Final Filing Date: 1/21/2025.

Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) must be received or postmarked by the filing date indicated above. Applications postmarked, personally delivered or received via interoffice mail after the filing date will not be accepted.

It is the candidate's responsibility to contact the Franchise Tax Board four weeks after the final filing date if they have not received any notification.

The information below will help you determine which classification(s) is(are) appropriate for you. Applicants must meet the Minimum Qualifications as stated on this bulletin to compete in this examination.

Open and Open, Non-Promotional Examination(s):

• PROGRAM SPECIALIST I, FRANCHISE TAX BOARD - Open

Submit an Examination/Employment Application (STD 678) to apply for this examination.

Electronic applications can be submitted through your account at www.CalCareers.ca.gov.

You may apply by mail to:

• Franchise Tax Board
  Examination Unit
  P.O. Box 550
  Sacramento, CA 95812-0550
  

Indicate the Examination Code and Classification(s) on your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678).

You may drop off your application and any applicable or required documents at:

• Franchise Tax Board
  Examination Unit
  9646 Butterfield Way
  Sacramento, CA 95827
  7:00 AM - 6:00 PM
  Drop off at Welcome Center in Main Lobby (may be non-operational on weekends and holidays)

Indicate the Examination Code and Classification(s) on your Examination/Employment Application (STD 678). All applicants must provide proof of identification. Accepted forms of identification are: 1) a photo identification card or 2) two forms of signed identification.

PAPER APPLICATIONS MUST CONTAIN ORIGINAL SIGNATURES AND MUST BE SUBMITTED TO THE ADDRESS INDICATED ABOVE.

If signatures are missing on your application and not re-submitted by the close date of the exam, scores will not be recorded, and candidates will have to wait 9 months before being eligible to re-take the exam. It is also the candidate’s responsibility to follow up with the examination unit to make sure signed applications were received. Candidates are encouraged to obtain and retain proof their applications were mailed timely.

Dates printed on Mobile Bar Codes, such as Quick Response (QR) Codes available at the USPS, are not considered Postmark dates for the purpose of determining timely filing of an application.

If a candidate's notice was not received due to a verified postal error, they will be rescheduled upon written request. It is the candidate's responsibility to contact the Franchise Tax Board at (916) 845-3608.

NOTE: All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this examination bulletin by the final filing date. Your signature on your application indicates that you have read, understood, and possess the qualifications required.

Applications/resumes MUST contain the following information: "to" and "from" dates (month/day/year), time base, civil service class title(s), range (if applicable), and duties performed. College course information MUST include: title, semester or quarter credits, name of institution, completion dates, and degree (if applicable). In the “Examination(s) or Job Titles(s) for which you are applying” section of the STD 678 you must clearly indicate what examination you are applying to.

Applications/resumes received without this information may be rejected.

NOTE: It is especially important that each applicant take special care to accurately and completely fill out their application. List all experience relevant to the "Minimum Qualifications" shown on this announcement.

NOTE: TO TAKE THIS EXAMINATION, YOU MUST PROVIDE AN EMAIL ADDRESS ON YOUR APPLICATION. The Qualification Assessment (QA) exam link will be sent to the email address that is on your application from Survey Monkey. All examination notifications, with the exception of the QA email link, will be sent by mail. Any requests for alternative email addresses must be requested by contacting the Examination Unit.

If you require assistance or alternative testing arrangements due to a disability, indicate on your application that you need reasonable accommodation. You will be contacted by a representative of the testing department to make the necessary arrangements. If you have not been contacted by the time you receive notification of testing, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

If you are unable to submit your application or complete the test due to a disability, please contact the testing department listed in the Contact section of this bulletin.

All applicants must meet the education and/or experience requirements as stated on this exam bulletin to be accepted to the examination.

Unless otherwise stated in the Minimum Qualifications, qualifying experience may be combined on a proportionate basis if the requirements stated below include more than one pattern and are distinguished as "Either" 1, "or" 2, "or" 3, etc. For example, applicants possessing qualifying experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern 1 and additional experience amounting to 50% of the required time of Pattern 2 may be accepted to an examination as meeting 100% of the overall experience requirement.

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.) And

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.

PROOF OF EDUCATION:

Applicants using education to meet the minimum requirements must provide a copy of their diploma, official/unofficial transcript, statement and/or evaluation from an accredited U.S. college or university with their examination application. If an applicant is not able to provide proof of education from a recognized institution at the time of hire, their name may be removed from the eligible list(s). The “equivalent to graduation from college” means a bachelor’s degree is required to satisfy the educational requirement when applying external experience towards the minimum qualifications.

FOREIGN DEGREES:

Applicants with foreign transcripts must provide an official/unofficial foreign transcript evaluation that indicates the number of units to which his/her foreign course work is equivalent. FTB accepts foreign transcript evaluations that are completed by one of the agencies approved by the California Commission on Teachers Credentialing. Agencies accredited by the Commission for Foreign Transcription Evaluation may be found on the Commission's website: www.ctc.ca.gov.

