Senator to Propose Replacing State Tax Agencies With New Revenue Dept.
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SACRAMENTO — Sen. Quentin Kopp of San Francisco said Tuesday that he will introduce a legislative package to abolish the embattled State Board of Equalization.
He said he wants to replace the board--and also the Franchise Tax Board--with a Department of Revenue, headed by a revenue commissioner appointed by the governor.
Under Kopp’s plan, taxpayers with complaints about Department of Revenue rulings would go to a special seven-judge tax court that would have a small claims branch to handle disputed involving $10,000 or less.
Kopp, the Legislature’s only political independent, was joined at a Capitol news conference by William Bennett, a Board of Equalization member who has been at odds with his colleagues for several years.
The board ha been the subject of numerous news articles in recent years aimed at showing that big taxpayers, such as utilities and major corporations, get breaks on their property taxes after making campaign contributions to board members.
“Nobody has ever met a campaign contributor he or she didn’t like. It’s impossible,” said Bennett, who has refused contributions for his campaigns.
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