If an eligible business that has executed a special job creation agreement is a new business as such term is defined in this chapter, such eligible business shall enjoy, in addition to the incentives provided in § 11024c of this title that apply thereto, the following incentives:
(a) Income taxes.— The net income of the new business subject to regular taxation during the first year of operations, in accordance with an agreement shall be subject to a ten percent (10%) fixed income tax rate, or the lowest applicable rate under the Code at the option of the taxpayer. This tax shall apply retroactively to the first day of the taxable year in which the agreement is signed. The applicable tax rate during the taxable year following that in which the agreement is signed shall be fifteen percent (15%), or the lowest applicable rate under the Code, at the option of the taxpayer.
(b) Net operating loss deduction.— A new business operating under an agreement may deduct any net operating losses incurred during the first two (2) years of effectiveness of the agreement to reduce the income derived from the operations covered under the agreement during a period of ten (10) years.
(c) Provisional municipal license tax exemption.— A new business operating under an agreement shall be exempt from the payment of municipal license taxes during the two (2) fiscal years following the signing of the agreement. The agreement shall specify the fiscal years to which this exemption shall apply. The eligible business shall attach a copy of the agreement to the municipal license tax return of the years in which such exemption applies.
(d) Personal property exemption.— The eligible business shall enjoy a full property tax exemption on personal property during the two (2) fiscal years following the signing of the agreement. The agreement shall specify the fiscal years to which this exemption shall apply. The eligible business shall attach a copy of the agreement to the personal property tax return of the years in which such exemption applies.
(e) Wage reimbursement to certain new businesses.— Fifty percent (50%) of the federal minimum wage paid to eligible employees covered under the agreement shall be reimbursed to new businesses organized under §§ 4381 et seq. of Title 5, known as the “General Cooperative Associations Act,” and organized by public housing project residents. This reimbursement shall also be extended to new businesses in general with respect to wages paid to low-income persons who, at the time of hiring, were twenty-five years old or younger, provided that it is a eligible incremental job covered under the agreement. This reimbursement shall be obtained through the Job Promotion Bureau of the Department of Labor and Human Resources as provided under Act No. 52-1991, as amended. In addition, funds shall also be available for employee training under the Workforce Investment Act of 1998.
(f) Christmas bonus staggered payment.— A new business operating under an agreement shall not be subject to the Christmas Bonus minimum payment, as provided in §§ 504 et seq. of Title 29. In lieu thereof, any employer that employs sixteen (16) employees or more shall pay a minimum applicable Christmas Bonus of two hundred dollars ($200), in the first year of operations; four hundred dollars ($400), in the second year of operations; and six hundred dollars ($600), in the third year of operations. Any employer that employs fifteen (15) employees or less shall pay a minimum applicable Christmas Bonus of one hundred seventy-five dollars ($175), in the first year of operations; two hundred and twenty-five dollars ($225), in the second year of operations; and two hundred seventy-five dollars ($275), in the third year of operations. Any other exemptions and terms provided under § 501 et seq. of Title 29, shall apply to these new businesses, provided that they are not contrary to the minimum fixed in this subsection. A new business benefiting from these incentives may not file with the Secretary of Labor a Christmas Bonus payment exemption as provided in §§ 501 et seq. of Title 29, while enjoying the benefits of this chapter.
History —Jan. 10, 2013, No. 1, § 4.5.