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Senate Bill S4904

2025-2026 Legislative Session

Establishes a legal services veterans tax credit for attorneys who perform certain services for veterans and disabled veterans

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Current Bill Status - In Senate Committee Budget And Revenue Committee

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2025-S4904 (ACTIVE) - Details

Current Committee:
Senate Budget And Revenue
Law Section:
Tax Law
Laws Affected:
Amd §§210-B & 606, Tax L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:
2019-2020: S7826
2021-2022: S3981
2023-2024: S3593

2025-S4904 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Establishes a legal services veterans tax credit of up to $1,500 for any attorney who performs a minimum of fifty hours of pro bono legal services to a veteran or disabled veteran during a taxable year; provides that such services shall include, but not be limited to, veteran's benefits and appeals, military discharges and upgrades, public benefits, evictions and foreclosures, and consumer debt issues.

2025-S4904 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

2025-S4904 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf 

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   4904
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                             I N  S E N A T E
 
                             February 14, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by Sen. HARCKHAM -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
   printed to be committed to the Committee on Budget and Revenue
 
 AN ACT to amend the  tax  law,  in  relation  to  establishing  a  legal
   services  veterans  tax credit for attorneys who perform certain civil
   cases and services for veterans and disabled veterans

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Section  210-B  of the tax law is amended by adding a new
 subdivision 61 to read as follows:
   61. LEGAL SERVICES VETERANS TAX CREDIT. (A) GENERAL. A TAXPAYER  SHALL
 BE  ALLOWED  A  CREDIT,  TO BE COMPUTED AS PROVIDED IN THIS SUBDIVISION,
 AGAINST THE TAX IMPOSED BY THIS ARTICLE FOR ANY ATTORNEY WHO PERFORMS  A
 MINIMUM  OF  FIFTY HOURS OF PRO BONO LEGAL SERVICES FOR CIVIL CASES TO A
 VETERAN OR DISABLED VETERAN DURING A TAXABLE YEAR. SUCH  SERVICES  SHALL
 INCLUDE, BUT NOT BE LIMITED TO, VETERAN'S BENEFITS AND APPEALS, MILITARY
 DISCHARGES  AND  UPGRADES,  PUBLIC BENEFITS, EVICTIONS AND FORECLOSURES,
 AND CONSUMER DEBT ISSUES.
   (B) AMOUNT OF CREDIT. A CREDIT AUTHORIZED BY THIS  SECTION  SHALL  NOT
 EXCEED ONE THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS ANNUALLY.
   (C)  CARRYOVERS.  THE  CREDIT  ALLOWED  UNDER  THIS SUBDIVISION MAY BE
 CLAIMED AND IF NOT FULLY USED IN THE INITIAL YEAR FOR WHICH  THE  CREDIT
 IS  CLAIMED MAY BE CARRIED OVER, IN ORDER, TO EACH OF THE TEN SUCCEEDING
 TAXABLE YEARS. THE CREDIT AUTHORIZED BY THIS SUBDIVISION MAY NOT BE USED
 TO REDUCE THE TAX LIABILITY OF THE CREDIT CLAIMANT BELOW ZERO.
   (D) DEFINITIONS. AS USED IN  THIS  SUBDIVISION,  THE  FOLLOWING  TERMS
 SHALL HAVE THE FOLLOWING MEANINGS:
   (I)  "VETERAN"  SHALL  HAVE  THE  SAME MEANING AS SET FORTH IN SECTION
 EIGHTY-FIVE OF THE CIVIL SERVICE LAW.
   (II) "DISABLED VETERAN" SHALL HAVE THE SAME MEANING AS  SET  FORTH  IN
 SECTION EIGHTY-FIVE OF THE CIVIL SERVICE LAW.
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD09135-01-5
 S. 4904                             2

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