On December 7th, the first day of the 2021-22 session of the California Legislature, Congregation members presented Luz Rivas and David Chiu AB 71 to create a “Nationwide Homelessness Solution”. Currently the bill is a letter of intent. However, it clarifies what changes to the tax increase will be proposed once significant changes have been made to the bill.
Assembly woman Luz M. Rivas. (Photo: Kevin Sanders for California Globe)
AB 71 would express the legislature’s intention to legislate to create a comprehensive nationwide program to resolve homelessness. In addition, AB 71 would set up the Bring California Home Fund in the Treasury to provide a minimum of $ 2,400,000 annually to fund a comprehensive statewide homeless solution program provided by lawmakers. And AB 71 would require the Bring California Home Fund to contain income derived from certain changes to the Income Tax Act or the Corporate Income Tax Act that go into effect on or after the effective date of this bill.
Eight legislative statements and declarations are made in Section 1 of the draft law. Over 150,000 people have been made homeless in California, with African Americans being disproportionately represented in this population. “The homeless is a statewide crisis in California that requires a statewide, comprehensive solution to match its scale.” As a result, it is the legislature’s intention to “create a comprehensive nationwide program to resolve homelessness”.
In addition, it is “the intent of lawmakers to legislate to fund this comprehensive program with new, ongoing revenues of at least $ 2.4 billion per year.”
Section 2 of the bill would establish the “Bring California Home Fund” in the Treasury to provide at least two million four hundred thousand dollars ($ 2,400,000) annually to fund a comprehensive nationwide program of homeless solutions to lawmakers.
The income for this fund would result from changes in California tax laws, including the following:
- An increase in income tax on income over one million dollars ($ 1,000,000).
- An increase in corporate tax to historic tax rates, a more progressive corporate tax, and compliance with federal tax cuts and employment law, including the inclusion of the global low intangible tax income (GILTI).
- Eliminate or limit gaps in corporate taxation, including choices to the water’s edge.
- Valuation of unrealized capital gains for market purposes and cancellation of an increase in the base of inherited assets.
AB 71 is expected to be heard in its first political committee in March 2021.
Chris Micheli is a lobbyist at Aprea & Micheli and an Associate Professor of Law at the McGeorge School of Law at the University of the Pacific.
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