10
Jun
1999
The state Senate Wednesday passed a major tax-cut package and a budget bill that includes $782 million in funding to create jobs by investing in research, infrastructure, education, and worker re-training.
The Senate tax package includes:
- Cuts in taxes on utilities for generating, transmitting, and distributing electricity ($270 million).
- A sales tax exemption on broadcasters' investments in telecommunications equipment ($20 million).
- Tax cuts to give banks and insurers the same cuts other corporations got last year ($160 million).
- $160 million to expand the earned income tax credit to benefit low- and moderate-income workers.
- $11 to create an IRA-type account to enable individuals to save for the purchase of their first home.
- A deduction for college tuition expenses ($270 million).
- An increase, from 3.5 to 7 percent, in the amount of collected sales taxes that vendors may keep ($25 million).
- Elimination of the petroleum business tax on airline fuel and heating oil used for commercial purposes ($35 million).
- Repeal of the highway use tax ($80 million).
The Jobs 2000 program includes:
- Creation of an Office of Higher Education to focus solely on higher education and economic development programs, including technology transfer initiatives to improve the development of new technology in New York ($182 million).
- A new investment of $100 million, half from the private sector, for job training for incumbent workers, a top Council priority.
- A new effort to develop public water supplies for businesses and residences ($140 million). Ample water is critical in many high-tech industries, such as chip fabrication.
- A new $400 million investment in a venture capital fund to help start-up businesses acquire capital to nurture their enterprises.
Click here for the Senate press releases.