Risk Management Blog

[Latest Update from the California Escrow Association (CEA) – 7/3/2012]

Dear CEA Member:

You are receiving this email because from your address it seems likely that you are in the district of a key member on the Assembly Revenue & Taxation Committee, as indicated below.  To confirm this, please click here to confirm your Assembly Member, and compare it to the Assembly Rev & Tax Committee Roster attached.  This is particularly important if your Assembly Member is Richard Gordon, Charles Calderon, Nathan Fletcher, or Brian Nestande.

We ask that you phone your Assembly Member’s office immediately, today, to request their NO VOTE when Senate Bill 12 again comes before them this Thursday.

For your voices to be most effective in this targeted outreach, this request for calls is only for those of you who are constituents, either by residence or business address, of those on the committee.

A brief update:
SB 12 was heard yesterday afternoon by the Assembly Revenue & Taxation Committee. It appeared that there was concern by some of the committee members in response to testimony by CEA, the Escrow Institute, CNPA, and other like-minded organizations in our coalition.  During the initial roll call vote the bill was short one vote for passage (it needed five aye votes).  In an interesting procedural situation, the bill ultimately failed but reconsideration was requested, and we are hearing that the bill will be heard again sometime this Thursday. 

For those with legislators on the Rev & Tax Committee, the votes were as follows:

Aye (Perea, Beall, Cedillo, Fuentes)

No (Harkey)

Absent/Abstain/Not Voting (Calderon, Fletcher, Gordon, Nestande)

Thank you for all of your efforts to date. Your calls and letters do make a difference.

—

Other details:

Calling your legislator:  In most cases you will speak to whomever answers the phone; in some cases you may be transferred to another person. You will likely be asked your name, address, and phone number; it is possible but unlikely they will ask you for other specifics.

It’s EASY and FAST!  Your call will probably go something like this:

You:  Hello, I’m ___.  I’m a constituent of Assembly Member ___.  I am calling to express my opposition to Senate Bill 12 and request his/her no vote when Senate Bill 12 is next heard in the Assembly Revenue & Taxation Committee

Them: Thank you for calling. Would you like to leave your address?

You: Yes, please (and give them your address and any other details they might ask for)

What is SB 12?

SB 12 (Corbett) is a bill that seeks to repeal Division 6 of the California Commercial Code, the Bulk Sales Law.  According to the author’s office, bulk sales are so complicated that they result in buyers and sellers circumventing the bulk sale law to avoid the many steps needed for a buyer to avoid successor liability for the seller’s business obligations. The bill was recently amended to retain the bulk sales law only for transactions including alcohol and cigarette/tobacco products distributors and wholesalers.

CEA is opposed to this bill because the while the bulk sale law may be complex, it provides for a known, statutory process by which creditors, many themselves small businesses, as well as local, state and federal tax agencies, can have their claims resolved in the escrow transaction rather than in the court system. Those who handle bulk sales transactions provide a very real public service, not the least of which is the remittance of sales and other taxes, ultimately benefitting all California taxpayers.  CEA sees little to justify a special rule for alcohol and tobacco products while leaving all other creditors, as well as sellers and buyers, at risk.  CEA is working with the Escrow Institute, the California Newspaper Publishers Association, and CLTA.