Section 155.20.
Cal. Revenue and Taxation Code - RTC § 155.20.
in effect(a)
Subject to the limitations listed in subdivisions (b), (c), (d), and (e), a county board of supervisors may exempt from property tax all real property with a base year value (as determined pursuant to Chapter 1 (commencing with Section 50) of Part 0.5) as adjusted by an annual inflation factor pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 110.1, and personal property with a full value so low that, if not exempt, the total taxes, special assessments, and applicable subventions on the property would amount to less than the cost of assessing and collecting them.
(b)
(1)
(A)
The board of supervisors shall have no authority to exempt property with a total base
year value, as adjusted by an annual inflation factor pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 110.1, or full value of more than ten thousand dollars ($10,000), except as otherwise provided in subparagraph (B).
(B)
The limitation specified in subparagraph (A) on the amount of the exemption authorized by this section shall be increased as follows:
(i)
For lien dates occurring on or after January 1, 2020, and before January 1, 2030, the limitation is increased to fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in the case of a possessory interest.
(ii)
For lien dates occurring on or after January 1, 2030, the limitation is increased to fifty thousand dollars ($50,000) in the case of a possessory interest, for a temporary and transitory use,
in a publicly owned fairground, fairground facility, convention facility, or cultural facility. For purposes of this paragraph, “publicly owned convention or cultural facility” means a publicly owned convention center, civic auditorium, theater, assembly hall, museum, or other civic building that is used primarily for staging any of the following:
(I)
Conventions, trade and consumer shows, or civic and community events.
(II)
Live theater, dance, or musical productions.
(III)
Artistic, historic, technological, or educational exhibits.
(2)
In determining the level of the exemption, the board of supervisors shall determine at what level of exemption
the costs of assessing the property and collecting taxes, assessments, and subventions on the property exceeds the proceeds to be collected. The board of supervisors shall establish the exemption level uniformly for different classes of property. In making this determination, the board of supervisors may consider the total taxes, special assessments, and applicable subventions for the year of assessment only or for the year of assessment and succeeding years where cumulative revenues will not exceed the cost of assessments and collections.
(3)
In administering the exemption authorized by this section, the assessor may opt either to not enroll the property on the assessment roll or to enroll the property and apply the exemption.
(c)
This section does not apply to those real or
personal properties enumerated in Section 52.
(d)
The exemption authorized by this section shall be adopted by the board of supervisors on or before the lien date for the fiscal year to which the exemption is to apply and may, at the option of the board of supervisors, continue in effect for succeeding fiscal years. Any revision or rescission of the exemption shall be adopted by the board of supervisors on or before the lien date for the fiscal year to which that revision or rescission is to apply.
(e)
Nothing in this section shall authorize a county board of supervisors to exempt new construction, unless the new total base year value, as adjusted by an annual inflation factor pursuant to subdivision (f) of Section 110.1, of the property, including this new construction, is ten
thousand dollars ($10,000) or less.
References
referencesCal. Revenue and Taxation Code - RTC § 50.
referencesCal. Revenue and Taxation Code - RTC § 110.1.
referencesCal. Revenue and Taxation Code - RTC § 52.
Source: CA Legislative Counsel Bulk DataURL: https://downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/pubinfo_2025.zipFetched: 6/27/2026