City Council Seeks Monthly Reports on Revenue Collected on Measure ULA

LOS ANGELES— The Los Angeles City Council today approved a motion calling for monthly reports on revenues collected via Measure ULA, the so-called ``mansion tax'' that took effect in April and adds a 4% charge on all residential and commercial real estate sales in the city above $5 million and a 5.5% charge on sales above $10 million.

The council voted 12-0 to support the motion introduced by Councilman Bob Blumenfield in August, which also calls for updates on the enforcement of the tax.

Council members Kevin de León, Tim McOsker and Monica Rodriguez were absent during the vote.

The motion instructs the city's Office of Finance to report on the Documentary Transfer Tax, which is imposed on all documents that convey property within the cities of Los Angeles County.

The county collects the DTT on behalf of the city at the time the document is recorded, and the tax is then remitted to the city and accounted for as part of general fund revenue.

In April, the DTT was revised due to the passage of Measure ULA, which was intended to provide ongoing revenue to address homelessness.

For property sales above $100 but not exceeding $5 million, the DTT has remained at .45% of the property value, according to Blumenfield's motion. For sales above $5 million but below $10 million, the tax is 4.45%, and for sales of $10 million and above, the tax is 5.95%.

According to the councilman, the county is charged with collecting the new DTT, but the Office of Finance needs to ensure that the new tax rates are being enforced and the city is receiving the ``accurate amount'' of tax due.

``To mitigate any issues with collection and remittance, especially in light of the Measure ULA update, the Office of Finance should provide background information on DTT, including the amount that has previously been collected, the type of transactions for which the tax is collected, and the accuracy of the county's collection and enforcement process,'' Blumenfield's motion reads.

The monthly reports will include the amount collected since the implementation of Measure ULA; the amount collected over the past three years; the amount collected from commercial, residential and multifamily transfers; the amount collected through legal entity transfers versus deed transfers; methods employed to track and collect when transfers occur; and estimates of funds that may not be collected in cases where transfers are difficult to track.

— By City News Service