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History
- Referred to investigations and government operations
- Referred to investigations and government operations
Full text
The text isn't available here yet. Check nysenate.gov.
Sponsor's memo
Title of bill
An act to amend the tax law, in relation to granting certain publishers of newspapers a credit against business corporation franchise and personal income taxes
Purpose
Grants a personal income and business franchise tax credits to publishers of newspapers that are published 5 or more days a week.
Summary of provisions
Section one adds a new subdivision 41 to section 210 of the tax law, credit for newspaper publication.
Section two adds a new clause (xxxi) to subparagraph (B) of paragraph 1 of subsection (i) of section 606 of the tax law.
Section three adds a new subsection (qq) to section 606 of the tax law, Newspaper publication credit.
Justification
One of the greatest fundamental rights that we have as Americans is the freedom of the press.The First Amendment of the United States Constitution states that "Congress shall make no law...abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press...". Without the First Amendment the press could not criticize government.
The First Amendment is at the core of our American values. The press reports to us on news that impacts us on a global, national, state and local scale. The best and strongest country is one that allows for the free exchange of ideas and facts. Freedom of the press is a right that needs to be protected and promoted not just in America but throughout the world.
Newspapers provide information that promotes a better quality of life by keeping the public informed of current events. Democracy is better served when there is oversight by newspapers across the state and nation. Lack of oversight can lead to an uninformed electorate and citizenry. Newspapers in New York State represent thousands of workers and they are what hold communities together. Newspapers are vital in informing the public and they reflect the values of America and New York State. Because of the valuable service newspapers provide to our citizens, this bill would give newspaper publishers, who publish at least five times a week, a 20% tax credit on their New York State income tax return.
Newspapers provide valuable community services by keeping the public informed of current issues affecting their daily lives. It is only fair to provide newspapers this incentive which will allow them to continue the valuable services they provide to our state and country.
"Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers, or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter."
- Thomas Jefferson, letter to Col. Edward Carrington, Jan. 16, 1787
Legislative history
New bill. FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
Undetermined.
Effective date
Immediately and shall apply to taxable years commencing on or after January 1, 2009.
Summaries, headlines and scores are AI-generated from the official bill text. How we score bills. Source: NYS Open Legislation.