feature
Inside the Vault
by José Cisneros
In November, the voters of San Francisco approved several ordinances that change our local tax laws. Proposition Q, which modifies the payroll expense tax, is of particular importance to the business community. Proposition Q raises the small businesses exemption threshold for the payroll expense tax, and changes the way some businesses compute their payroll expense tax liability. The full text of Proposition Q is available on the Treasurer’s Office website, located at: www.sfgov.org/treasurer.
Significantly, Proposition Q took effect on January 1, 2009, and does not apply to 2008 or prior tax years. Partnerships and LLCs operating as partnerships that made payments to their owners for services should consult the Treasurer’s Office website for advice when making payroll expense tax prepayments. Voters also approved changes to the Utility Users Tax and Real Estate Transfer Tax (which is administered by the Assessor-Recorder’s Office), and approved the creation of an Access Line Tax on telephones that replaces the Emergency Response Fee.
Business Registration Renewal and Payroll Expense Tax Filing
The 2009-2010 Registration Renewal and 2008 Payroll Tax Filing were mailed in mid- January 2009 and were due by the end of February 2009. All businesses are required to register with our office in order to do business in San Francisco. Registration is renewed annually and is valid on a fiscal year basis, from July 1 through June 30, if a company plans to conduct business within the new fiscal year.
Further, all businesses above a certain threshold must file a Payroll Expense Tax Statement for their business annually for the prior calendar year (January 1 to December 31). The Payroll Expense tax rate is 1.5%. The Payroll Expense Tax is calculated by multiplying the business’s annual San Francisco payroll expense by 1.5%. For more information, please contact our Taxpayers Assistance Hotline at 415-554-4400, or check out our website at www.sfgov.org/tax, and click on “Business Zone.”
We’re Here to Help
The Small Business Assistance Center is open to the public in its first floor location in Room 110 of City Hall. The SBAC is comprised of a staff of five who operate under the direction of the Office of Small Business and the Small Business Commission. The Treasurer’s Office has given some of its space to serve as the home of this new office, which is an independent body. The SBAC is an immensely valuable resource to assist the small business community with the complex aspects of doing business in the city, enhancing the work we do in the Treasurer’s Office.
The Small Business Assistance Center will be the main resource for information, referrals and case management for small business development issues—a true “one-stop shop” for small business. Services include assistance with permits, compliance with local laws, state and local tax credits, and relocation assistance, among other functions. The SBAC can be contacted by dialing 3-1-1 within San Francisco, or by calling 415-554-6134. Its website is www.sfgov.org/sbc.
Bank on San Francisco
Bank on San Francisco is an innovative pilot program created by the Treasurer’s Office, the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and local nonprofit EARN. The program allows San Francisco families dependent on high-cost check-cashers to easily open a starter bank account with mainstream financial institutions. The program provides financial education, account opening opportunities, one-on-one financial advice and other services through its partner network. An estimated 50,000 households in San Francisco had neither a checking nor savings account when the program launched, representing 15% of all households in the city.
Since the program launched in September 2006, a total of 31,347 accounts were opened. Of those accounts, 80% remain active, for a total of 24,714 currently open and active accounts. The average Bank on San Francisco account balance is $980. There are 17 partner financial institutions participating in the program, representing 194 branch locations throughout San Francisco. Financial management training classes have been provided to over 680 people through the Bank on San Francisco program.
Bank on San Francisco is now an award-winning model, and has been recognized by the National League of Cities, the William J. Clinton Foundation, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and the AARP. The program was recently awarded the James Irvine Foundation Leadership Award. In addition, over 60 U.S. cities and states have requested technical assistance to implement similar programs across the country.
Participating financial institutions include: Bank of America, Bank of the West, Citibank, Mission SF Federal Credit Union, Mission National Bank, Northeast Community Federal Credit Union, Patelco Credit Union, Redwood Credit Union, San Francisco Federal Credit Union, Spectrum Federal Credit Union, Sterling Bank and Trust, Union Bank of California, United Commercial Bank, US Bank, Wachovia, Washington Mutual and Wells Fargo. For more information, please visit www.bankonsf.org or call 2-1-1.
Passports
You may not know this, but the Treasurer’s Office is the best place in the Bay Area to apply for your U.S. Passport, conveniently located in Room 140 of City Hall. Since 1999, the Treasurer’s Office has served as the Bay Area’s premier Passport Acceptance Facility, and is now the only location authorized to facilitate emergency “Will Call” service, enabling customers to obtain a passport in as little as three business days. (Documentation of booked travel in less than three weeks is required for this special service.) No appointment is needed. Visit our office from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, or call 415-554-5474.
Production of the new “Passport Card” began last summer. The card offers a less expensive alternative (or addition) to the traditional passport book and can be used for travel by land or sea to Mexico, Canada and the Caribbean (not valid for air travel).
Treasurer’s Office Customer Services
Did you know that the City Payment Center in the Treasurer’s Office sells MUNI passes? In fact, the Treasurer’s office sells many public transit items, including: maps, prepaid Parking Meter Debit Cards, BART passes, Golden Gate Transit books, Caltrain passes, Sam Trans passes and tokens, and AC Transit items.
For any questions, you may currently contact us over the telephone at 415-554-4400, via the internet at www.sfgov.org/treasurer or in person at City Hall, Room 140. We can also be reached through U.S. mail at: Office of the Treasurer & Tax Collector, City Hall - Room 140, 1 Dr. Carlton B. Goodlett Pl., San Francisco, CA 94102.
The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of the SFAA or the SF Apartment Magazine. The information contained in this article is general in nature. José Cisneros is the treasurer for the City and County of San Francisco. He can be contacted at 415-554-4478. Copyright © 2009 by Black Point Press. All rights reserved.