Full opinion text
Opinion GEORGE, J. This is a class action challenging the practice of the State of California, acting through the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) and the State Board of Equalization (SBE), of charging annual vehicle license fees and use taxes on passenger vehicles originally sold outside California that were higher than the fees and taxes charged on similar vehicles first sold within the state. Also at issue is whether the DMV complied with the provisions of the California Administrative Procedure Act (Gov. Code, § 11340 et seq.) when, in November 1976, it altered its practice regarding the collection of use taxes for all vehicles, whether originally purchased in California or elsewhere. Finally, we decide whether the class claim filed in this case was authorized by statute. The state estimates that the current amount of the refund of vehicle license fees and use taxes due under the judgment appealed from exceeds $1 billion. For the reasons that follow, we hold the state violated the commerce clause of the United States Constitution by imposing vehicle license fees and use taxes on vehicles originally sold outside California that were higher than the fees and taxes charged on similar vehicles first sold within the state. We also hold that even if the DMV failed to comply with the procedural requirements of the California Administrative Procedure Act when it altered its practice regarding collection of use taxes, the state cannot be required on that basis to refund taxes which properly were due under state law. Lastly, we hold the class claim filed in this case was not authorized by statute. That claim is valid only as to Woosley in his individual capacity. Although our ruling does not automatically preclude continuation of this suit as a class action, the class may include only persons who timely filed valid claims for refunds. Our holding will necessitate that the trial court, upon remand, redetermine whether an ascertainable class exists for purposes of a class action. Because the composition of the class is uncertain at this time, and because the issues raised by the parties have been fully litigated and are of substantial public importance, we proceed to address the issues which prompted our grant of review. Procedural and Factual History On February 23, 1976, plaintiff Charles Patrick Woosley, a California resident, purchased a 1936 Auburn supercharged, two-door speedster for $25,000 from a private party in North Carolina, and on November 12, 1976, he attempted to register the vehicle in California. Had Woosley purchased from a private party an identical automobile that originally had been sold in California, he would have been charged a vehicle-license fee of $2 and a use tax of $6 by the DMV. Because he purchased a vehicle that originally had been sold outside the state, however, the DMV used different methods of calculation, as explained below, and charged Woosley a license fee of $427 and a use tax of $1,500. After filing claims for refunds on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated and pursuing administrative remedies, without success, on July 20, 1978, Woosley filed a class action against the State of California, and several state agencies, including the DMV and the SBE, for a refund of license fees and use taxes, and for injunctive relief. By stipulation of the parties, the liability issues were bifurcated from the issues involving certification of the class, and the liability issues were tried first. On December 27, 1983, following trial to the court, the court rendered its statement of decision on the issue of liability, and on November 13, 1984, rendered its statement of decision on the issues relating to class certification. On July 1, 1985, the court entered judgment in favor of plaintiff. After appeal by the state, the Court of Appeal affirmed the judgment. We granted the state’s petition for review. Because neither party disputes the accuracy of the trial court’s statements of decision, we accept the factual findings contained therein. Vehicle License Fees An annual license fee is “imposed for the privilege of operating [a vehicle] upon the public highways in this state . . . .” (Rev. & Tax. Code, § 10751.) The amount of this fee “shall be a sum equal to 2 percent of the market value of the vehicle as determined by the [DMV].” (§ 10752.) As originally enacted in 1941, section 10753 directed the DMV annually to “compile and publish a list showing the market values ... of each class of vehicle subject to the license fee . . . (Stats. 1941, ch. 40, § 1, pp. 605-606.) Upon registration, the DMV would use the information in this “rate book” to assign to the vehicle a classification code from which its market value would be determined for the year of the sale and all subsequent years, regardless of any change in ownership. The DMV did not differentiate between vehicles originally sold within California and those originally sold outside the state. In 1948, section 10753 was amended to require the DMV to determine the market value of vehicles “upon the basis of the California delivered prices as established by the manufacturers or distributors in their selling agreements with authorized dealers as of the time the particular make and year model is first offered for sale in California . . . .” (Stats. 1948, ch. 26, § 2, p. 129.) Manufacturers informed the DMV of the “delivered price” on each model, and the DMV entered this information in its rate book. Using a method described in section 10753.2 (enacted in 1948), the market value of each vehicle was determined from this “delivered price” according to a depreciation schedule set forth in the statute. As before, the same classification code was assigned to the vehicle and the same tax was imposed, whether the vehicle was purchased in California or elsewhere. The DMV, however, urged the Legislature to alter the method for determining the vehicle license fee, because manufacturers objected to supplying information regarding prices, thereby causing delays at the beginning of each model year in updating the rate book. In 1967, the Legislature amended section 10753 to require the DMV to determine the market value of vehicles by reference to “the California suggested base price” (§ 10753, subd. (a)), which was defined as “the retail price of the vehicle suggested by the manufacturer ... as reflected on the price listing affixed to the vehicle pursuant to the Federal Automobile Information Disclosure Act of 1958 . . . .” (§ 10753, subd. (g), as amended by Stats. 1967, ch. 435, § 1, pp. 1647-1648.) The “price listing” is commonly referred to as the “sticker price” of the vehicle. Section 10753 defined the California suggested base price to include “destination charge[s]” and the cost of statutorily required “emission control devices,” but not the cost of factory-installed “accessories]” or “optional equipment.” (§ 10753, subd. (g).) The statute further provided: “In the event the [DMV] is unable to ascertain the California suggested base price as herein defined . . . , the [DMV] shall determine the market value upon the basis of the cost price to the purchaser of the vehicle as evidenced by a certificate of cost. . . .” (§ 10753, subd. (c).) Consistently, the Legislature also amended section 10753.2, which, as described above, sets forth the depreciation schedule used in determining a vehicle’s market value, to reflect that this process was based on “the California suggested base price, as defined above, of a vehicle or its cost price to the purchaser . . . .” (Stats. 