(a) As used in this Code section, the term:

(1) "Employer" means an enterprise or organization, whether corporation, partnership, limited liability company, proprietorship, association, trust, business trust, real estate trust, or other form of organization, and its affiliates, which is registered and authorized to use the federal employment verification system known as "E-Verify" or any successor federal employment verification system and is engaged in or carrying on any business activities within this state.

(2) "Full-time job" means employment which:

(A) Is located in this state;

(B) Involves a regular work week of 30 hours or more;

(C) Has no predetermined end date; and

(D) Pays at or above the average hourly wage of the county with the lowest average hourly wage in the state, as reported in the most recently available annual issue of the Georgia Employment and Wages Averages Report of the Department of Labor.

(3) "Qualified parolee" means an individual who has been granted parole in accordance with Code Section 42-9-45 within 12 months preceding his or her date of hire for a full-time job.

(b)

(1) For the period beginning on or after January 1, 2017, and before January 1, 2020, an employer that employs a qualified parolee in a full-time job for at least 40 weeks during a 12 month period shall be eligible for an income tax credit in the amount of $2,500.00 for each qualified parolee so employed against the tax imposed under this article during such 12 month period; provided, however, that a qualified parolee first employed in a full-time job by such employer before January 1, 2017, shall not qualify.

(2) An employer shall only be eligible to receive credits provided by this subsection in an amount up to $50,000.00 per taxable year.

(3) An employer shall only be eligible to receive the credit provided by this subsection once per individual.

(c) In no event shall the credit provided by subsection (b) of this Code section for a taxable year exceed the employer's income tax liability. Any unused portion of the credit provided by subsection (b) of this Code section shall be permitted to be carried forward and applied to the employer's tax liability for the subsequent three years. The credit provided by subsection (b) of this Code section shall not be applied against the employer's prior years' tax liabilities.

(d) On or before September 1 of 2018, 2019, and 2020, the commissioner shall issue a report to the chairpersons of the Senate Finance Committee and the House Committee on Ways and Means concerning the tax credit created by this Code section, which shall include the following statistics for the preceding taxable year:

(1) The total number of employers that claimed a credit provided by this Code section; and

(2) The number and total value of all credits earned and all credits applied during such tax year pursuant to this Code section.

(e) The commissioner shall promulgate rules and regulations and forms necessary to implement and administer the provisions of this Code section.