Bill Text: NY S00625 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Provides a one-year payroll tax credit for compensation of journalists; sets a maximum amount of the credit for journalist employers and a maximum amount of the credit statewide; provides for the repeal of such provisions upon the expiration thereof.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 25-4)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2024-04-11 - PRINT NUMBER 625D [S00625 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-S00625-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         625--C

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                     January 5, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by  Sens.  HOYLMAN-SIGAL, ADDABBO, ASHBY, BORRELLO, BRESLIN,
          BROUK, CLEARE, COMRIE, COONEY, HARCKHAM,  HINCHEY,  JACKSON,  KENNEDY,
          LIU,  MANNION,  MYRIE,  PALUMBO,  RIVERA,  SALAZAR,  SERRANO, SKOUFIS,
          STAVISKY -- read twice and ordered printed, and  when  printed  to  be
          committed  to  the  Committee  on  Budget  and  Revenue  --  committee
          discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
          to said committee  --  committee  discharged,  bill  amended,  ordered
          reprinted  as amended and recommitted to said committee -- recommitted
          to the Committee on Budget and Revenue in accordance with Senate  Rule
          6,  sec. 8 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as
          amended and recommitted to said committee

        AN ACT to amend the tax law, in relation  to  providing  a  payroll  tax
          credit  for compensation of journalists; and to provide for the repeal
          of such provisions upon expiration thereof

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1.  This  act  shall  be known and may be cited as the "local
     2  journalism sustainability act".
     3    § 2. The tax law is amended by adding a new section 24-d  to  read  as
     4  follows:
     5    §  24-d. Payroll credit for compensation of journalists. (a) In gener-
     6  al.  An eligible news journalist employer which is subject to tax  under
     7  article  nine-A  or twenty-two of this chapter shall be allowed a credit
     8  against such tax, to be computed as provided in this section,  for  each
     9  calendar  quarter  an amount equal to the applicable percentage of wages
    10  paid by such employer to news journalists for such calendar quarter.
    11    (b) Limitations.  (1) The amount of wages paid  with  respect  to  any
    12  individual which may be taken into account under subdivision (a) of this
    13  section  during  any  calendar  quarter  by the eligible news journalist
    14  employer shall not exceed twelve thousand five hundred  dollars.  Credit
    15  is  allowed  for  individuals paid in excess of this amount but shall be

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD02644-10-4
        S. 625--C                           2

     1  limited to a portion of the  wages  paid  up  to  twelve  thousand  five
     2  hundred dollars per quarter.
     3    (2)  The provisions of this section shall only apply to the first four
     4  calendar quarters beginning after the effective date of this section.
     5    (3) This section shall not apply with respect  to  any  eligible  news
     6  journalist employer for any calendar quarter if such employer elects (at
     7  such  time  and in such manner as the commissioner may prescribe) not to
     8  have this section apply.
     9    (4) Any wages taken into account in  determining  the  credit  allowed
    10  under  this  section  shall  not  be  taken into account for purposes of
    11  determining any other credit allowed under this chapter.
    12    (5) The credit allowable under this section shall be allowable  for  a
    13  period  of  one  year from the effective date of this section. No credit
    14  shall be allowed under this section for any amount paid or  incurred  by
    15  the  taxpayer  in  a taxable year commencing after the close of the one-
    16  year period. No credit shall be  allowed  under  this  section  for  any
    17  portion  of an amount paid or incurred by the taxpayer in a taxable year
    18  for any wages that extend beyond the close of the one-year period begin-
    19  ning on the effective date of this section.
    20    (c) Definitions. As used in this section, the  following  terms  shall
    21  have the following meanings:
    22    (1) "Applicable percentage" means fifty percent.
    23    (2) (A) "Eligible news journalist employer" means, with respect to any
    24  calendar quarter, any employer which: (i) is a qualifying publication or
    25  a qualifying broadcast station; (ii) employs news journalists; and (iii)
    26  employs a total of one hundred employees or fewer.
    27    (B)  All  persons treated as a single employer under subsection (a) or
    28  (b) of section 52 of the Internal Revenue Code of  1986,  or  subsection
    29  (m) or (o) of section 414 of such Code, shall be treated as one employer
    30  for  purposes  of this paragraph; provided that each FCC licensed broad-
    31  cast station or qualifying publication which serves  a  separate  market
    32  shall  be  treated as a separate and single news journalist employer for
    33  the purposes of this tax credit.
    34    (3) (A) "Qualifying broadcast station"  means,  with  respect  to  any
    35  calendar quarter, any employer which:
    36    (i)  provides  local  community  news,  which  is broadcast during the
    37  calendar quarter and has been broadcast during each of the four calendar
    38  quarters preceding such calendar quarter;
    39    (ii) owns or operates a broadcast station, as defined by section three
    40  of the federal communications act of 1934;
    41    (iii) is not a disqualified organization;
    42    (iv) did not derive more than fifty percent of its gross receipts  for
    43  such calendar quarter from disqualified organizations; and
    44    (v)  discloses  its  ownership to the public at such times and in such
    45  manner as identified by the commissioner.
    46    (B) For purposes of this paragraph each FCC licensed broadcast station
    47  serving a separate market shall be treated as a separate and single news
    48  journalist employer.
    49    (4) "News journalist" means, with respect to any eligible  news  jour-
    50  nalist for any calendar quarter, any full time employee who (A) provides
    51  qualified services for an average of not less than thirty hours per week
    52  for  each  week  during  which such employee is employed by the eligible
    53  news journalist employer during the calendar quarter,  and  (B)  resides
    54  within  the  designated  broadcast  market  or  fifty miles of the local
    55  community with respect  to  the  qualifying  publication  or  qualifying
        S. 625--C                           3