1967, ch. 435, § 2, p. 1649.) Based upon these amendments, the DMV ceased producing a rate book and began requiring dealers to provide, for each new vehicle sold in California, a “report of sale” listing the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, destination charge, and the cost of emission-control devices as reflected by the “sticker” on the vehicle. As before, the DMV would use the information supplied by the dealer to assign to the vehicle a classification code from which its market value would be determined for the year of the sale and all subsequent years. If a vehicle originally was sold in another state, however, the DMV would not receive a “report of sale” from the dealer and thus could not assign a classification code. When the owner of such a vehicle attempted to register it in California, the DMV took the position that the “California suggested base price” could not be ascertained, and the DMV instead determined the market value of the vehicle based upon the “cost price to the purchaser,” requiring the owner to produce a certificate of cost. The DMV required a certificate of cost in such circumstances even if, as to pre-1968 models, the vehicle was listed in the DMV rate-book or the original sticker price was available. This practice resulted in the imposition of significantly higher license fees for vehicles purchased outside the state than for those first sold in California, in part because the cost of factory-installed accessories and optional equipment was excluded from the suggested base price for vehicles originally purchased in California, but not from the actual cost of vehicles first purchased in other states. The DMV’s adoption of methods for determining the market value of vehicles originally purchased in California which differed from the methods applied to vehicles first sold elsewhere led the DMV also to adopt different methods of applying the depreciation schedule in section 10753.2. For vehicles originally purchased in California, the DMV used the vehicle’s sticker price to determine its market value and applied the depreciation schedule, as directed by section 10753.2, subdivision (c), “starting with the year [the vehicle was] first sold to a consumer as a new vehicle, . . .” (Stats. 1948, ch. 26, § 3, p. 130.) For vehiclés originally purchased outside the state, however, the market value of the vehicle was based upon its actual cost to the person registering the vehicle rather than upon its sticker price. Presumably because the person registering the vehicle might have purchased it new or, instead, in a subsequent year as a used vehicle, the DMV interpreted the “first year” of the depreciation schedule to be the year the vehicle was sold to the first person to register the vehicle in California. Apparently, the DMV adopted this approach because the actual cost of a used vehicle already would reflect the depreciated value of the vehicle. The DMV’s application of the depreciation schedule to vehicles purchased outside the state, however, directly conflicted with the clear command of the then-governing language of section 10753.2, subdivision (c), that the “first year” of the depreciation schedule be ‘the year [the vehicle was] first sold to a consumer as a new vehicle.” (Stats. 1948, ch. 26, § 3, p. 130.) In 1977, the Legislature amended section 10753.2, subdivision (c), to provide that the depreciation schedule could be applied starting “with either the year the vehicle was first sold to a consumer as a new vehicle or the year the vehicle was first purchased or assembled by the person applying for original registration in this state.” (Stats. 1977, ch. 821, § 1, p. 2491.) This amendment provided statutory authorization for the DMV’s already well-established practice of treating as the “first year” of the depreciation schedule the year a vehicle was purchased outside the state by the person applying for registration. In 1983, while the present litigation was pending, section 10753, subdivision (a), was amended to require the DMV to base the market value of all vehicles “on the basis of the cost price to the purchaser as evidenced by a certificate of cost. . . (Stats. 1983, ch. 323, § 79.1, p. 1017.) Effective June 30, 1991, the statute again was amended to require the DMV to redetermine the market value of a vehicle, based on its actual cost, upon its sale as a used vehicle. (§ 10753, subd. (a).) For vehicles first registered in 1983 or later, therefore, the market value is based upon the actual cost of the vehicle, whether or not it was purchased in California. For a vehicle first registered before 1983 and not sold as a used vehicle after June 30, 1991, however, the method used by the DMV to determine the market value of the vehicle depends upon where the vehicle originally was purchased. The reference to the “California suggested base price” also was deleted from section 10753.2, subdivision (a), by the 1983 legislation. Because of the 1977 amendment discussed above, however, section 10753.2, subdivision (c), continued to permit the DMV to treat the “first year” of the depreciation schedule either as “the year the vehicle was first sold to a consumer as a new vehicle or the year the vehicle was first purchased or assembled by the person applying for original registration in this state . . . .” (Stats. 1977, ch. 821, § 1, p. 2491.) Use Taxes The use tax (§ 6201 et seq.) complements the sales tax (§ 6051 et seq.). The sales tax “levies a tax upon the gross receipts of California retailers from sales of tangible personal property,” while the use tax “imposes an excise on the consumer at the same rate [as the sales tax] for the storage, use or other consumption in the state of such property when purchased from any retailer. As property covered by the sales tax is exempt under the use tax, all tangible personalty sold or utilized in California is taxed once for the support of the state government." (Southern Pac. Co. v. Gallagher (1939) 306 U.S. 167, 171 [83 L.Ed. 586, 590, 59 S.Ct. 389]; § 6401.) Thus, for example, the use tax is applied to goods purchased from out-of-state retailers (which are not subject to California sales tax), thereby preventing such out-of-state retailers from enjoying an unfair advantage over local retailers. The sale of a vehicle by a private party (i.e., not a licensed dealer) is exempted from the sales tax but is subject to the use tax, unlike the occasional sale of other types of personal property by a private party which is exempt from all tax. (§§ 6282, 6367.) The DMV collects the use tax on vehicles on behalf of the SEE. (Veh. Code, §§4750.5, 38211.) Payment of the use tax must accompany an application to transfer ownership of a vehicle registered in California or to register a vehicle purchased outside the state. (Veh. Code, §§ 38211,4300.5.) The use tax, like the sales tax, is based upon a percentage of the sales price of the item (§§ 6012, 6051, 6201) but, until recently, where use tax on a vehicle is concerned, former section 6276 declared that “the sales price shall be presumed to be an amount equal to the market value of the vehicle at the time of the purchase as that value is determined to measure vehicle license fees . . . .” (Italics added.) This presumption did not apply, however, to vehicles “purchased outside this state from the manufacturer or from a vehicle dealer . . . .” (Ibid.) The statute further provided