Program Specialist, Franchise Tax Board Series

California State Personnel Board Specification

Series established October 13, 1976

Scope

This series specification describes the classes used for Audit positions at the Franchise Tax Board performing the most difficult tax audits, serving as the hearing officer in a formal tax hearing, acting as a leadperson, or serving as a specialist and consultant with broad responsibilities for implementation, coordination, and review of the Audit Programs.

Entry Into Series

Entry into this series would typically be from the professional tax audit series used by the Franchise Tax Board.

Factors Affecting Position Allocation

Audit Positions: The primary factor is the fiscal size and complexity of the entity audited, for example, complexity of individual taxpayer returns, the number of income hierarchy levels, revenue of industrial and retailing entities, the assets of utilities, the deposits of banks, etc. Ancillary factors include adequacy of legal precedents, complexity of the entity, industry, ownership structure, books and records, likelihood of litigation, and/or extent to which the entity has multistate and international involvement.

Program Positions: Additional positions in the Audit Branch may be allocated to this series where there is responsibility for the planning, coordinating, monitoring, evaluating, and technical support of Audit Programs on a programwide basis. Positions will be allocated based on the level and complexity of the work performed, independence of action, direction received, role in formulation of policy, legal precedents available, potential for litigation, and nature of contacts.

Definition of Levels

Program Specialist I, Franchise Tax Board

1. Conducts, reviews, or leads very large, complex, and sensitive audits having major financial impact as characterized by very complex returns of individual income taxpayers, pass-through entities, corporations, and/or large multistate/multinational entities.

2. Acts as a highly skilled, technical specialist on audit program practices and policies.

Program Specialist II, Franchise Tax Board

1. Has a primary assignment as a team leader, industry expert, or reviews audits of the largest and most complex returns of individual income taxpayers, pass-through entities, corporations, and/or multistate/multinational entities.

2. Acts as a highly skilled technical specialist on programwide audit practices, policies, and issues.

Program Specialist III, Franchise Tax Board

Acts as the highest level specialist and technical resource to departmental management and legal staff on matters concerning audit and tax issues, including the analysis of legislation. Incumbents provide expert consultation and advice to top management in the recommendation of audit policies and procedures for handling unprecedented tax issues; the recommendations of audit and tax policy for specific industries; and the recommendations of policy/procedure for audits of the largest and most complex returns of individual income taxpayers, pass-through entities, corporations, and multistate/multinational corporations with new or precedent-setting tax issues. Audit issues at this level typically involve returns of the most sensitive and complex individual taxpayers, pass-through entities with the most elaborate and complex ownership hierarchies, large conglomerates engaged in diverse lines of business with interrelated tax issues, and/or groups of affiliated companies engaged in an integrated business in a specialized industry with unique and unresolved tax issues.

Minimum Qualifications

All Classes:

Education Requirements: Applicants competing under the non-State experience patterns for the Program Specialist classes must have the:

A. Equivalent of graduation from college with a specialization in accounting. or B. Completion of either:

1. A prescribed professional accounting curriculum given by a residence or correspondence school of accountancy, including courses in elementary and advanced accounting, auditing, cost accounting, and business law. or

2. The equivalent of 16 semester hours of professional accounting courses given by a collegiate-grade residence institution, including courses in elementary and advanced accounting, auditing, and cost accounting; and three semester hours of business law.

Program Specialist I, Franchise Tax Board

Either I

Experience: One year of experience in the California state service performing duties which provide a thorough knowledge of Audit Programs administered by the Franchise Tax Board in a class with a level of responsibility equivalent to that of an Associate Tax Auditor, Franchise Tax Board.

Or II

Experience: Four years of increasingly responsible professional tax accounting, tax consulting and planning, auditing, or administrative tax program experience. (Experience in the California state service applied toward this requirement must include at least one year performing the duties of an Associate Tax Auditor, Franchise Tax Board.)

Program Specialist II, Franchise Tax Board

Either I

Experience: One year of experience in the California state service performing the duties of a Program Specialist I, Franchise Tax Board. or

Experience: Two years of experience in the California state service as a technical supervisor of highly skilled specialists performing audits in the class of Administrator I, Franchise Tax Board.

Or II

Experience: Five years of increasingly responsible professional tax accounting, tax consulting and planning, auditing, or administrative tax program experience. (Experience in the California state service applied toward this requirement must include at least one year performing the duties of a Program Specialist I, Franchise Tax Board.)

Program Specialist III, Franchise Tax Board

Either I

Experience: One year of experience in the California state service performing the duties of a Program Specialist II, Franchise Tax Board.

Or II

Experience: Two years of experience in the California state service performing the duties of a Program Specialist I, Franchise Tax Board.

Or III

Experience: Two years of experience in the California state service as a technical supervisor of highly skilled specialists performing audits in the class of Administrator II, Franchise Tax Board.

Or IV

Experience: Six years of increasingly responsible professional tax accounting, tax consulting and planning, auditing, or administrative tax program experience. (Experience in the California state service applied toward this requirement must include at least one year performing the duties of a Program Specialist II, Franchise Tax Board.)

Knowledge and Abilities

All Classes:

Knowledge of: Provisions of California's Personal Income Tax and Bank and Corporation Tax Laws, and the Political Reform Act of 1974; Federal Income Tax Laws and related legal opinions and court decisions; departmental policies, rules, and regulations; methods used in attempting to evade provisions of the law; specialized and complex auditing practices and procedures; general principles of automated data processing as related to tax work.

Ability to: Apply general auditing, accounting, and/or the provisions of the relevant tax law, legal opinions and court decisions, and departmental policies; establish and maintain cooperative working relations with those contacted during the course of work; analyze situations accurately and adopt an effective course of action; reason logically and creatively in unique situations; communicate effectively; assume a leadership role when working with less experienced staff; be proficient in the use of personal computers.

Program Specialist III, Franchise Tax Board

Knowledge of: In addition to the above, laws, policies, and procedures relating to specialized taxation issues (i.e., unitary tax and apportionment laws, income sourcing, and foreign currency translations) relating to complex individual taxpayers, pass-through entities, corporations, and multistate/multinational entities.

Ability to: Recommend departmental policy for emerging audit issues; present the Department's position with regard to unique and precedent-setting audit issues and policies; establish audit procedures for new and politically sensitive audit cases with potential for significant ramifications to the audit program; act as a leadperson on audits which encompass a wide scope of Federal and State tax laws.

Special Personal Characteristics

All Classes:

All employees must be able and willing to travel and work away from the office.

Class History

* NOTE: This was adopted as an SPB Staff Calendar Item on February 1,

2002.