NOTE: All documents submitted become the property of the FTB.  Do not submit original diplomas with the examination application.

This examination consists of the following component(s):

A final score of 70% must be attained to be placed on the eligible list.

It is anticipated that candidates who meet the minimum qualifications for this examination will be sent an email the week of March 05, 2025, which will contain the instructions and the link to complete the online Qualifications Assessment (QA) examination. It is the candidate’s responsibility to read the letter that is enclosed with their acceptance notice which provides specific instructions/dates about the QA link. It is also the candidate’s responsibility to contact Franchise Tax Board’s Examination Unit at (916) 845-3608 or email ExamStaff@ftb.ca.gov if they have not received the QA link by the date indicated on the letter.

In addition to evaluating the applicant's relative knowledge, skill and ability as demonstrated by quality and breadth of education/experience, emphasis in each test component will be on measuring competitively, relative to job demands, each applicant's:

Knowledge of:

1. The provisions of California's Personal Income Tax and Bank and Corporation Tax Laws, and the Political Reform Act of 1974.
2. Federal Income Tax Laws and related legal opinions and court decisions.
3. Departmental policies, rules, and regulations.
4. Methods used in attempting to evade provisions of the law.
5. Specialized and complex auditing practices and procedures.
6. General principles of automated data processing as related to tax work.

Ability to:

A Departmental Open eligible list for the PROGRAM SPECIALIST I, FRANCHISE TAX BOARD Classification will be established for:

• Franchise Tax Board

The list(s) will be abolished 12 months after being established, unless the needs of the State and conditions of the list(s) warrant a change in this period.

Veterans' Preference will be granted for this examination. Veterans' Preference is an assistance program for veterans, veteran widows and widowers, and spouses of 100% disabled veterans who seek employment with the state. Veterans' Preference is also extended to currently serving military members nearing their retirement or separation date.

You are not eligible for Veteran's Preference if you are:

• A veteran who has been dishonorably discharged or released.
• A veteran, widow or widower of a veteran, or spouse of a 100 percent disabled veteran who currently has permanent civil service status. (Permanent civil service status is the status of an employee who is lawfully retained in his/her position after completion of the applicable probationary period. This does not include limited term).

Veterans' Preference is codified in Government Code Sections 18973 – 18979.

Veteran status is verified by the California Department of Human Resources (CalHR). Directions to apply for Veterans' Preference are on the Veterans' Preference Application (Std. Form 1093), which is available at www.CalCareers.ca.gov, and the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Career Credits are not granted for examination(s) administered on an Open basis or a Promotional basis.

• Franchise Tax Board

Questions regarding this examination should be directed to:

California Relay Service: 1-800-735-2929 (TTY), 1-800-735-2922 (Voice). TTY is a Telecommunications Device for the Deaf, and is reachable only from phones equipped with a TTY Device.

Examination and/or Employment Application (STD 678) forms are available at the California Department of Human Resources, local offices of the Employment Development Department, and through your CalCareer Account (www.CalCareers.ca.gov).

If you meet the requirements stated on this examination bulletin, you may take this examination, which is competitive. Possession of the entrance requirements does not assure a place on the eligible list. Your performance in the examination described in this bulletin will be rated against a predetermined job-related rating, and all applicants who pass will be ranked according to their scores.

Franchise Tax Board reserves the right to revise the examination plan to better meet the needs of the service, if the circumstances under which this examination was planned change. Such revision will be in accordance with civil service laws and rules and all applicants will be notified.

General Qualifications: Applicants must possess essential personal qualifications including integrity, initiative, dependability, good judgment, the ability to work cooperatively with others, and a state of health consistent with the ability to perform the assigned duties of the class. A medical examination may be required. In open examinations, investigation may be made of employment records and personal history and fingerprinting may be required.

Eligible Lists: Eligible lists established by competitive examination, regardless of date, must be used in the following order: 1) sub-divisional promotional, 2) departmental promotional, 3) multi-departmental promotional, 4) service-wide promotional, 5) departmental open, 6) open. When there are two lists of the same kind, the older must be used first. Eligible lists will expire in one to four years unless otherwise stated on the bulletin.

High School Equivalence: Equivalence to completion of the 12th grade may be demonstrated in any one of the following ways: 1) passing the General Education Development (GED) Test; 2) completion of 12 semester units of college-level work; 3) certification from the State Department of Education, a local school board, or high school authorities that the competitor is considered to have education equivalent to graduation from high school; or 4) for clerical and accounting classes, substitution of business college work in place of high school on a year-for-year basis.

Accepted applicants must provide proof of identification at each in-person test session. Acceptable identification consists of a photo identification card or two forms of signed identification.