Bill Text: CA SB133 | 2015-2016 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Transient occupancy taxes: hosting platforms: collection.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2016-11-30 - From Assembly without further action. [SB133 Detail]
Download: California-2015-SB133-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: SB 133 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 21, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 20, 2016
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JUNE 10, 2016
INTRODUCED BY Senator McGuire
JANUARY 22, 2015
An act to add Chapter 1.1 (commencing with Section 7283.60) to
Part 1.7 of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, relating to
hosting platforms.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SB 133, as amended, McGuire. Transient occupancy taxes: hosting
platforms: collection.
Existing law authorizes a city, county, or city and county to
impose taxes within its jurisdiction, as provided, including a
transient occupancy tax.
This bill would authorize a city, county, or city and county to
elect to allow platforms, as defined, that elect to assume the
responsibility of collecting and remitting transient occupancy taxes
on behalf of operators, to collect and remit those taxes to that
city, county, or city and county, as specified. For cities, counties,
and cities and counties that notify the Controller of their election
by April 30, 2017, and for platforms that notify the Controller of
their election by March 1, 2017, this collection and remittance would
begin on July 1, 2017. For platforms and cities, counties, or cities
and counties that provide notifications to the Controller after
those dates, the collection and remittance would begin at least 6
months after notification, as specified. The bill would authorize a
city, county, or city and county to discontinue an election and would
make this discontinuance effective at least 6 months after
notification to the Controller. The bill would also authorize a
platform to discontinue its election, entirely or in part, effective
as specified.
This bill, by December 31, 2018, and by December 31 of each year
thereafter, would require the Controller to review or audit a
platform's collection and remittance of tax revenue pursuant to the
above-described provisions, would further require the Controller to
submit a final report containing specific information to each city,
county, or city and county in which the platform collected and
remitted taxes, and would authorize the platform or the city, county,
or city and county to appeal findings identified in the report, as
provided.
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.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 1.1 (commencing with Section 7283.60) is added
to Part 1.7 of Division 2 of the Revenue and Taxation Code, to read:
CHAPTER 1.1. VOLUNTARY OCCUPANCY TAX COLLECTION
7283.60. For purposes of this chapter, the following terms have
the following meanings:
(a) "Participating platform" means a platform that assumes the
responsibility for collecting and remitting to a city, county, or
city and county on behalf of an operator in a participating
jurisdiction pursuant to this chapter, the amount of transient
occupancy tax on a rental transaction that is facilitated by the
platform for a unit that is offered for occupancy for tourist or
transient use for compensation to the operator within a participating
jurisdiction.
(b) "Participating jurisdiction" means a city, county, or city and
county that has adopted a resolution that permits a participating
platform to collect and remit all transient occupancy tax on rental
transactions that are facilitated by the platform for any unit that
is offered for occupancy for tourist or transient use for
compensation to an operator within its jurisdiction and has notified
the Controller pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 7283.63, and in
which a participating platform is collecting and remitting transient
occupancy tax on rental transactions that are facilitated by the
platform for any unit that is offered for occupancy for tourist or
transient use for compensation to an operator within its
jurisdiction.
(c) "Operator" means a person offering, through a platform, to
make a unit available for tourist or transient use.
(d) "Personally identifiable information" means operator
information and identifiable transaction-level records. "Operator
information" means a taxpayer's or operator's identifying
information, including without limitation, the taxpayer's or operator'
s name, the taxpayer's or operator's address, and the property
address of any unit made available by an operator or occupied by a
taxpayer through a participating platform. "Identifiable
transaction-level records" means any information that reveals the
amount of rent collected or the amount of transient occupancy tax
collected with respect to any individual transaction or any
individual operator.
(e) "Platform" means a marketplace that is created for the primary
purpose of facilitating the rental of a unit offered for occupancy
for tourist or transient use for compensation to the operator of that
unit, and the owner of the marketplace derives revenues, including
booking fees or advertising revenues, from providing or maintaining
that marketplace. "Facilitating" includes, but is not limited to, the
act of allowing the operator of the unit to offer or advertise the
unit on the Internet Web site provided or maintained by the owner of
the platform.
(f) "Transient occupancy tax" means a tax on the privilege of
occupying a room or rooms, or other living space, in a hotel, inn,
tourist home or house, motel, or other lodging unless the occupancy
is for a period of more than 30 days.
