A sole proprietor employee tax credit and granting rule-making authority. (FE)

1. For the first taxable year during which the sole proprietor employs an eligible employee for that entire year, an amount equal to 100 percent of the wages paid that employee in that year or $10,000, whichever is less.

2. For the second taxable year during which the applicant employs an eligible employee for that entire year, an amount equal to 50 percent of the wages paid that employee in that year or $5,000, whichever is less.

3. For the third taxable year during which the applicant employs an eligible employee for that entire year, an amount equal to 25 percent of the wages paid that employee in that year or $2,500, whichever is less.

An employee is eligible under the bill if he or she is the first employee employed by the sole proprietor in a full-time job who is not the sole proprietor or a member of the sole proprietor's immediate family. The bill defines “full-time job" to mean a regular, nonseasonal full-time position in which an individual, as a condition of employment, is required to work at least 2,080 hours per year, including paid leave and holidays, and for which the individual receives pay that is equal to at least 150 percent of the federal minimum wage. Finally, the maximum amount of the credit that all sole proprietors may claim in all taxable years is $20,000,000. Under the bill, if in any taxable year the amount of the claims exceed the maximum allowable amount of $20,000,000, the Department of Revenue must prorate the amount that each taxpayer may claim.