that this presumption “may be rebutted by evidence which establishes that the sales price was other than that amount.” (Former § 6276.) Former section 6276, therefore, established a rebuttable presumption, applicable to the purchase of vehicles from private parties, that the sales price on which the use tax was based was equivalent to the market value used to determine vehicle license fees. The trial court found that from 1967 to November 1976, the DMV utilized this presumption in calculating the use tax due on the sale of vehicles by private parties in California. The DMV would calculate the current market value, as determined for vehicle license fee purposes, using the classification code assigned to the vehicle when it was new, and would base the use tax due on this depreciated market value. As noted above, however, a vehicle originally purchased outside the state was not assigned such a classification code, because the DMV did not receive a “report of sale” from out-of-state dealers. When an out-of-state vehicle was registered in California, therefore, the market value used to determine the vehicle license fee was based on the actual cost of the vehicle, as shown by a certificate of cost provided by the owner. In such a case, the use tax also was based on the actual cost of the vehicle as shown by a certificate of cost. Thus, during this period, vehicles purchased from dealers within and outside California were taxed equally. If a vehicle was sold by a dealer in California, a sales tax was assessed based on the sales price. If a vehicle was sold by a dealer outside the state, a use tax based on the sales price was assessed when the owner registered the vehicle in California. The amount of the use tax imposed on vehicles purchased from private parties, however, depended upon where they were purchased. If a vehicle originally sold in California was purchased as a used vehicle from a private party in California, the DMV used the former section 6276 presumption and would base the use tax on the market value as determined for vehicle license fee purposes. If a vehicle originally sold outside the state was purchased as a used vehicle from a private party in another state, however, the DMV would base the use tax on the actual cost of the vehicle to the person registering the vehicle in California. Accordingly, the DMV’s practice during this period of determining the market value of a vehicle originally sold in California based upon its sticker price but determining the market value of a vehicle originally sold elsewhere based upon its actual cost, resulted not only in higher license fees for out-of-state vehicles, but also in higher use taxes for vehicles purchased in other states from private parties. In November 1976, after Woosley had purchased and attempted to register his vehicle, the DMV and the SEE concluded lengthy discussions and, relying upon an opinion of the Attorney General (59 Ops.Cal.Atty.Gen. 47 (1976)), agreed that the DMV would begin calculating the use tax on all vehicles purchased from private parties on the basis of their actual cost, as shown by a certificate of cost provided by the owner, rather than the depreciated sticker price, as reflected in the classification code assigned to vehicles first sold in California. This change brought to an end the discrepancy which existed in the calculation of the use tax between vehicles purchased from private parties in California and vehicles purchased outside the state, but raised the issue whether this change in practice constituted a regulation, requiring the DMV to comply with the provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act pertaining to the enactment of regulations. (Gov. Code, § 11340 et seq.) Lower-court Rulings The trial court found that the DMV’s employment of a method to compute the vehicle license fees and use taxes due on vehicles originally purchased outside California which differed from the method used for vehicles originally purchased within the state, resulted in the imposition of “significantly higher” fees and taxes on vehicles purchased outside the state. The court held that this practice violated “applicable state statutes and regulations,” as well as the commerce clause of the federal Constitution and the equal protection clauses of the state and federal Constitutions. With regard to vehicle license fees, this practice began in 1967 and continues to the present time as to vehicles first registered before 1983 or sold as used vehicles prior to June 30, 1991, although, as described above, recent legislation has eliminated the different treatment for vehicles sold after June 30, 1991, as used. With regard to use taxes, however, the different treatment ended in November 1976, when the DMV adopted its new policy of basing the use tax as to all vehicles on their actual cost. The trial court further held that the November 1976 agreement between the SEE and the DMV to begin basing the use tax for all vehicles on their actual cost was invalid, because the agreement was not adopted as a formal regulation in compliance with the requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act. (Gov. Code, § 11340 et seq.) Subsequently, the trial court resolved the previously bifurcated class-certification issues by certifying two classes. One of these classes consists of “[a]ll persons in the State of California who from within three years prior to October 20,1977 [when Woosley mailed his initial claim for refund] to the date of the refund, were charged and paid more vehicle license fees or use taxes for registration of vehicles previously registered or titled outside of the State of California because those fees or taxes were based on the actual cost of those vehicles rather than on the statutorily presumed price . . . ,” The trial court found that approximately 2.8 million persons are included within this class. The other class consists of all persons who, since November 1976, have paid higher use taxes on vehicles because of the DMV’s decision to begin basing the calculation of such taxes for all vehicles on the actual cost of the vehicle. The trial court found that approximately 14 million persons are included within this class. The court awarded $13.7 million to counsel for the class as attorney fees, and $1 million in fees to Woosley, who is an attorney, “for services rendered as class representative,” directing that both sums be paid from the common fund recovered. (Serrano v. Priest (1977) 20 Cal.3d 25, 35 [141 Cal.Rptr. 315, 569 P.2d 1303].) The state appealed. Woosley in his individual capacity also appealed, contending the trial court erroneously denied him attorney fees for the legal assistance he rendered to the class and compensated him solely “as class representative.” The Court of Appeal consolidated the two appeals, affirmed the judgment on the principal appeal, and vacated the award of fees to Woosley, remanding the matter for a hearing as to whether Woosley is entitled to an award of fees for his legal services. We granted the state’s petition for review, specifying that “[t]he issues to be argued before this court shall be limited to those addressed in the published portion of the Court of Appeal opinion.” We thereby excluded from consideration by this court the question whether Woosley had exhausted his administrative remedies, as well as a number of other peripheral issues. By subsequent order, we granted Woosley’s request to expand the scope of our review to include the issue whether the practices followed by the state violated the equal-protection clauses of the federal and state Constitutions. Discussion Statutory Interpretation The state contends it was authorized by statute to employ methods of computing vehicle-license fees and use taxes for vehicles originally purchased outside California which differed from the methods applied to vehicles originally purchased within the state. The state notes that from 1967 to 1983, section 10753 directed that for purposes of calculating vehicle license fees and use taxes, the market value of vehicles “shall be determined . . . upon the basis of the California suggested base price as herein defined” but further provided that, “[i]n the event the [DMV was] unable to ascertain the California suggested base price . . . , the [DMV] shall determine the market value upon the basis of the cost price to the purchaser . . . .” (Stats. 