S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5068
 
                        2019-2020 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                               April 5, 2019
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by  Sens.  RANZENHOFER,  FUNKE,  GALLIVAN  -- read twice and
   ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee  on
   Investigations and Government Operations
 
 AN  ACT to amend the tax law, in relation to establishing a Hire-Now tax
   credit
 
   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  The tax law is amended by adding a new section 44 to read
 as follows:
   § 44. HIRE-NOW TAX CREDIT. (A) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT. A TAXPAYER,  WHICH
 IS SUBJECT TO TAX UNDER ARTICLE NINE-A OR TWENTY-TWO OF THIS CHAPTER AND
 WHICH CREATES A NEW JOB, SHALL BE ALLOWED A CREDIT AGAINST SUCH TAX. THE
 AMOUNT  OF  THE  CREDIT ALLOWED UNDER THIS SECTION SHALL BE EQUAL TO THE
 PRODUCT OF 6.85 PERCENT AND THE GROSS WAGES PAID FOR EACH NEW  EMPLOYEE.
 THE  CREDIT  SHALL  NOT  BE  MORE THAN FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS FOR ANY NEW
 EMPLOYEE FOR ONE FULL YEAR OF EMPLOYMENT; IF A  NEW  EMPLOYEE  HAS  BEEN
 HIRED  FOR  LESS  THAN A FULL TAX YEAR THIS AMOUNT SHALL BE PRORATED AND
 APPORTIONED TO EACH TAX YEAR BUT SHALL IN NO WAY DECREASE THE FULL THREE
 CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF CREDIT ELIGIBILITY. THE  TAXPAYER  MAY  CLAIM  THIS
 CREDIT  FOR EACH NEW EMPLOYEE FOR A PERIOD OF THREE CONSECUTIVE YEARS OF
 EMPLOYMENT.  THE TAXPAYER MAY OFFSET  QUARTERLY  ESTIMATED  TAX  RETURNS
 WITH THE AMOUNT OF THIS CREDIT EARNED IN ANY PREVIOUS QUARTER.
   (B)  UNEMPLOYMENT ENHANCEMENT. FOR CALENDAR YEARS TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-
 ONE AND TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-TWO IF A NEW EMPLOYEE  WAS  RECEIVING  UNEM-
 PLOYMENT  INSURANCE  BENEFITS  AT  THE TIME OF HIRE, AN ADDITIONAL THREE
 THOUSAND DOLLAR CREDIT WILL BE  ALLOWED  FOR  THE  FIRST  FULL  YEAR  OF
 EMPLOYMENT.
   (C)  DEFINITIONS.  AS  USED IN THIS SECTION, THE FOLLOWING TERMS SHALL
 HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   (1) "NEW EMPLOYEE" SHALL MEAN ANY FULL TIME EMPLOYEE THAT IS HIRED  BY
 THE  TAXPAYER  AFTER  JULY  FIRST,  TWO THOUSAND TWENTY AND BEFORE APRIL
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
              

