(a) (1) An employer shall notify all employees that they may be eligible for VITA, CalFile, and state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal and the California EITC, within one week before or after, or at the same time, that the employer provides an annual wage summary, including, but not limited to, a Form W-2 or a Form 1099, to any employee.

(2) An employer shall send a second notification to all employees during the month of March of the same year in which the employer notified employees pursuant to paragraph (1).

(b) (1) The state departments and agencies that serve those who may qualify for VITA or state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal and the California EITC, as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 19852, shall notify their program recipients that they may be eligible for VITA, CalFile, and state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal and the California EITC, at least once per year during the months of January through March, or, alternatively, shall provide both notifications during a regularly scheduled contact with a recipient by telephone, mail, or electronic communication, or by an in-person communication.

(2) State departments or agencies that serve those who may qualify for VITA or state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal and the California EITC, as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 19852, and that do not directly communicate with persons or households with persons who may qualify for VITA, CalFile, and state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal and the California EITC, may communicate indirectly through agencies, districts, or regulated entities that serve eligible persons or households with eligible persons.

(3) State departments or agencies that serve those who may qualify for VITA or state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal EITC and the California EITC, as defined in subdivision (e) of Section 19852, are encouraged to develop the most effective method to provide notice to recipients of eligibility for VITA, CalFile, and state and federal antipoverty tax credits, including the federal and the California EITC, as long as the notice contains substantially the same language as the notice described in Section 19854.

(c) (1) The employer shall provide the notifications required by subdivision (a) by handing them directly to the employee or mailing them to the employee’s last known address.

(2) Any notice created by the employer shall include substantially the same language as the notice described in Section 19854.

(3) The notification required by paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) may be sent electronically.

(d) The employer shall not satisfy the notification required by subdivision (a) by posting a notice on an employee bulletin board or sending it through office mail. However, these methods of notification are encouraged to help inform all employees of VITA, CalFile, and state and federal antipoverty tax credit eligibility, including the federal and the California EITC.

(e) The amendments made to this section by Section 3 of Chapter 294 of the Statutes of 2016 shall apply to notices furnished on or after January 1, 2017.

(f) The amendments made to this section by Section 10 of Chapter 55 of the Statutes of 2023 shall apply to notices furnished on or after January 1, 2024.

(g) This section shall become operative on January 1, 2029.

(Repealed (in Sec. 1) and added by Stats. 2023, Ch. 277, Sec. 2. (AB 1355) Effective January 1, 2024. Operative January 1, 2029, by its own provisions.)