WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - California Governor Gavin Newsom Tuesday signed a Bill into law requiring Presidential election candidates to release their income tax returns of the past 5 years to be eligible to enroll their names on the state's primary ballot.
California's Democrats-dominated legislature passed the Senate Bill 27 last month.
The Presidential Tax Transparency and Accountability Act says that a candidate for U.S. President or California Governor must file copies of every income tax return filed with the Internal Revenue Service in the five most recent taxable years with the Secretary of State, at least 98 days prior to the corresponding primary election.
'These are extraordinary times and states have a legal and moral duty to do everything in their power to ensure leaders seeking the highest offices meet minimal standards, and to restore public confidence,' Newsom said in a statement.
'The disclosure required by this bill will shed light on conflicts of interest, self-dealing, or influence from domestic and foreign business interest,' according to him.
Governor Newsom has made releasing tax returns a priority in his campaigns for San Francisco Mayor and Governor of California.
The move is apparently targeted at President Donald Trump, who consistently refused to hand over his financial documents for regulatory verification.
President's counsel Jay Sekulow reportedly said the new law will be 'answered in court.'
Trump's campaign team for 2020 presidential election says state laws on presidential candidates' eligibility were unconstitutional.
But constitutional law experts say the California law is constitutional.
Theodore J. Boutrous, Jr., Partner of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP, said the new law meets all of the constitutional requirements.
He noted that every President, from Richard Nixon to Barack Obama, voluntarily chose to release their tax returns when running for office. 'Releasing tax information should be a prerequisite for appearing on the ballot for the highest office in the land, and the Constitution does not forbid California from making it one,' according to him.
David Boies, Chairman, Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, said the U.S. Constitution gives each state the authority to determine how that state's electors are chosen.
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