                                                            LBD10855-01-9

 S. 5068                             2
 
 FIRST, TWO THOUSAND TWENTY-ONE, THAT CAUSES THE TOTAL NUMBER OF  EMPLOY-
 EES TO INCREASE ABOVE BASE EMPLOYMENT OR CREDIT EMPLOYMENT, WHICHEVER IS
 HIGHER.
   (2) "BASE YEAR" SHALL MEAN CALENDAR YEAR TWO THOUSAND NINETEEN.
   (3)  "BASE  EMPLOYMENT"  SHALL  MEAN  THE  AVERAGE NUMBER OF FULL TIME
 EMPLOYEES OR FULL TIME EQUIVALENT EMPLOYEES DURING THE BASE YEAR. FOR  A
 NEW BUSINESS, BASE EMPLOYMENT SHALL BEGIN AT ZERO.
   (4)  "CREDIT EMPLOYMENT" SHALL MEAN BASE EMPLOYMENT PLUS THE NUMBER OF
 NEW EMPLOYEES FOR WHICH A CREDIT IS EARNED FOR THE PRIOR TAX YEARS.
   (D) REPLACEMENT EMPLOYEES. IF ONE OR MORE NEW EMPLOYEES  FOR  WHICH  A
 CREDIT  WAS  EARNED LEAVES THE PAYROLL DURING THE SAME TAXABLE YEAR THAT
 AN INDIVIDUAL IS HIRED BY THE TAXPAYER TO WORK IN  THIS  STATE,  CAUSING
 THE  TAXPAYER'S  TOTAL  EMPLOYMENT TO EQUAL AN AMOUNT THAT IS ABOVE BASE
 EMPLOYMENT BUT AT OR BELOW THE COMPUTED CREDIT EMPLOYMENT FOR THE  TAXA-
 BLE  YEAR, THE CREDIT ELIGIBILITY PERIOD FOR THE INDIVIDUAL HIRED DURING
 THE TAXABLE YEAR SHALL BE THREE YEARS MINUS THE AMOUNT OF TIME  (ROUNDED
 TO  THE  NEXT  FULL MONTH) THAT THE TAXPAYER RECEIVED THE CREDIT FOR THE
 DEPARTING EMPLOYEE.
   (E) NO CREDIT SHALL BE ALLOWED UNDER THIS SECTION TO  A  TAXPAYER  FOR
 ANY  NEW  EMPLOYEE  IF  THE  TAXPAYER CLAIMS ANY OTHER CREDIT UNDER THIS
 ARTICLE FOR SUCH NEW EMPLOYEE WHERE THE BASIS OF SUCH OTHER CREDIT IS AN
 INCREASE IN EMPLOYMENT.
   § 2. Section 210-B of the tax law is amended by adding a new  subdivi-
 sion 53 to read as follows:
   53.  HIRE-NOW  TAX CREDIT. (A) ALLOWANCE OF CREDIT. A TAXPAYER WILL BE
 ALLOWED A CREDIT, TO BE COMPUTED AS PROVIDED IN  SECTION  FORTY-FOUR  OF
 THIS CHAPTER, AGAINST THE TAX IMPOSED BY THIS ARTICLE.
   (B)  APPLICATION  OF CREDIT. THE CREDIT ALLOWED UNDER THIS SUBDIVISION
 FOR ANY TAXABLE YEAR MAY NOT REDUCE THE TAX DUE FOR SUCH  YEAR  TO  LESS
 THAN  THE  HIGHER OF THE AMOUNTS PRESCRIBED IN PARAGRAPH (D) OF SUBDIVI-
 SION ONE OF SECTION TWO HUNDRED TEN OF THIS ARTICLE.   HOWEVER,  IF  THE
 AMOUNT  OF  CREDIT  ALLOWED  UNDER THIS SUBDIVISION FOR ANY TAXABLE YEAR
 REDUCES THE TAX TO SUCH AMOUNT, ANY AMOUNT OF CREDIT THUS NOT DEDUCTIBLE
 IN SUCH TAXABLE YEAR WILL BE TREATED AS AN  OVERPAYMENT  OF  TAX  TO  BE
 CREDITED  OR  REFUNDED  IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION ONE
 THOUSAND EIGHTY-SIX OF THIS CHAPTER. PROVIDED, HOWEVER,  THE  PROVISIONS
 OF  SUBSECTION  (C) OF SECTION ONE THOUSAND EIGHTY-EIGHT OF THIS CHAPTER
 NOTWITHSTANDING, NO INTEREST WILL BE PAID THEREON.
   § 3. Section 606 of the tax law is amended by adding a new  subsection
 (jjj) to read as follows:
   (JJJ) HIRE-NOW TAX CREDIT. (1) A TAXPAYER WILL BE ALLOWED A CREDIT, TO
 THE EXTENT ALLOWED UNDER SECTION FORTY-FOUR OF THIS CHAPTER, AGAINST THE
 TAX IMPOSED BY THIS ARTICLE.
   (2)  APPLICATION  OF CREDIT. IF THE AMOUNT OF THE CREDIT ALLOWED UNDER
 THIS SUBSECTION FOR ANY TAXABLE YEAR EXCEEDS THE TAXPAYER'S TAX FOR SUCH
 YEAR, THE EXCESS WILL BE TREATED AS AN OVERPAYMENT OF TAX TO BE CREDITED
 OR REFUNDED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE PROVISIONS  OF  SECTION  SIX  HUNDRED
 EIGHTY-SIX  OF THIS ARTICLE, PROVIDED, HOWEVER, THAT NO INTEREST WILL BE
 PAID THEREON.
   § 4. Subparagraph (B) of paragraph 1 of subsection (i) of section  606
 of  the  tax  law  is  amended  by adding a new clause (xliv) to read as
 follows:
 (XLIV) HIRE-NOW TAX CREDIT              AMOUNT OF CREDIT UNDER
 UNDER SUBSECTION (JJJ)                  SUBDIVISION FIFTY-THREE OF
                                         SECTION TWO HUNDRED TEN-B
   § 5. This act shall take effect immediately.