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SB 1055 was approved 8-0 on Feb. 13 by the Senate Committee on Revenue and Taxation. Machado and Wiggins are both members of the committee.
Under existing law, mortgage debt that is forgiven by a lender is taxable to the borrower as ordinary income (not capital gains) in the year in which the debt is forgiven.
For example, if $50,000 in principal of a $450,000 mortgage is written off by the lender as part of a loan modification or a short sale, the borrower would have to increase his or her adjusted gross income by $50,000 that year. These tax law rules can be a heavy burden for borrowers already having trouble meeting their financial obligations.
The Machado bill will allow a borrower whose lender agrees to forgive some or all of their mortgage debt to exclude that forgiven debt from their income for state income tax purposes. SB 1055 will help borrowers whose lenders agree to a short sale, a short payoff, a loan modification, or a loan refinance in which some or all of the borrower’s original debt obligation is forgiven.
It may also help borrowers who lose their homes to foreclosure, if the borrower refinanced his or her mortgage, and if their lender cannot recover the full amount it is owed on the mortgage debt through the foreclosure sale.
SB 1055 will be effective for debt forgiven in 2007 or 2008, and will only apply to debt forgiven on owner-occupied homes.
“The effects of the home mortgage crisis will continue to be felt for some time,” Wiggins said last Wednesday. “I am glad to support Senator Machado’s badly-needed legislation, which will offer real and immediate relief to qualifying California taxpayers.”
Wiggins represents California’s 2nd Senate District, which includes portions or all of six counties: Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Solano and Sonoma.
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UPPER LAKE – Lynne and Bernie Butcher, owners of the Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon, have received a special Congressional honor for their efforts to improve the community.
On Saturday, Feb. 9, Congressman Mike Thompson stopped by the hotel to present the couplewith a framed page from the Congressional Record dated August 3, 2007, congratulating them for restoring the Tallman Hotel, rebuilding the Blue Wing Saloon, and for having a positive economic impact on Upper Lake and the Northshore area in general.
The Resolution reads in part:
“Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize and applaud the special efforts of Lynne and Bernie Butcher to restore and revitalize the Tallman Hotel, one of the most historically significance – but long neglected – structures in Lake County, California …. Great care was taken to retain, recondition and reuse original materials and to maintain the essential soul of the old hotel building…. The hotel is now drawing tourists into the county and the café is a very popular spot for locals and visitors alike.
“The Butchers have not only beautifully restored a historically significant building, but the project has also acted as a catalyst in the economic revitalization of the Town of Upper Lake and the entire north shore region of Lake County …. Their efforts have brought a wonderful building back into use, and in doing so they have provided new energy and excitement in northern Lake County.”
The Blue Wing is located at 9520 Main St., next door to the Tallman Hotel, 9550 Main St.
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Wiggins, who serves on the committee, said that they could be offered under the CPUC’s directive to include solar subsidies and rebates for low-income housing pursuant to the California Solar Initiative.
According to the CPUC’s energy division director, Sean Gallagher, the commission was still in the process of formulating its “Low-Income Incentive Program,” and that a decision regarding subsidies for owners and/or tenants of apartments or multi-unit buildings had yet to be made.
Senator Wiggins may introduce a bill on the issue given that solar PV installations for buildings must be connected to one meter as a matter of state policy. However, state policy also requires that individual units be separately metered for electricity and other utilities.
Under these provisions, a building owner would have to either foot the bill to purchase inverters for each tenant’s individual electric meter to covert solar to electricity, charge each tenant for the inverter, or figure out a way to sub-meter tenants in order to participate in the CSI program. These options are either cost-prohibitive or seemingly illegal.
“These types of barriers inhibit a major portion of the market from participating in the state’s solar program, or CSI, where consumers can receive rebates as an incentive to install solar PV panels and contribute energy to the power-grid during peak energy demand periods,” Wiggins said.
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MIDDLETOWN – The Backyard Garden Oasis Bed and Breakfast has received a Three Diamond rating from AAA.
This prestigious rating was offered by AAA after the bed and breakfast had been in business and provided a beautiful, peaceful environment and excellent service to thousands of visitors to the Middletown and Lake County area over the past 10 years.
Greta Zeit, the owner of Backyard Garden Oasis Bed and Breakfast, built the cottages and the business itself on a sweet, creekside property on Hilderbrand Drive.
She trained in massage at the School of Shiatsu and Massage at Harbin Hot Springs, and has been providing massage services at the Oasis for the past six years.
Reservations at the Oasis or appointments for massage can be made by calling 987-0505 or by visiting the Web site at www.backyardgardenoasis.com.
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