Executive summary Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights Annual Report to the Legislature

Selvi Stanislaus
Executive Officer

Last year marked the return of a more familiar tax filing season at the Franchise Tax Board (FTB), with a traditional April 15 due date for most Californians. This helped us focus on ensuring our tax return and payment processing, among other operations, ran smoothly as we maintained a laser focus on customer service.

The result was a very successful 2024 filing season.

I’m especially proud of FTB staff for the teamwork they displayed and their steadfast commitment to assisting the millions of taxpayers and thousands of tax practitioners we serve. Consistent with our “One FTB” mantra, several of our divisions supported each other’s customer service operations last season to ensure taxpayers got the help they needed to file accurate and timely returns by April 15. (The lone deadline exception was in San Diego County, where the filing due date was postponed to June 17 because of severe winter storms and flooding.)

Other examples of our staff’s commitment to enhancing customer service include the following:

  • We partnered with the IRS so Californians could file their 2023 federal tax return for free and directly with the IRS last spring using a pilot version of the agency’s new Direct File service. More than 33,000 Californians took advantage of the service, which directed them to FTB’s longstanding free CalFile service to file their state return. Last May, the IRS said it would make Direct File a permanent option. Our partnership with the IRS continued and with the approval of state funding last summer, we announced a plan to construct a data bridge allowing Californians using Direct File to import their federal tax data into CalFile, saving them time. This new feature is expected to be available beginning in January 2026.
  • For the second consecutive year, FTB mailed more than 300,000 letters to Californians who appeared to be eligible for the California Earned Income Tax Credit, or CalEITC, but did not claim it. Some had filed a return in 2024 without claiming the credit, while others had filed returns in previous years but not during the prior two years. We encouraged both groups to claim the credit, emphasizing it can be worth hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The letters included information on two related tax credits, as well as how to file for free.
  • As requested by members of the California Society of Certified Public Accountants, we began posting drafts of our tax forms and instructions on our website to allow tax professionals to review and provide comments as we update these forms.
  • In early 2024, we concluded the FTB Notice 2023-02 and 2023-03 initiatives, which enabled taxpayers to resolve potentially abusive eligible transactions and receive reduced penalties. Participants saved time and money because they did not have to go through the audit, protest, and appeal processes. Also, they were able to resolve numerous years with one closing agreement, rather than filing multiple amended returns.

Another step we have taken to ensure FTB offers taxpayers excellent products and services is to create a workplace where all our roughly 6,000 employees feel welcomed, valued, and motivated to bring their best every day, regardless of their backgrounds, cultures, or personal experiences. Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA) led us to develop a DEIA awareness training module, titled “The You in Us,” that we introduced in early 2024. In addition, FTB’s all-volunteer DEIA team, founded several years ago, continues to plan events and share DEIA-related information on our DEIA intranet page.

Looking ahead, we will continue to modernize our Information Technology (IT) systems to improve, among other things, reliability, efficiency, and customer service. We are more than halfway through the second phase of our Enterprise Data to Revenue project, or EDR2. In 2024, we successfully implemented new solutions that replace our legacy personal income tax collection system and our business entity audit system. This year, we plan to offer taxpayers new online self-service tools, including tools that will:

  • Allow business taxpayers the ability to request a voluntary administrative dissolution/cancellation, after creating a basic login account.
  • Allow businesses to apply for and manage payment plans in their MyFTB accounts.
  • Allow suspended businesses to apply online for a Certificate of Revivor.

FTB will continue to listen closely to taxpayers and the tax professional community, with whom we maintain an open and constructive dialogue. We all share a commitment to ensuring every taxpayer is treated respectfully and files an accurate tax return.

With the above in mind, I humbly submit this year’s Taxpayers’ Bill of Rights Annual Report to the Legislature for your review. Thank you for your support as we work together to serve the great state of California.

Selvi Stanislaus

Executive Officer