Sales Tax Exclusion (STE) Proposed Regulations/Current Regulatory Actions
Current STE Program Regulations (as of October 1, 2026)
Emergency Regulations First Readoption (as of October 1, 2026)
On October 1, 2026, the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) approved the first readoption of emergency regulations that were approved on April 6, 2026 for the STE Program. These regulations became effective on October 1, 2026, and are effective until December 30, 2026.
The proposed regulations were publicly noticed, considered, and approved by the CAEATFA Board at a public meeting held on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, at 10:30 am and were originally adopted by OAL on April 6, 2026.
These regulations were adopted with minor, technical, and non-substantive formatting changes from the original emergency filing.
Notice of Emergency Rulemaking First Readoption (as of September 11, 2026)
On April 6, 2026, OAL approved emergency regulation amendments to the STE Program. CAEATFA is giving public notice of the proposed emergency action to readopt these regulations for the first time, as linked above, without further modifications. As required by Government Code Section 11346.1(a)(2), this constitutes notice of at least five working days prior to submission to OAL. The first readoption will tentatively take effect on October 7, 2026.
Regular Rulemaking (as of August 27, 2026)
CAEATFA will issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking with proposed regulation text for the regular rulemaking process for the STE Program. The Notice will be published in the California Regulatory Notice Register on August 28, 2026.
These regulations will complete the rulemaking process initiated by the emergency regulations adopted on April 6, 2026. This regular rulemaking will make permanent the amendments from the emergency rulemaking action. The public comment period for the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking will end on October 12, 2026.
Stakeholders and interested parties can submit written comments to steprogram@treasurer.ca.gov.
If you prefer to receive a hard copy of the Notice or proposed regulations or if you have any questions regarding this action, please contact Christopher Castrillo at (916) 653-0012.
Emergency Rulemaking (as of March 18, 2026)
- OAL Notice of Approval (as of April 6, 2026)
- Notice of Emergency Regulations
- Finding of Emergency
- Proposed Regulation Text
On Friday, January 30, 2026, at 10:00 AM, CAEATFA will be discussing proposed amendments to the STE Program’s regulations at a public workshop. The public workshop will be held remotely via Microsoft Teams.
The proposed amendments will address the statutory requirements of SB 86 (McNerney, Chapter 211, Statutes of 2025), policy and compliance adjustments, and opportunities to streamline program administration while introducing greater flexibility to meet program needs. CAEATFA staff will also address additional changes, including fee-related adjustments.
Public comment deadline for the workshop was 5:00 PM on Friday, February 6, 2026.
- Proposed Regulation Modifications to the STE Program
- Proposed STE Regulation Modifications Presentation Slides
- STE Emergency Regulations Workshop Meeting Recording
- Written Comments on Proposed Regulation Modifications to the STE Program
Currently available publications are hyperlinked. Archived publications are available upon request. Please include in your email request the name of the document, document time period (if applicable), and name of the program that the document is referenced under. If an ADA remediated version of the PDF document is needed, please specify in your request. Please send your request to: caeatfa@treasurer.ca.gov.