7283.61. On and after July 1, 2017, every participating platform
shall collect on behalf of an operator the amount of any transient
occupancy tax on every rental transaction that is facilitated by the
participating platform for a unit that is offered for occupancy for
tourist or transient use for compensation to the operator and is
located within a participating jurisdiction. The participating
platform shall remit the amount to the participating jurisdiction
pursuant to applicable requirements of local ordinances governing the
remission, but not the reporting, of the tax.
7283.62. On or before March 1, 2017, the Controller shall develop
and publicly notice both of the following:
(a) Procedures that a platform shall use to notify the Controller
if the platform elects to, or discontinues its election to, become a
participating platform.
(b) Procedures that a city, county, or city and county shall use
to notify the Controller if the city, county, or city and county
elects to, or discontinues its election to, become a participating
jurisdiction.
7283.63. (a) On or before March 1, 2017, a platform may elect to
become a participating platform by using the procedures developed
pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 7283.62 to notify the
Controller of the platform's election.
(b) On or before April 30, 2017, a city, county, or city and
county may elect by resolution to become a participating jurisdiction
by using the procedures developed pursuant to subdivision (b) of
Section 7283.62 to notify the Controller of the city's, county's, or
city and county's election.
(c) An election made pursuant to this section is effective upon
receipt by the Controller and until discontinued by the platform or
city, county, or city and county pursuant to Section 7283.65, except
that a city, county, or city and county's election pursuant to this
section shall not be effective as to a participating platform that,
on or before June 15, 2017, notifies the Controller that the
participating platform will not collect and remit transient occupancy
tax in the city, county, or city and county.
(d) The Controller shall publicly identify, by posting on the
Controller's Internet Web site, each platform and each city, county,
or city and county that has provided a notification to the Controller
pursuant to this section as soon as possible upon receipt, but in no
event later than May 31, 2017.
7283.64. On or after July 1, 2017, a platform that did not elect
to become a participating platform pursuant to Section 7283.63 or had
previously elected to discontinue its status as a participating
platform may elect or reelect to become a participating platform by
using the procedures developed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section
7283.62 to notify the Controller of the platform's election. An
election made pursuant to this section is effective six months after
receipt by the Controller or the date specified in the notice,
whichever is later, and until discontinued by the platform pursuant
to Section 7283.65. The Controller shall publicly identify, by
posting on the Controller's Internet Web site, each platform that has
provided a notification to the Controller pursuant to this section
as soon as possible upon receipt.
7283.65. (a) A participating platform may elect to discontinue
its status as a participating platform by using the procedures
developed pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 7283.62 to notify
the Controller of the participating platform's election. An election
made pursuant to this subdivision is effective on the first day of
the month that is six months after the date of the election. A
participating platform may notify the Controller that the
participating platform will discontinue collecting and remitting
transient occupancy tax in any participating jurisdiction that amends
or otherwise alters the ordinance, rules, or provisions applicable
to transient occupancy tax in the participating jurisdiction upon the
effective date of the amendments or alterations.
(b) On or before June 30, 2018, or June 30 of any year thereafter,
a participating jurisdiction may elect to discontinue its status as
a participating jurisdiction, or a city, county, or city and county
may elect to become a participating jurisdiction, by using the
procedures developed pursuant to subdivision (b) of Section 7283.62
to notify the Controller of the participating jurisdiction's or city'
s, county's, or city and county's election. An election made by June
30 of any year pursuant to this subdivision is effective on January 1
of the following year after the election, except that a city,
county, or city and county's election pursuant to this subdivision
shall not be effective as to a participating platform that, on or
before November 15 of the year in which the election is made,
notifies the Controller that the participating platform will not
collect and remit transient occupancy tax in the city, county, or
city and county.
(c) The Controller shall publicly identify, by posting on the
Controller's Internet Web site, each platform and each city, county,
or city and county that has provided a notification to the Controller
pursuant to this section as soon as possible upon receipt.
7283.66. (a) By December 31, 2018, and by December 31 of each
year thereafter, the Controller shall review or audit a participating
platform's collection and remittance of tax revenue pursuant to
Section 7283.61 and shall submit a final report to each participating
jurisdiction in which the participating platform collected and
remitted taxes. The final report shall not disclose any personally
identifiable information and shall contain only the following
information:
(1) A general description of the Controller's review or audit
findings.
