NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A797
SPONSOR: Gunther TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the tax law, in relation to providing that excess
investment tax credit amounts may be refundable to operators of a farm
operation
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To allow farmers to receive the investment tax credit as a fully refund-
able credit.
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Amends the tax law to provide that, as it applies to farm operations,
the investment tax credit shall become a refundable credit.
JUSTIFICATION:
This state is home to some 38,000 farms encompassing roughly 7.8 million
acres of cropland, pasture and woodlands from Erie County to Suffolk
County. These farms produce nearly $3.1 billion annually in direct
economic output and probably double or triple that in indirect economic
benefits with the farming and food industry employing over 425,000
people. Given the enormous economic impact that agriculture has on the
economy of this state we must do everything we can to ensure that our
farmers survive.
As part of that, when farmers make long term investments in their oper-
ations they are, often times, eligible for the investment tax credit
(ITC). As it currently stands, however, unlike the agricultural school
tax credit, the investment tax credit is not refundable - so if a farmer
has no taxable income, he or she cannot receive the benefit of the ITC.
To remedy this and to assist our farmers with continuing to make invest-
ment in their agri-enterprises, this bill would simply provide that
farmers could receive the ITC as a fully refundable credit just as they
do the school tax credit. By making this small change our farmers, over-
all, could receive a large and needed benefit that would enable them to
continue to update, modernize and invest in their farms.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
2021-22: A68 referred to Ways & Means/S3639 referred to Budget & Revenue
2019-20: A3528 referred to Ways & Means
2017-18: A884 referred to Ways & Means/S1446 referred to Government
Operations
2009-10: A1088A referred to Ways & Means/52431A referred to Government
Operations
2007-08: A1233B referred to Ways & Means/S2036A passed Senate
2005-05: A9297 referred to Ways & Means/S7164 referred to Government
Operations
2015-16: A1854 referred to Ways & Means
2013-14: A1620 referred to Ways & Means
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately, and shall be deemed to have been
in full force and effect on and after January 1, 2023.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
797
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
January 11, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. GUNTHER, LUPARDO, COOK, BENEDETTO, STECK, JONES,
BLANKENBUSH, FRIEND, PALMESANO, BRABENEC, MILLER, LEMONDES -- read
once and referred to the Committee on Ways and Means
AN ACT to amend the tax law, in relation to providing that excess
investment tax credit amounts may be refundable to operators of a farm
operation
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision 1 of section 210-B of the tax law is amended by
2 adding a new paragraph (e-1) to read as follows:
3 (e-1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subdivision, for
4 taxable years beginning on or after January first, two thousand twenty-
5 three, if the credit allowed under this subdivision is greater than the
6 tax due in any taxable year for a taxpayer whose primary source of
7 income is derived from operating a farm operation, such taxpayer may
8 elect to treat the amount by which such credit exceeds such tax due as
9 an overpayment of tax to be refunded in accordance with the provisions
10 of section ten hundred eighty-six of this chapter. For purposes of this
11 paragraph, the term "farm operation" shall have the same meaning as such
12 term is defined in subdivision eleven of section three hundred one of
13 the agriculture and markets law.
14 § 2. Subsection (a) of section 606 of the tax law is amended by adding
15 a new paragraph 5-a to read as follows:
16 (5-a) Notwithstanding any other provision of this subsection, for
17 taxable years beginning on or after January first, two thousand twenty-
18 three, if the credit allowed under this subsection is greater than the
19 tax due in any taxable year for a taxpayer whose primary source of
20 income is derived from operating a farm operation, such taxpayer may
21 elect to treat the amount by which such credit exceeds such tax due as
22 an overpayment of tax to be refunded in accordance with the provisions
23 of section six hundred eighty-six of this article. For purposes of this
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD03019-01-3
A. 797 2
1 paragraph, the term "farm operation" shall have the same meaning as such
2 term is defined in subdivision eleven of section three hundred one of
3 the agriculture and markets law.
4 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately, and shall be deemed to
5 have been in full force and effect on and after January 1, 2023.
