Existing law authorizes the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development to develop content on its internet website or through other mediums to be used for public dissemination, through outreach activities, in order to provide information and resources to inform the general public about place-based and other geographically targeted economic development programs, including California Promise Zones and California Opportunity Zones. Existing law requires the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development to convene, at least annually, representatives from various programs and agencies across the state and from various federal programs and agencies for the purpose of discussing how California can leverage Promise Zones and Opportunity Zones to meet state and local community and economic development needs.
This bill, until January 1, 2025, would eliminate the duties of the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development described above relating to California Promise Zones. The bill, until January 1, 2025, would require the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, in cooperation with the Office of Planning and Research, to track specified information regarding California Opportunity Zone investments and to post that information on the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development's internet website. The bill, to assist the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development in this regard, would require the manager of an Opportunity Fund to track and report specified information about the fund to the Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, as provided.
This bill would enact the California Opportunity Zone Authority Act, which would create within state government the California Opportunity Zone Authority Board consisting of 7 members, including the Treasurer who the bill would require to serve as chair. The bill would require the board to incorporate or form a qualified opportunity fund, as specified, known as the California Qualified Opportunity Fund, for the purpose of making allocations to cities and counties that will invest in California Opportunity Zones, as provided. The bill, subject to specified limitations, would require the board to solicit investments on or after January 1, 2020, and before January 1, 2025, of eligible capital gains for deposit in the fund, and would prohibit investments of eligible capital gains in the fund on or after January 1, 2025. The bill would require moneys in the fund to be continuously appropriated to the board, without regard to fiscal year, for purposes of administering the act, thereby making an appropriation. The bill would require the board to develop and implement investment policy and objectives for the allocation of moneys and to allocate moneys to cities and counties that apply to the board consistent with this policy and other specified criteria, as provided. The bill would also require the board to develop a risk management and oversight program to, among other things, monitor risk levels. The bill would authorize the board to employ staff and adopt regulations necessary to implement the act. The bill would provide that the board and the State of California are not be liable for investment losses of the fund.
The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law impose taxes upon taxable income, as specified. Additionally, various provisions of the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax law conform, or conform as modified, to provisions of the Internal Revenue Code.
This bill, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2020, for a qualified taxpayer, would conform the Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law to provisions of the Internal Revenue Code that allow for specified tax treatment for income derived from activities within a California qualified opportunity zone business property, including the deferral of recognition of a capital gain, and would provide that the provisions are limited to investments in the California Qualified Opportunity Fund. The bill would define a qualified taxpayer to mean a taxpayer that invests eligible capital gains in the California Qualified Opportunity Fund on or after January 1, 2020, and before January 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
SB315: 12097.5 GOV, 18036 RTC, 24916 RTC
02/15/19 - Introduced: 12097.5 GOV, 18036 RTC, 24916 RTC
03/21/19 - Amended Senate: 12097.5 GOV, 18036 RTC, 24916 RTC
06/25/19 - Amended Assembly: 12097.5 GOV, 18036 RTC, 24916 RTC
07/09/19 - Amended Assembly: 12097.5 GOV, 18036 RTC, 24916 RTC