NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A2958C
SPONSOR: Woerner TITLE OF BILL:
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
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
To enact the Local Journalism Sustainability Act, which will provide tax
credits to consumers for subscriptions to local news outlets and to news
organizations for the employment of local news journalists.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one provides the short title: the "Local Journalism Sustainabil-
ity Act."
Section two adds a new section 24-d to the tax law to establish a
payroll credit for an eligible news journalist employer for each calen-
dar quarter in an amount equal to fifty percent of wages paid by the
employer to news journalists; limits the amount of wages to be taken
into account for any one individual for any calendar quarter as no more
than twelve thousand. five hundred dollars; limits the allowable credit
to the first twenty calendar quarters beginning after the effective
date; permits an employer to opt out of this section as prescribed by
the commissioner; prohibits wages used to determine the credit under
this section from also being applied to determine any other credit;
defines "applicable percentage", "eligible news journalist employer",
"qualifying broadcast station", "news journalist", "qualified services",
"qualifying publication", "local community", and "disqualified organiza-
tion"; and limits the maximum amount of tax credits allowed in any
calendar year to one million dollars per eligible news journalist
employer.
Sections three, four, and five provide a business tax credit to eligible
news journalist employers and qualifying broadcast stations in the
amount computed as provided in section 24-d to the tax law.
Section six provides the effective date, the bill's application to cred-
its for tax years commencing on or after January 1, 2024, and the expi-
ration and repeal date of January 1, 2029; and authorizes the commis-
sioner, on or before the effective date, to add,, amend and/or repeal
any rule or regulation necessary to implement the bill.
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN ORIGINAL AND AMENDED VERSION (IF APPLICABLE):
Section two amends section 24-d of the tax law to conform the language
with the refundable tax credit described under sections three and four
of the bill.
JUSTIFICATION:
Since 2004, more than 20% of American newspapers have shut down. In
total they now employ half as -many journalists as they did 17 years
ago. This decline is most stark when looking at New York's weekly news-
papers, with 190 . of them closing shop in this time period.
The journalism sector provides a vital public service, and it also
provides many New Yorkers with jobs.. According to data from the Bureau
of Labor Statistics, as of May 2020, 5,920 New Yorkers were employed as
journalists, reporters and news analysts. That's more than any other
state in America.
This legislation is necessary to provide support for local news organ-
izations that employ community-based journalists, and it will reward
taxpayers who subscribe to local news .organizations. It will help New
Yorkers stay informed and engaged with what's going on in their communi-
ty.
PRIOR LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A.8585 of 2021-2022 (Woerner): Died in Ways and Means
S.7544 of 2021-2022 (Hoylman): Died in Budget and Revenue
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
To be determined
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
