Title
Recommendation to Approve the Execution of a Reciprocal Tax Information Sharing Agreement between the City of Alameda and the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) of the State of California. (Finance 2410)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
There is a Reciprocal Tax Information Sharing Agreement between the City of Alameda (City) and the Franchise Tax Board of the State of California for the period June 2018 to December 2020. Continuation of this non-financial agreement will be for the period starting June 1, 2021, or date of approval, whichever is later, through December 31, 2023.
BACKGROUND
Effective January 2009, resulting from the enactment of Senate Bill 1146, the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) and participating cities began exchanging tax information data through a reciprocal agreement, to be used for tax revenue collection efforts by cities and the FTB. In order to participate in this program, the FTB requires that the City Council authorize the execution of the Reciprocal Tax Information Sharing Agreement by the passage of a motion.
DISCUSSION
The objective of this agreement is to share information with, and receive information from, the FTB, which will assist staff in expanding collection of business license fees. All data exchanges will occur via a Secure Web Internet File Transfer (SWIFT). All data received from and sent to the FTB must be kept confidential and destroyed after three years per the agreement with the FTB. This agreement is a continuation of a prior agreement the City Council approved May 15, 2018 for the period June 2018 to December 2020. If approved, it will be in effect for the period of June 2021 through December 2023.
ALTERNATIVES
• Approve the execution of a reciprocal tax information sharing agreement between the City of Alameda and the Franchise Tax Board of the State of California.
• Do not approve the agreement.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
There are no financial costs associated with the adoption of a reciprocal agreement with the FTB. The City may realize an undetermined increase in business license revenue based upon follow-up collection efforts using the data received from the FTB.
MUNICIPAL CODE/POLICY DOCUMENT CROSS REFERENCE
There are no Alameda Municipal Code or policy documents related to this matter.
ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW
This activity is not a project and is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to section 15378 (b)(4) of the CEQA Guidelines, because it involves governmental fiscal activities which does not involve any commitment to any specific project which may result in a potentially significant physical impact on the environment.
CLIMATE CHANGE
There are no identifiable climate impacts or climate action opportunities associated with the subject of this report.
RECOMMENDATION
Approve the execution of a Reciprocal Tax Information Sharing Agreement between the City of Alameda and the Franchise Tax Board of the State of California.
CITY MANAGER RECOMMENDATION
The City Manager recommends approval of the execution of a Reciprocal Tax Information Sharing Agreement.
Respectfully submitted,
Annie To, Finance Director
Exhibit:
1. FTB Standard Agreement