1967, ch. 435, § 1, pp. 1647-1648.) The state argues that vehicles originally purchased outside California had no “California suggested base price” and, therefore, the statute commanded that the market value of those vehicles be based on their actual cost. “We begin with the fundamental rule that a court ‘should ascertain the intent of the Legislature so as to effectuate the purpose of the law.’ [Citation.] In determining such intent ‘[t]he court turns first to the words themselves for the answer.’ [Citation.] We are required to give effect to statutes ‘according to the usual, ordinary import of the language employed in framing them.’ [Citations.] ‘If possible, significance should be given to every word, phrase, sentence and part of an act in pursuance of the legislative purpose.’ [Citation.] ‘[A] construction making some words surplusage is to be avoided.’ [Citation.]” (Moyer v. Workmen’s Comp. Appeals Bd. (1973) 10 Cal.3d 222, 230 [110 Cal.Rptr. 144, 514 P.2d 1224].) The words used by the Legislature suggest that only vehicles originally sold in California had a “California suggested base price”; otherwise the word “California” would be mere surplusage. Plaintiff points out that the pre-1967 version of section 10753 used the word “California” in a similar fashion in the phrase “California delivered price,” but the DMV had treated all vehicles alike regardless of where they originally were purchased. This circumstance is significant but not dispositive. The exact meaning of the phrase “California delivered price,” as used in the former version of section 10753, is unclear, because the Legislature had provided that this term would be “defined . . . by the manufacturers.” The 1967 amendment, however, expressly defined the new term “California suggested base price” to include the cost of “emission control devices as are required by Section 24390 [now 39129] of the Health and Safety Code, . . .” (Stats. 1967, ch. 435, § 1, p. 1648.) The cost of such emission-control devices would appear only on the stickers of vehicles sold new in California. In addition, the administrative construction of section 10753 adopted by the DMV immediately after the 1967 amendment of the statute, while “not necessarily controlling, ... ‘is entitled to great weight, and courts generally will not depart from such construction unless it is clearly erroneous or unauthorized.’ [Citations.]” (Select Base Materials v. Board of Equal. (1959) 51 Cal.2d 640, 647 [335 P.2d 672].) Finally, in 1977, the Legislature endorsed this administrative construction by amending section 10753.2 to authorize the DMV to apply the depreciation schedule beginning with the year the vehicle was purchased by the person seeking to register the vehicle. Despite the prior lack of statutory authorization, the DMV, since the 1967 amendments to sections 10753 and 10753.2, had been applying the depreciation schedule in this fashion to vehicles originally purchased outside the state. As explained above, the DMV adopted this approach as a direct consequence of its conclusion that only California vehicles had a “California suggested base price,” and its resulting practice of basing the market value of vehicles purchased in other states upon their actual cost. By amending section 10753.2 to authorize the DMV’s application of the depreciation schedule, the Legislature endorsed the DMV’s administrative construction of section 10753, from which the DMV’s application of the depreciation schedule had resulted. Accordingly, we conclude that the DMV’s practice of imposing vehicle license fees and use taxes on vehicles originally purchased in California, different from the fees and taxes imposed upon similar vehicles originally purchased outside the state, was statutorily authorized. Thus, we proceed to consider whether this practice placed a disproportionate burden on interstate commerce in violation of the commerce clause of the federal Constitution. Commerce Clause “Article I, § 8, cl. 3 of the [United States] Constitution expressly authorizes Congress to ‘regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among the several States.’ It says nothing about the protection of interstate commerce in the absence of any action by Congress. Nevertheless, ... the Commerce Clause is more than an affirmative grant of power; it has a negative sweep as well. The clause ... ‘by its own force’ prohibits certain state actions that interfere with interstate commerce. [Citation.]” (Quill Corp. v. North Dakota (1992) 504 U.S. _, _ [119 L.Ed.2d 91, 104, 112 S.Ct. 1904].) The high court has held that a state tax that affects interstate commerce does not violate this “negative” or “dormant” commerce clause if “the tax is applied to an activity with a substantial nexus with the taxing State, is fairly apportioned, does not discriminate against interstate commerce, and is fairly related to the services provided by the State.” (Complete Auto Transit, Inc. v. Brady (1977) 430 U.S. 274, 279 [51 L.Ed.2d 326, 331, 97 S.Ct. 1076] [hereafter Complete Auto Transit]; accord, Goldberg v. Sweet (1989) 488 U.S. 252, 259-260 [102 L.Ed.2d 607, 615-616, 109 S.Ct. 582].) The issue here relates to the third element of the Complete Auto Transit test—whether the tax discriminates against interstate commerce. Such discrimination may arise in several guises, and “a tax may violate the Commerce Clause if it is facially discriminatory, has a discriminatory intent, or has the effect of unduly burdening interstate commerce.” (Amerada Hess Corp. v. N. J. Taxation Div. (1989) 490 U.S. 66, 75 [104 L.Ed.2d 58, 68, 109 S.Ct. 1617].) As numerous cases have established, a tax which is imposed at a uniform rate on interstate and intrastate commerce still may be facially discriminatory if state law defines the tax base differently for interstate transactions, with the result that they incur a higher tax than that imposed on intrastate transactions. For example, in Halliburton Oil Well Co. v. Reily (1963) 373 U.S. 64 [10 L.Ed.2d 202, 83 S.Ct. 1201], Louisiana imposed sales and use taxes at a uniform rate upon property purchased within and without the state, respectively. Nevertheless, the use tax was held unconstitutional as applied to trucks tiie taxpayer had assembled outside the state and brought into Louisiana, because the state had included in the tracks’ taxable value the cost of labor and shop overhead attributable to assembling the units, costs which would not have been included had the tracks been assembled within the state. In Tyler Pipe Industries v. Dept, of Revenue (1987) 483 U.S. 232, 248 [97 L.Ed.2d 199, 