the Gambling Control Act, provides for the licensure of certain individuals and establishments involved in various gambling activities, and for the regulation of those activities, by the California Gambling Control Commission. Existing law provides for the enforcement of those activities by the Department of Justice. Existing law requires a limited liability company to comply with specified requirements in order to obtain a gambling license, including a requirement that the limited liability company provide specified information to the department, including, among other things, a copy of its annual federal income tax return within 30 calendar days after the return is filed with the Internal Revenue Service. This bill would instead require that return to be provided to the department within 60 calendar days after the return is filed with the Internal Revenue Service.
Existing law authorizes the Department of Human Resources (CalHR) to expend, in accordance with law, moneys made available for its use or for the administration of any statute administered by it. Existing law vests in CalHR the administration of salaries generally and provides for the payment of miscellaneous compensation under specified circumstances. Existing law requires CalHR to provide the extent to which, and establish the method by which, ordered overtime or overtime in times of critical emergency is compensated, as specified. This bill would authorize CalHR to provide a one-time payment of an unspecified amount to employees who have been required to telework as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in order to offset costs associated with working remotely.
Under existing law, the California Horse Racing Board has all powers necessary to carry out the purposes of the Horse Racing Law, such as adopting rules and regulations to protect the public, allocating dates for, and controlling, horse racing and parimutuel wagering, and enforcing all rules and regulations. Existing law requires that, whenever a fair conducts a program of horse races on which there is parimutuel wagering, the fair, so far as practicable, provide a program of racing that includes thoroughbred racing, quarter horse racing, Arabian racing, and Appaloosa racing, if sufficient number of horses are available to provide competition in one or more races. Under existing law, parimutuel wagering may be conducted on barrel races, show jumping races, and steeplechase races at any public or private facility that has been approved and licensed by the board. This bill would require that, whenever a fair conducts a program of horse races on which there is parimutuel wagering, the fair, so far as practicable, provide a program of racing that includes, in addition to the types of racing included under existing law, steeplechase racing, barrel racing, and show jumping racing.
Existing law, the Z'berg-Nejedly Forest Practice Act of 1973, declares the policy of the state to encourage prudent and responsible forest management of nonindustrialized timberlands through the approval of working forest management plans. Existing law authorizes a person who intends to become a working forest landowner to file a working forest management plan with the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, with the long-term objective of an uneven aged timber stand and sustained yield through the implementation of the plan. Existing law defines "working forest landowner" to mean an owner of timberland with less than 10,000 acres who has an approved working forest management plan and is not primarily engaged in the manufacture of forest products. Existing law also defines "working forest management plan," and allows multiple working forest landowners to submit a working forest management plan, but provides that the plan may cover no more than 10,000 acres of timberland. This bill would revise the definition of "working forest landowner" to mean an owner of timberland with less than 15,000 acres who has an approved working forest management plan and is not primarily engaged in the manufacture of forest products. The bill would revise the definition of "working forest management plan" to allow multiple working forest landowners to submit a working forest management plan, but provide that the plan may cover no more than 15,000 acres of timberland. The bill would also make nonsubstantive changes to other definitions applicable to working forest management plans.
Existing law, with various exceptions, generally establishes 8 hours as a day's work and a 40-hour workweek and requires the payment of prescribed overtime compensation for additional hours worked. This bill would permit an individual nonexempt employee to request an employee-selected remote work flexible work schedule providing for workdays up to 10 hours per day within a 40-hour workweek and would allow an employer to implement this schedule without the obligation to pay overtime compensation for those additional hours in a workday, except as specified. The authorization would apply only if an employee is working remotely and not under the physical control of the employer. The bill would require that the flexible work schedule contain specified information and the employer's and the employee's original signatures. The bill would except split shift premiums from application to the work of employees who are working an employee-selected remote work flexible work schedule. The bill would require the Division of Labor Standards Enforcement in the Department of Industrial Relations to enforce this provision and adopt regulations. Existing law regulates the wages, hours, and working conditions of any worker employed in any occupation, trade, or industry, whether compensation is measured by time, piece, or otherwise, except as specified. This bill would authorize any nonexempt employee working from home who is not under the physical control of the employer to choose when to take any meal or rest period during the workday, if the employer has not already scheduled a meal or rest period within the requirements of the law. The bill would require an employer to notify the employee of this right one time, when the employee begins working from home and if the employer fails to provide this notification, to pay only one additional hour of pay for each day that the employer fails to provide this notice. The Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 authorizes an aggrieved employee on behalf of the employee and other current or former employees to bring a civil action to recover specified civil penalties that would otherwise be assessed and collected by the Labor and Workforce Development Agency for the violation of certain provisions affecting employees. This bill would prohibit an employee from recovering civil penalties from an employer under the Labor Code Private Attorneys General Act of 2004 for violations of provisions requiring the employer to provide meal and rest breaks if the employee engaged in remote work, as specified. Among other things, the bill would require that the alleged violations occurred in a period beginning with March 19, 2020, and lasting until January 1, 2022, or until the declared end of the COVID-19 state of emergency issued by the Governor, whichever is earlier.