Corona, NY–State Senator Jamaal Bailey and Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz today introduced the Open for Business Act, a bill designed to provide tax incentives to businesses for employing local residents in full-time or part-time positions for up to two years following the conclusion of the state disaster emergency. The program would be administered under the New York State Department of Labor and would commence after January 1st of the taxable year following the conclusion of the state disaster emergency.

According to the Department of Labor, over 1.6 million New Yorkers have filed for unemployment benefits and over $4.6 billion in benefits were distributed in just over two months. The COVID-19 recovery local employment tax credit program will be critical in helping New Yorkers get back on their feet and it incentivizes employers to hire and maintain a strong local workforce.

To qualify, a business (employer) must hire employees who meet certain requirements, including residing within 50 miles of the business and loss of their previous employment because of the COVID-19 outbreak. A qualifying business would receive a tax credit of up to two years as follows:

Tax credits for employees employed for up to a six-month period for each qualified employee

• $750 per month for a full-time employee, or
• $375 per month for a part time employee who works at least 20 hours per
  week.

Tax credits for employees employed for at least an additional six consecutive months (one-year total)

• $1,500 for each full-time qualified employee, or
• $750 for each part time employee who works at least 20 hours per week.

An additional tax credit for employees employed for at least an additional year (two years total)

• $1,500 for each full-time qualified employee, or
• $750 for each PT employee who works at least 20 hours per week.

“One of the core foundations in our communities is the small businesses that make up our neighborhoods. Throughout this pandemic, we have seen countless small businesses severely struggle to make ends meet. I am proud to introduce a bill with Assembly Member Catalina Cruz that assists not only small businesses, but local residents who have lost their jobs due to COVID. Our bill would provide tax credits to small businesses and incentivize them to hire locally. The only way we can come out of the pandemic successfully is to come together as one – community and businesses working together to achieve a common goal,”said State Senator Jamaal Bailey.

“New York’s workforce has been decimated by COVID-19. With almost two million people jobless and hundreds of thousands of businesses on the brink of closing, the financial impact will resonate across the state for years to come. We cannot sit back and allow our local workforce and small businesses – who make our communities what they are – to become lost to history. I am proud to introduce legislation that provides incentives for small businesses to re-open their doors, while ensuring their neighbors are able to provide for their families,” said Assemblywoman Catalina Cruz.