(2) The aggregate amount of taxes collected and remitted to each
participating jurisdiction by each participating platform during the
period covered by the report.
(3) An identification of any errors in the collection and
remittance of tax revenues within the participating jurisdiction that
were determined as a result of any review or audit in the
participating jurisdiction that were not remediated, including by
payment of all amounts owing, within 90 days.
(4) The participating platform's response, if any, to errors
identified by any audit or review in the participating jurisdiction
that were not remediated, including by payment of all amounts owing,
within 90 days.
(b) (1) The Controller shall only request the participating
platform to submit personally identifiable information as reasonably
necessary to (i) verify a participating platform's proper application
of geographic boundaries and (ii) verify proper collection and
remittance of transient occupancy tax, and shall not disclose to a
participating jurisdiction, publicly disclose, or otherwise make
known in any manner whatsoever any personally identifiable
information obtained from a participating platform or other person in
the course of conducting an audit or review required by this
section.
(2) When requested by a participating jurisdiction, the Controller
shall permit any duly authorized officer or employee of that
participating jurisdiction to examine the records of the Controller,
excluding any personally identifiable information, pertaining to any
audit or review of collections by a participating platform within
that participating jurisdiction. Except as otherwise provided herein,
this paragraph shall not be construed to allow any officer or
employee of that participating jurisdiction to request or examine any
records other than records in the Controller's possession that were
obtained in the course of its review or audit of transient occupancy
taxes collected by a participating platform within that participating
jurisdiction.
(c) A platform or a participating jurisdiction may appeal any
findings identified in a review or audit report submitted pursuant to
subdivision (a) by providing a notice of appeal to the Controller's
General Counsel. The notice of appeal shall be filed within 60 days
from the date of the final review or audit report and shall identify
the issues being appealed and the basis and reason for the appeal.
The Controller's General Counsel shall review the issues appealed and
may hold an informal appeal conference for purposes of taking
additional information and shall issue a determination within 90 days
of receipt of the appeal.
(d) The Controller may recover the reasonable costs, measured by
the Controller's standard rate, of an audit or review conducted
pursuant to subdivision (a) or an appeal conducted pursuant to
subdivision (c) from the participating platform that was audited or
reviewed.
(e) This section shall not apply to cities, counties, or cities
and counties that are not participating jurisdictions.
7283.67. This chapter does not limit the existing authority of a
city, county, or city and county to regulate operators, including any
local regulation that requires operators to provide information
concerning transactions conducted in the city, county, or city and
county, provided that the requirements do not discriminate against
transactions facilitated through a platform.
7283.68. A participating platform's collection and remittance of
transient occupancy tax pursuant to this chapter shall be subject to
audit or review only by the Controller, pursuant to the requirements
of Section 7283.66. A participating platform shall not be required to
comply with audit or review requirements or requests regarding the
participating platform's collection and remittance of transient
occupancy tax pursuant to this chapter in any participating
jurisdiction, or to related requests or requirements for personally
identifiable information, by any participating jurisdiction.
7283.69. A participating platform that complies with audit or
review parameters established by the Controller pursuant to Section
7283.66 shall not be required to provide personally identifiable
information to a participating jurisdiction, except pursuant to an
order by a court of competent jurisdiction.
7283.70. This chapter shall not be construed as creating
to alter or otherwise modify any legal duty or
requirement for a participating platform to collect or remit
transient occupancy taxes in a city, county, or city and county that
is not a participating jurisdiction.
SEC. 2. The Legislature finds and declares that Section 1 of this
act, which adds Section 7283.66 to the Revenue and Taxation Code,
imposes a limitation on the public's right of access to the meetings
of public bodies or the writings of public officials and agencies
within the meaning of Section 3 of Article I of the California
Constitution. Pursuant to that constitutional provision, the
Legislature makes the following findings to demonstrate the interest
protected by this limitation and the need for protecting that
interest:
People who rent units for tourist or transient use through
platforms have a reasonable expectation of privacy, as against public
disclosure, in their rental of those units and in the personally
identifiable information they provide to platforms in connection with
those rentals. Limiting the disclosure of that personally
identifiable information in any records obtained or generated by the
Controller pertaining to audits or reviews of a platform's collection
and remittance of transient occupancy taxes furthers the purposes of
Section 3 of Article I of the California Constitution by
appropriately balancing the interest in public disclosure with the
interest in preserving the privacy and confidentiality of that
personally identifiable information.