214, 107 S.Ct. 2810], the court invalidated a Washington tax on manufacturing because the law favored local manufacturers who sold their products within the state, by granting them a partial exemption from the manufacturing tax unavailable to local manufacturers who sold their products outside the state and unavailable to out-of-state manufacturers who sold their products in Washington. In New Energy Co. of Indiana v. Limbach (1988) 486 U.S. 269 [100 L.Ed.2d 302, 108 S.Ct. 1803], the court invalidated a provision of the Ohio “motor vehicle fuel sales tax” which awarded a tax credit for sales of ethanol produced in Ohio or in a state that grants similar tax advantages to ethanol produced in Ohio, but not for sales of ethanol produced in other states. And in Matthews v. State, Dept, of Revenue (1977) 193 Colo. 44 [562 P.2d 415], the Colorado Supreme Court invalidated a tax system which authorized a trade-in allowance when computing the sales tax due on a vehicle purchased in Colorado, but allowed no such deduction when computing the use tax due on a vehicle purchased outside the state. In each of these cases, taxes were imposed at a uniform rate, but the state discriminated against interstate transactions in defining the base upon which such taxes were levied. In the present case, the DMV employed two different methods of defining market value for purposes of computing both vehicle license fees and use taxes: if the vehicle originally was purchased in California, the market value was the depreciated sticker price, excluding the cost of optional equipment; if originally purchased elsewhere, it was the actual purchase price. The discrimination between interstate and local commerce is plain. In cases, such as Woosley’s, in which this discrimination resulted in the imposition of higher fees and taxes on vehicles purchased outside the state (a situation which the trial court generally found to be the case), the violation of the commerce clause is patent. The state, contending the foregoing authority is not controlling, instead argues that language in the decision in Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. 252, mandates the conclusion that the DMV’s methods of collecting vehicle-license fees and use taxes did not offend the commerce clause. In Goldberg, Illinois had imposed a 5 percent tax on all interstate telecommunications which originated or terminated in the state and which were charged to an Illinois service address. An identical 5 percent tax was imposed on intrastate telecommunications. In a class action, Illinois residents claimed the tax on interstate telecommunications violated the commerce clause. The court in Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. 252, applying the four-part Complete Auto Transit test, upheld the tax. In holding, under the third prong of that test, that the taxes did not discriminate against interstate commerce “by allocating a larger share of the tax burden to interstate telephone calls," the court distinguished American Trucking Assns., Inc. v. Scheiner (1987) 483 U.S. 266 [97 L.Ed.2d 226, 107 S.Ct. 2829], “In Scheiner,” it said, “we held that Pennsylvania’s flat taxes on the operation of all trucks on Pennsylvania highways imposed a disproportionate burden on interstate trucks, as compared with intrastate trucks, because the interstate trucks traveled fewer miles per year on Pennsylvania highways. [Citation.] The Illinois tax differs from the flat taxes found discriminatory in Scheiner . . . . [W]hereas Pennsylvania’s flat taxes burdened out-of-state truckers who would have difficulty effecting legislative change, the economic burden of the Illinois telecommunications tax falls on the Illinois telecommunications consumer, the insider who presumably is able to complain about and change the tax through the Illinois political process. It is not a purpose of the Commerce Clause to protect state residents from their own state taxes.” (Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. at p. 266 [102 L.Ed.2d at p. 620], italics added.) The state contends the emphasized language in the quoted passage is conclusive. It reads that language as holding unequivocally that so long as a state imposes a tax only on its residents, the commerce clause permits it to discriminate against those residents who engage in interstate transactions. Although the taxes at issue in Goldberg were imposed only on residents of the taxing state, this circumstance was not regarded by the high court as conclusive. Rather, it treated this as one factor to be considered in deciding whether the taxes offended the commerce clause. The court went on to discuss another factor before concluding that the taxes did not discriminate in favor of intrastate commerce, and discussed the three remaining prongs of the test set forth in Complete Auto Transit before holding that the taxes did not violate the commerce clause. Nowhere in the decision in Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. 252, does the court declare that taxes imposed on residents of the taxing state never can offend the commerce clause. What the high court does say is that “[i]t is not a purpose of the Commerce Clause to protect state residents from their own state taxes.” (Id. at p. 266 [102 L.Ed.2d at p. 620].) This is hardly a remarkable proposition. The purpose of the commerce clause is to protect interstate commerce by “ ‘creating] an area of trade free from interference by the States.’ [Citations.]” (American Trucking Assns., Inc. v. Scheiner, supra, 483 U.S. 266, 280 [97 L.Ed.2d 226, 241].) The commerce clause is not designed to protect taxpayers of the taxing state, but to protect interstate commerce. We must determine whether, by stating this obvious proposition, the high court meant to suggest that a tax never can offend the commerce clause so long as it is levied on residents of the taxing state. Such a ruling would be inconsistent with a long line of prior decisions rendered by the United States Supreme Court. That court has, on numerous occasions, invalidated taxes imposed by states upon their own residents where those taxes placed an undue burden on interstate commerce. Such decisions include, for example, Tyler Pipe Industries v. Dept, of Revenue, supra, 483 U.S. 232, discussed above; Bacchus Imports, Ltd. v. Dias (1984) 468 U.S. 263 [82 L.Ed.2d 200, 104 S.Ct. 3049], which invalidated a liquor tax imposed on local wholesalers, because it exempted locally produced beverages; Evco v. Jones (1972) 409 U.S. 91, 93 [34 L.Ed.2d 325, 328-329, 93 S.Ct. 349], which invalidated an unapportioned tax on the gross receipts from sales of personal property by local companies to out-of-state customers; and Greyhound Lines v. Mealey (1948) 334 U.S. 653, 662-663 [92 L.Ed. 1633, 1641-1642 68 S.Ct. 1260], which invalidated an unapportioned tax on the gross receipts from interstate transportation levied on local carriers. The interpretation of Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. 252, urged by the state also would be inconsistent with well-established and unquestioned principles of commerce-clause jurisprudence, such as the rule that a use tax on out-of-state purchases is valid only if it imposes a burden no greater than the sales tax imposed on local purchases (Henneford v. Silas Mason Co. (1937) 300 U.S. 577, 584 [81 L.Ed. 814, 819-820, 57 S.Ct. 524]) and the rule that a state may not levy an income tax which taxes value earned outside its borders (Container Corp. v. Franchise Tax Bd. (1983) 463 U.S. 159, 164 [77 L.Ed.2d 545, 552, 103 S.Ct. 2933]). Subsequent to the decision in Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. 