HARRISBURG, March 18, 2008 – Senator Wayne D. Fontana (D-Allegheny) joined with other legislators and the CompetePA Coalition at a news conference in Harrisburg today to generate support for Senate Bill 1229, the High-Tech & Manufacturing Stimulus Act.
The bill is designed to help Pennsylvania compete successfully for new jobs and investments by addressing business tax competitiveness problems.
“We’ve talked a lot about the need for economic stimulus in this country and this Commonwealth,” Fontana said. “This legislation should be part of any discussion and solution because it will grow our economy by maintaining jobs, creating new ones, and making Pennsylvania more competitive with the states around us. Resolving issues with the Corporate Net Income Tax (CNIT) and the Net Operating Loss (NOL) carryover is a significant step forward for businesses in PA.”
Fontana said that changing the tax treatment of the CNIT and the NOL allows Pennsylvania companies to compete successfully for new jobs and investment. The Brookline Democrat said that this is an issue of great interest to technology and manufacturing firms in Western Pennsylvania.
Senate Bill 1229 would gradually adjust the apportionment formula for the CNIT so that it is based exclusively on a corporation’s sales. The “Single Sales Factor” weights sales to encourage companies to increase capital investment and employees in Pennsylvania. The bill would also phase out the NOL cap that currently limits the ability of companies to offset their income with losses each year.
“Only New Hampshire and Pennsylvania place restrictions on net loss carry over,” Fontana said. “Our state economy has experienced growth in the past few years, but that growth has slowed. I believe the best way to revive our economy is to improve the tax climate so that business can create more jobs and new economic development.”
Fontana sponsored the bill along with Sen. Pat Browne (R-Lehigh). The measure enjoyed bipartisan support when it was introduced in 2007. It was unanimously reported from the Senate Finance Committee in December.
Senate Bill 1229 is now in the Senate Appropriations Committee awaiting action.