Bill Text: CA AB243 | 2021-2022 | Regular Session | Amended

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

---

Bill Title: Personal income tax: deduction: medical expenses.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 2-0)

Status: (Failed) 2022-02-01 - From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. [AB243 Detail]

Download: California-2021-AB243-Amended.html

---

Amended  IN  Assembly  January 03, 2022

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2021–2022 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill

No. 243

---

Introduced by Assembly Member Choi
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Seyarto)

January 13, 2021

---

An act to amend Section 17241 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to taxation, to take effect immediately, tax levy.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST

AB 243, as amended, Choi. Personal income tax: deduction: medical expenses.

The Personal Income Tax Law, in conformity or modified conformity with federal income tax laws, allows various deductions in computing the income that is subject to the taxes imposed by that law, including a deduction for the medical and dental expenses paid during the taxable year, not compensated for by insurance or otherwise, for the medical or dental care of the taxpayer, spouse, or a dependent, to the extent that such expenses exceed 7.5% of federal adjusted gross income.

This bill would would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2022, and before January 1, 2027, instead allow that deduction to the extent that those medical and dental expenses exceed 4% of federal adjusted gross income.

Existing law requires any bill expanding an existing tax deduction to contain, among other things, specific goals, purposes, and objectives that the tax credit will achieve, detailed performance indicators, and data collection requirements.

The bill would provide findings and declarations relating to the goals of the expansion of the deduction for medical and dental expenses.

This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.

Digest Key

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

---

Bill Text

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

SECTION 1.

 Section 17241 of the Revenue and Taxation Code is amended to read:

17241.

 (a) (1) For taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2015, and before January 1, 2022, and on or after January 1, 2027, Section 213(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, relating to allowance of deduction, is modified by substituting “4 “7.5 percent” for “10 percent.”

(2) For taxable years beginning on and after January 1, 2022, and before January 1, 2027, Section 213(a) of the Internal Revenue Code, relating to allowance of deduction, is modified by substituting “4 percent” for “10 percent.”

(b) Section 213(f) of the Internal Revenue Code, relating to special rule for 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016, shall not apply.

SEC. 2.

 (a) For purposes of complying with Section 41 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, the Legislature finds and declares the following:

(1) The goals, purposes, and objectives of the amendments made by this bill are the following:

(A) To help Californians pay for their health care premiums, as premiums have increased 55 percent since 2010, which is at least twice as fast as wages or inflation over the same time period.

(B) To allow Californians to deduct more of their health care expenses and pay less in state tax.

(2) The performance indicators for the Legislature to use when measuring whether the tax exemption meets the goals, purposes, or objectives specified in paragraph (1) will be the following:

(A) The change in number of taxpayers receiving the deduction under Section 17241 of the Revenue and Taxation Code for taxable years after enactment of the amendments made by this bill, compared to the number of taxpayers receiving that deduction for taxable years prior to the enactment of the amendments made by this bill.

(B) The change in total deductions, in dollars, taken by taxpayers pursuant to Section 17241 of the Revenue and Taxation Code for taxable years after enactment of the amendments made by this bill, compared to the total deductions taken by taxpayers pursuant to that section for taxable years prior to the enactment of the amendments made by this bill.

(b) On or before February 1, 2026, notwithstanding Section 19542 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, the Franchise Tax Board shall provide an anonymized report to the Assembly Committee on Revenue and Taxation and the Senate Committee on Governance and Finance with the number of taxpayers that claimed the deduction, and the total amount, in dollars, of deductions claimed by year for each taxable year beginning on or after January 1, 2015. The report shall be provided in compliance with Section 9795 of the Government Code.

SEC. 3.

 This act provides for a tax levy within the meaning of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall go into immediate effect.