252, the high court has continued to rely upon the above cited cases in deciding related issues, with no indication that the decision in Goldberg has lessened the value of those cases as precedent. (See, e.g., McKesson Corp. v. Florida Alcohol & Tobacco Div. (1990) 496 U.S. 18, 46 [110 L.Ed.2d 17, 41-42 110 S.Ct. 2238]; Amerada Hess Corp. v. N. J. Taxation Div., supra, 490 U.S. at pp. 75-76 [104 L.Ed.2d at pp. 68-69].) Although the high court has not, since its decision in Goldberg v. Sweet, addressed a commerce-clause challenge to a tax imposed by a state upon residents of that state, the court recently addressed an analogous issue in Wyoming v. Oklahoma (1992) 502 U.S. _ [117 L.Ed.2d 1, 112 S.Ct. 789], In that case, the state action under review was not a tax imposed upon state residents, but a statute, directed solely at state residents, which could be enforced by criminal penalties or injunctive relief. The statute, enacted by the Oklahoma Legislature, required coal-fired electric generating plants producing power for sale in Oklahoma to burn a mixture of coal containing at least 10 percent Oklahoma-mined coal. The high court held the statute was unconstitutional under the commerce clause. No mention was made of the decision in Goldberg v. Sweet. The holding in Wyoming v. Oklahoma is incompatible with the interpretation of the decision in Goldberg v. Sweet urged by the state in the appeal before us. The statute invalidated in Wyoming v. Oklahoma was directed solely at residents of Oklahoma. The effect of the statute, however, was to place a burden on interstate commerce. Obviously, the circumstance that Oklahoma chose to favor the purchase of locally mined coal by passing a statute enforceable by criminal penalties and injunctive relief, rattier than by imposing a tax, does not distinguish the decision in Wyoming v. Oklahoma from the decision in Goldberg v. Sweet. The decision in Wyoming v. Oklahoma, therefore, confirms that the state’s interpretation of Goldberg v. Sweet is incorrect. We conclude that the language in Goldberg v. Sweet, supra, 488 U.S. 252, relied upon by the state, does not support the state’s contention. The high court merely acknowledged that the circumstance that a disputed tax is levied upon residents of the taxing state, who are able to challenge the tax through political means, is one factor to be considered in determining whether the tax offends the commerce clause. This factor, however, is not dispositive. The high court did not uphold the telecommunications taxes in Goldberg on the sole basis that they were imposed only upon residents of the taxing state, but did so because the taxes did not place a disproportionate burden on interstate commerce. Contrary to the state’s position, nothing in the decision in Goldberg alters the settled rule that a tax which is levied upon residents of the taxing state and imposes an undue burden on interstate commerce offends the commerce clause. In the present case, the state discriminated against interstate commerce by imposing higher license fees on out-of-state vehicles and by imposing higher use taxes on vehicles purchased from private parties in other states. The circumstance that these fees and taxes were imposed upon residents of California is a factor to be considered, but is not sufficient, standing alone, to overcome this patent discrimination. Rather, such unequal treatment of interstate and intrastate transactions violates the commerce clause “unless the discrimination is demonstrably justified by a valid factor unrelated to economic protectionism [citation].” (New Energy Co. of Indiana v. Limbach, supra, 486 U.S. 269, 274 [100 L.Ed.2d at p. 308].) “[T]he standards for such justification are high.” (New Energy Co. of Indiana v. Limbach, supra, 486 U.S. 269, 278 [100 L.Ed.2d at p. 312].) For example, a state’s legitimate need “to protect the health and safety of its citizens and the integrity of its natural resources” has been held, in the absence of a reasonable, nondiscriminatory alternative, to justify an obstruction to interstate commerce. (Maine v. Taylor (1986) 477 U.S. 131, 151 [91 L.Ed.2d 110, 129, 106 S.Ct. 2440].) The high court has noted, however, that “facial discrimination by itself may be a fatal defect” and that “[a]t a minimum such facial discrimination invokes the strictest scrutiny of any purported legitimate local purpose and of the absence of nondiscriminatory alternatives.” (Hughes v. Oklahoma (1979) 441 U.S. 322, 337 [60 L.Ed.2d 250, 262, 99 S.Ct. 1727].) The only justification suggested by the state for the discrimination that exists in the present case is administrative convenience. Assuming, without deciding, that such a concern could, under some circumstances, justify an obstruction to interstate commerce, the showing made by the state in this case is insufficient to meet the high standards described in the foregoing decisions. With respect to vehicle license fees, the state contends it would have been difficult, if not impossible, to determine a California sticker price for vehicles originally sold in other states. Assuming this is true, a state may not adopt a method of imposing a tax that on its face applies only to vehicles originally sold within the state, and then seek to justify the ensuing discrimination against interstate commerce on the basis of the administrative difficulties involved in applying this facially discriminatory method to vehicles first sold elsewhere. The state could have utilized a method of imposing vehicle license fees which was applicable regardless where the vehicle first had been sold. Such a system was in fact utilized prior to the adoption of the discriminatory practice in question, although the DMV found this rate-book system unworkable. A different, but equally nondiscriminatory, procedure currently is in place. We do not suggest the state was required to use either of these systems, but their existence makes it difficult for the state, in justification of its facial discrimination against interstate transactions, to demonstrate “the absence of nondiscriminatory alternatives.” (Hughes v. Oklahoma, supra, 441 U.S. 322, 337 [60 L.Ed.2d 250, 262].) With respect to the use tax, we are unpersuaded by the state’s assertion that it would have been administratively burdensome to base the tax for vehicles sold within California on their actual cost rather than on their presumed market value. The state long has based the tax applicable to vehicles sold outside the state on their actual cost. Any additional burden on the state, caused by also basing the use tax for vehicles purchased in California on the actual cost of the vehicle, was insufficient to deter the DMV from adopting this practice in 1976 at the urging of the SEE, and to deter the Legislature from repealing the section 6276 presumption in 1991. Therefore, the justifications asserted by the state for imposing higher vehicle license fees and use taxes on out-of-state vehicles are inadequate to withstand the heightened scrutiny required of practices which discriminate against interstate commerce. We conclude that the state’s practice of imposing vehicle license fees on vehicles originally purchased outside California which were generally higher than those imposed upon similar vehicles originally purchased within the state, and of imposing use taxes on