SACRAMENTO — California’s Franchise Tax Board released Thursday a list of the state’s top 500 tax delinquents, and a few celebrities have made the cut. Singer Dionne Warwick and actor Steven Seagal are among the top 500 people and businesses owing the most in unpaid taxes.
Dionne Warwick, who now lives in New Jersey, reportedly owes California $2.6 million. Her publicist, Kevin Sasaki, says Warwick has worked out a repayment plan with the state and is paying down her debt.
Steven Seagal owes the state nearly $350,000 and has been on the list since April.
Technology entrepreneur Halsey Minor (CNET), of San Rafael, owes the most to the state – $10.7 million.
The Franchise Tax Board reports that nearly 90 percent of taxpayers pay the taxes they owe. Those who don’t pay contribute to California’s tax gap—the difference between taxes owed to the state and taxes actually paid.
Currently, the state’s annual tax gap is estimated to be $10 billion.
Assembly Bill 1424 changed Revenue and Taxation Code (R&TC) Section 19195 which now directs the Franchise Tax Board to publicly disclose at least twice each calendar year a list of the 500 largest state income tax delinquencies. These delinquencies must total in excess of $100,000 and be subject to a recorded notice of state tax lien. The list includes the taxpayer’s name and address, the liened amount owed, the earliest date a notice of state tax lien was recorded, the taxpayer’s occupational or professional licenses with type, status, and license number, and, in the case of a limited liability company or corporation, the names and titles of the principal officers of the taxpayer.
Since inception of this program in 2007, the department has recovered more than $175 million in revenue as of September 24, 2012.