     1  broadcast  station  with  respect  to  which  the qualified services are
     2  provided.
     3    (5)  "Qualified  services"  means services which consist of gathering,
     4  preparing, directing the recording of, producing,  collecting,    photo-
     5  graphing,    recording,    writing,    editing, reporting, presenting or
     6  publishing original news for dissemination to the local community.
     7    (6) "Qualifying publication" means, with respect to any calendar quar-
     8  ter, any print or digital publication:
     9    (A) which provides local community news, which is published during the
    10  calendar quarter and has been published during each of the four calendar
    11  quarters preceding such calendar quarter;
    12    (B) is not a disqualified organization;
    13    (C) did not derive more than fifty percent of its gross  receipts  for
    14  such calendar quarter from disqualified organizations;
    15    (D)  which  is  covered by media liability insurance for such calendar
    16  quarter; and
    17    (E) which publishes the owner's name pursuant to section three hundred
    18  thirty of the general business law, provided that a digital  publication
    19  shall publish the information required by such section on the website of
    20  such publication.
    21    (7) (A) "Local community" means, with respect to any qualifying publi-
    22  cation, a geographically contiguous area that does not exceed the bound-
    23  aries of:
    24    (i)  the  metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area, as defined by
    25  the federal Office of Management and Budget,  in  which  the  qualifying
    26  publication is primarily distributed;
    27    (ii)  if such qualifying publication is not primarily distributed in a
    28  metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area, the county in which  such
    29  qualifying publication is primarily distributed; or
    30    (iii) if such qualifying publication is not primarily distributed in a
    31  metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area or a county, the state.
    32    (B) A digital publication shall be considered to be primarily distrib-
    33  uted  in  the  area  where  such publication is intended to be primarily
    34  consumed.
    35    (8) "Disqualified organization" means:
    36    (A) any organization described in section 501(c)(4)  of  the  internal
    37  revenue code and exempt from tax under section 501(a) of such code;
    38    (B)  any organization described in section 527 of the internal revenue
    39  code; or
    40    (C) any organization that is controlled, directly  or  indirectly,  by
    41  one  or  more organizations described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of this
    42  paragraph.
    43    (d) Maximum amount of credits.  The  maximum  amount  of  tax  credits
    44  allowed  under  this  section,  subdivision sixty of section two hundred
    45  ten-B and subsection (w) of section six hundred six of this  chapter  in
    46  any  calendar  year  shall  be two hundred thousand dollars per eligible
    47  news journalist employer. The maximum  amount  of  tax  credits  allowed
    48  under  this  section, subdivision sixty of section two hundred ten-B and
    49  subsection (w) of section six  hundred  six  of  this  chapter  for  all
    50  taxpayers in the state is twenty million dollars.
    51    (e)   Administration.   The   commissioner  shall  issue  such  forms,
    52  instructions, regulations, and guidance as are necessary:
    53    (1) to allow the advance payment of the credit under  subdivision  (a)
    54  of  this  section,  subject to the limitations provided in this section,
    55  based on such information as the commissioner shall require;
        S. 625--C                           4