vehicles purchased from private parties outside California which were generally higher than those imposed upon similar vehicles purchased from private parties within the state, violated the commerce clause of the federal Constitution. Members of the class who paid license fees on vehicles originally purchased outside California, or use taxes on vehicles purchased from private parties outside California, which were higher than the license fees or use taxes that would have been required had those vehicles originally been purchased within the state, are entitled to refunds. Administrative Procedure Act The trial court and the Court of Appeal held that the November 1976 agreement between the SEE and the DMV to begin collecting use taxes for all vehicles on the basis of actual cost was “procedurally defective” because it was not adopted as a formal regulation in compliance with the requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). (Gov. Code, § 11340 et seq.) Assuming, arguendo, this is true, we conclude no refund of use taxes is required, because the amount of the use taxes collected was due the state under applicable tax statutes. As explained previously, former section 6276 provided that, in calculating the use tax applicable to a vehicle, its sales price was presumed equal to the market value as determined in calculating the vehicle license fee. That statute further provided that the foregoing presumption could “be rebutted by evidence which establishes that the sales price was other than [that] amount.” (Former § 6276, repealed by Stats. 1991, ch 87, § 1.) Prior to November 1976, the DMV relied upon this presumption in collecting use taxes on vehicles purchased from private parties within California but, for vehicles purchased outside the state, based its calculation on the actual cost of the vehicle. In 1976, the DMV entered into an interagency agreement with the SEE, effective November 15, 1976, which provided that in all private-party transactions, both in-state and out-of-state, the DMV would require a certificate of cost to establish the actual sales price of the vehicle. The courts below held that this agreement constituted a regulation as defined in the APA. The APA provides that the adoption, amendment, or repeal of any administrative regulation must comply with certain basic, minimum procedural guidelines. (Gov. Code, § 11346.) Among other things, the APA provides for adequate notice to interested persons of the proposed action. (Gov. Code, § 11346.4.) It also provides for a public hearing or an opportunity for interested persons to present contentions in writing, before any state agency may adopt, amend, or repeal any regulation. (Gov. Code, § 11346.8.) In the present case, the state admits that the DMV and the SEE entered into and implemented the agreement without complying with the notice and hearing requirements of that act. Relying upon the decision in Market St. Ry. Co. v. Cal. St. Bd. Equal. (1955) 137 Cal.App.2d 87 [290 P.2d 20] [hereafter, Market St.], however, the state contends that even if the DMV and the SBE erroneously failed to comply with the APA, use taxes collected pursuant to the invalid agreement need not be refunded because such taxes properly were due under state law. We agree. In Market St., the City of San Francisco purchased the Market Street Railway Company. At the time of the sale, an interpretative ruling of the SBE provided that no sales tax was due in connection with the sale of an entire business. Market Street Railway Company was aware of this regulation and relied upon it in concluding it owed no sales tax as a result of the sale of its business to the city. Two days after the sale was completed, the SBE revised its regulation to state that sales tax was due on that portion of the proceeds of the sale of a business that represents the fair retail value of the tangible personal property acquired for use rather than resale. The Court of Appeal held that the state was not estopped from collecting sales taxes on the sale of the business which properly were due under state law. Noting it was obvious that “a tax administrator should not be permitted by an erroneous ruling to exempt a taxpayer from the obligation to pay taxes” (Market St., supra, 137 Cal.App.2d at pp. 100-101), the court relied on “ ‘the general rule that the government does not lose its revenues because of an erroneous ruling of an administrative official as to the meaning of a tax law.’ ” (Id. at pp. 101-102.) A similar principle applies here. “ ‘The duty of the tax officials is to collect taxes imposed by law . . . (Market St., supra, 137 Cal.App.2d at p. 102.) The failure of the SBE and the DMV to comply with the requirement of the APA in adopting their agreement regarding collection of use taxes does not exempt taxpayers from the obligation to pay such taxes as are required by state law, and cannot deprive the state of the tax revenues to which it is entitled. Plaintiff makes no attempt to distinguish the decision in Market St. In fact, plaintiff does not contend that the invalidity of the regulation requires the state to refund use taxes collected pursuant to that regulation, but relies instead on the argument that the applicable statutes did not authorize the state to require a certificate of cost in collecting those taxes. Based on an examination of the statutes, we conclude otherwise. With respect to the determination of the use tax, former section 6276 stated that the presumption that the sales price of a vehicle equalled the market value, as determined in calculating the vehicle license fee, could be rebutted “by evidence which established] that the sales price was other than such amount.” The section did not specify which party could rebut the presumption, nor did it suggest that the purchaser should be excused from the obligation to pay the use tax based on the actual sales price, when that figure was available. (§§ 6201 and 6011.) If the Legislature intended something so unusual as a presumption rebuttable by one party and not the other, we believe it would have said so. The conclusion appears clear, therefore, that both the state and the taxpayer were free to rebut the presumption by appropriate contrary evidence. Plaintiff, however, contends—and the Court of Appeal agreed—that the foregoing interpretation is contrary to the Legislature’s intent. Plaintiff points out that in 1971, the Legislature considered and rejected a bill which would have rewritten former section 6276 to require vehicle owners to report the sales price of their vehicle. The use tax would have been based on this reported sales price if it was greater than the market value of the vehicle, as determined in calculating the vehicle license fees. If the reported sales price was less than the market value used to determine license fees, the former rebuttable presumption would have applied unless the owner presented a bill of sale. The Legislature, cognizant of the fact that the statutory presumption was yielding less revenue than would a tax based on actual cost, declined to adopt the above described procedure. Instead, the Legislature amended former section 6276, retaining the rebuttable presumption but providing that if the presumption was utilized, the market value as determined for vehicle license fee purposes would be increased by 20 percent. From these circumstances, plaintiff would infer that the Legislature intended the presumption to govern in a significant number of cases, and was opposed