A permanent tax break for businesses that hire unemployed veterans may soon be coming.
On Wednesday, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., announced she will be helping to make the work opportunity tax credit permanent for businesses that hire veterans. The tax credit was established last year, but will be expiring at the end of the year. Sen. Gillibrand said with 20 percent of young veterans under the age of 30 unemployed, the tax credit should be extended permanently.
''It is extremely disturbing when men and women get back from Afghanistan and don't have jobs,'' she said. ''No one works harder than these men and women.''
Sen. Gillibrand said by making the policy permanent it will not only help unemployed veterans, but it will help businesses. The policy states that businesses that hire unemployed veterans receive a 40 percent tax credit on the first $6,000 paid.
The tax credit is for veterans that have been out of the service for no more than five years. So far, more than 500 veterans across the state have been hired using the credit.
Sen. Gillibrand said extending the credit would enable more returning veterans an opportunity to find work as the economy improves and help those businesses that have committed to hiring recent veterans.
''Too many veterans are still coming home to a very bad job market and struggling to find work,'' she said. ''They fulfilled their duty to our country, and now it's time for us to fulfill our duty to them by making sure they have access to a good-paying job. The tax breaks we put in place are a win-win for businesses and veterans, and now we need to make them permanent so we can continue supporting businesses, create jobs and put more of our veterans to work as they come home to their families so they can succeed in the economy.''
Sen. Gillibrand said new estimates based on data from the state Department of Labor and the U.S. Census indicate that nearly 20 percent of veterans under the age of 30 are unemployed and more than 7 percent of all veterans across the state are unemployed. Nearly 8,000 New York veterans under the age of 30 are unemployed. In Western New York, nearly 900 veterans under the age of 30 are unemployed. In Chautauqua County, there are 598 veterans under the age of 30, with an estimated 117 unemployed.
''We cannot allow it (tax credit) to expire,'' she said. ''We need to use every tool available to us.''
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that was passed last year expanded the Work Opportunity Tax Credit to include new incentives for businesses to hire returning veterans and extended them through the end of 2010. To raise awareness of the tax credit, Sen. Gillibrand said she has been working closely with local Chambers of Commerce across the state to encourage that their member businesses use the tax credit and hire veterans returning home.