     1    (2) to provide for the reconciliation of such advance payment with the
     2  amount advanced at the time of filing the return of tax for the applica-
     3  ble calendar quarter or taxable year; and
     4    (3)  with  respect  to the application of the credit under subdivision
     5  (a) of  this  section  to  third-party  payors  (including  professional
     6  employer  organizations,  certified professional employer organizations,
     7  or agents under section 3504 of the  Internal  Revenue  Code  of  1986),
     8  including  regulations  or  guidance  allowing  such  payors  to  submit
     9  documentation necessary to substantiate the eligible employer status  of
    10  employers that use such payors.
    11    (f)  Treatment  of  deposits. The commissioner shall waive any penalty
    12  under this chapter for any failure to make a deposit of  any  applicable
    13  employment  taxes  if  the commissioner determines that such failure was
    14  due to the reasonable anticipation of  the  credit  allowed  under  this
    15  section.
    16    (g)  Cross-references.  For  application of the credit provided for in
    17  this section, see the following provisions of this chapter:
    18    (1) article 9-A: section 210-B: subdivision 60.
    19    (2) article 22: section 606: subsections (i) and (w).
    20    § 3. Section 210-B of the tax law is amended by adding a new  subdivi-
    21  sion 60 to read as follows:
    22    60.  Payroll  credit for compensation of journalists. (a) Allowance of
    23  credit. A taxpayer who is eligible pursuant to section twenty-four-d  of
    24  this  chapter  shall  be  allowed a credit to be computed as provided in
    25  such section against the tax imposed by this article.
    26    (b) Application of credit. The credit allowed under  this  subdivision
    27  for  any taxable year shall not reduce the tax due for such year to less
    28  than the amount prescribed  in  paragraph  (d)  of  subdivision  one  of
    29  section  two hundred ten of this article; provided, however, that if the
    30  amount of the credit allowable under this subdivision  for  any  taxable
    31  year  reduces  the  tax to such amount or if the taxpayer otherwise pays
    32  tax based on the fixed dollar minimum amount, the excess shall be treat-
    33  ed as an overpayment of tax to be credited  or  refunded  in  accordance
    34  with  the provisions of section one thousand eighty-six of this chapter;
    35  and provided, further, that the provisions of subsection (c) of  section
    36  one  thousand  eighty-eight of this chapter notwithstanding, no interest
    37  shall be paid thereon.
    38    § 4. Section 606 of the tax law is amended by adding a new  subsection
    39  (w) to read as follows:
    40    (w)  Payroll  credit for compensation of journalists. (1) Allowance of
    41  credit. A taxpayer who is eligible pursuant to section twenty-four-d  of
    42  this  chapter  shall  be  allowed a credit to be computed as provided in
    43  such section against the tax imposed by this article.
    44    (2) Application of credit. If the amount of the credit allowable under
    45  this subsection for any taxable year exceeds the taxpayer's tax for such
    46  year, the excess shall be treated as an overpayment of tax to be credit-
    47  ed or refunded as provided in section six  hundred  eighty-six  of  this
    48  article; provided, however, that no interest shall be paid thereon.
    49    §  5. Subparagraph (B) of paragraph 1 of subsection (i) of section 606
    50  of the tax law is amended by  adding  a  new  clause  (li)  to  read  as
    51  follows:
    52  (li) Payroll credit for              Amount of credit for the sum of
    53  compensation of journalists          payroll credit for compensation
    54  under subsection (w)                 of journalists under subdivision
    55                                       sixty of section
    56                                       two hundred ten-B
        S. 625--C                           5

     1    §  6.  This  act  shall take effect immediately and shall apply to tax
     2  years commencing on and after January 1, 2024; provided that:
     3    (a) this act shall expire and be deemed repealed January 1, 2029; and
     4    (b)  the  expiration and repeal of this act shall not affect the proc-
     5  essing or allowance of any tax credit provided in this act for  any  tax
     6  year commencing prior to January 1, 2029.
     7    Effective  immediately,  the  addition, amendment and/or repeal of any
     8  rule or regulation necessary for the implementation of this act  on  its
     9  effective date are authorized to be made and completed on or before such
    10  date.