to basing the tax in all cases on actual cost. We disagree. The Legislature retained not only the presumption equating sales price with the market value used to compute the vehicle license fee, but also the provision that this presumption could be rebutted by evidence establishing that the sales price was other than such amount. The Legislature, thus, left the law unchanged in this regard; sales price was presumed to equal the market value used to determine vehicle license fees, but this presumption could be rebutted either by the vehicle owner or the DMV. The Legislature’s unwillingness to rewrite former section 6276 to require the DMV to base use taxes on the actual cost of the vehicle does not necessarily evidence a legislative judgment that the DMV should be prevented from doing so if the DMV chose to rebut the presumption contained in former section 6276 with evidence of the actual cost of the vehicle. The Legislature’s actions are consistent with an intent to leave the matter within the discretion possessed by the DMV. Perhaps the Legislature anticipated that the presumption would govern in a significant number of cases, even though subject to rebuttal by either the state or the taxpayer. But if the presumption served only the goal of administrative convenience—and plaintiff suggests no plausible alternative purpose—then the Legislature may well have intended that the DMV have discretion to decide that the most convenient practice was one which required the registrant to present a certificate of cost. The circumstances that this practice would yield the greatest revenue, that it would avoid potentially unconstitutional discrimination between in-state and out-of-state purchases, that it would equalize the tax base for use tax and sales tax and that the Legislature subsequently repealed the presumption, further support the conclusion that the Legislature did not intend to bar the action taken by the DMV. Validity of the Class Claim The state contends this suit improperly was certified as a class action. As explained below, we do not reach this issue because we conclude that the class claim filed by Woosley was not authorized by statute. This court has held that a class action may be employed to seek refunds of sales and use taxes (Javor v. State Board of Equalization (1974) 12 Cal.3d 790, 797 [117 Cal.Rptr. 305, 527 P.2d 1153]), and has approved the use of class claims seeking damages from governmental entities for injuries caused by an act or omission of a public entity or its employee (City of San Jose v. Superior Court (1974) 12 Cal.3d 447 [115 Cal.Rptr. 797, 525 P.2d 701, 76 A.L.R.3d 1223]). Several decisions of the Court of Appeal have extended the holding in City of San Jose to permit the filing of class claims seeking tax refunds, reasoning by analogy to the claims statute construed in City of San Jose that the existing tax-refund statutes could and should be interpreted to authorize the filing of class claims. (Schoderbek v. Carlson (1980) 113 Cal.App.3d 1029, 1033 [170 Cal.Rptr. 400]; Lattin v. Franchise Tax Board (1977) 75 Cal.App.3d 377, 381 [142 Cal.Rptr. 130]; Santa Barbara Optical Co. v. State Bd. of Equalization (1975) 47 Cal.App.3d 244, 249 [120 Cal.Rptr. 609]; see also Javor v. State Bd. of Equalization (1977) 73 Cal.App.3d 939, 948 [141 Cal.Rptr. 226].) Apparently considering the question to be settled, the state has not raised the issue whether a class claim may be filed seeking refunds of vehicle license fees and use taxes. This court, however, never has considered that issue. Because of the general public importance of the issue, and because we had serious questions concerning the resolution of the matter, we requested supplemental briefing on this issue following oral argument. For the reasons that follow, we hold that the class claim filed in the present case was not authorized by the statutes governing claims for refunds of vehicle license fees and use taxes. Accordingly, that claim is valid only as to Woosley in his individual capacity, and the class in the present class action properly may include only persons who timely filed valid claims for refunds. Plaintiff contends that this court’s decision in City of San Jose v. Superior Court, supra, 12 Cal.3d 447 compels the conclusion that class claims may be employed to seek tax refunds. We disagree. City of San Jose held that a class claim could be filed pursuant to Government Code section 910, which governs claims seeking damages from governmental entities for injuries caused by an act or omission of the public entity or its employee. Government Code section 910 provides in part: “A claim shall be presented by the claimant or by a person acting on his or her behalf and shall show all of the following: [<¡[] (a) The name and post office address of the claimant. . . .” (Italics added.) In City of San Jose this court stated: “We conclude ‘claimant,’ as used in [Government Code] section 910, must be equated with the class itself and therefore reject the suggested necessity for filing an individual claim for each member of the purported class. To require such detailed information in advance of the complaint would severely restrict the maintenance of appropriate class actions—contrary to recognized policy favoring them. [Citations.] We do not believe the claims statutes were intended to thwart class relief. [Fn.]” (City of San Jose v. Superior Court, supra, 12 Cal.3d 447, 457.) Contrary to the line of Court of Appeal decisions cited above, we conclude, for the reasons that follow, that the holding in City of San Jose v. Superior Court, supra, 12 Cal.3d 447, should not be extended to include claims for tax refunds. The California Constitution expressly provides that actions for tax refunds must be brought in the manner prescribed by the Legislature. Article XIII, section 32, of the California Constitution provides in this regard: “After payment of a tax claimed to be illegal, an action may be maintained to recover the tax paid, with interest, in such manner as may be provided by the Legislature.” (Italics added.) This constitutional limitation rests on the premise that strict legislative control over the manner in which tax refunds may be sought is necessary so that governmental entities may engage in fiscal planning based on expected tax revenues. (See State Bd. of Equalization v. Superior Court (1985) 39 Cal.3d 633, 638 [217 Cal.Rptr. 238, 703 P.2d 1131].) Vehicle license fees and use taxes are excise taxes (Piazza Properties, Ltd. v. Department of Motor Vehicles (1977) 71 Cal.App.3d 622, 628 [138 Cal.Rptr. 357]), refunds of which fall within the ambit of article XIII, section 32 of the state Constitution. The Legislature has provided different methods for seeking refunds of vehicle license fees and use taxes. We turn first to the procedure which the Legislature has provided for seeking a refund of vehicle license fees. Section 10901 states: “Whenever the department [of motor vehicles] erroneously collects any license fee not required to be paid under this part, the amount shall be refunded to the person paying it upon application therefor made within three years after the date of the payment.” (See also Veh. Code, § 42232.) Vehicle Code section 42231 provides: “[T]he person who has paid, the erroneous or excessive fee or penalty, or his agent on his behalf, may apply for and receive a refund of the amount thereof as provided in this article . . . .” (Italics added.) “The legislative plan requires the filing of