§6004. Employer credit

A.(1) It is the intention of this Section to encourage the employment of previously unemployed Louisiana residents and recipients of Family Independence Temporary Assistance Program (FITAP) payments participating in Family Independence Work Program, the Louisiana FIND Work Program by providing an incentive to potential employers in the form of a credit against the state income and corporation franchise tax for the employment of each person and participant of Family Independence Work Program in a newly created full-time job. Therefore, a credit against the state income tax and corporation franchise tax is hereby granted for each new full-time job created by an employer after the employer has created a number of new full-time jobs which are in excess of five percent of the base as defined herein, which job employs a previously unemployed person. The "base" shall be the average full-time number of jobs reported by the employer to the administrator of the Louisiana Employment Security Law for the previous taxable period.

(2) The credit shall be five hundred forty dollars and shall be allowed against the income tax for the taxable period during which the new employee has completed one year of full-time service with the taxpayer or against the corporation franchise tax for the taxable period following the taxable period during which the new employee has completed one year of full-time service with the taxpayer. Only one tax credit shall be allowed for:

(a) Each previously unemployed person and only if such person was unemployed for at least an eight-week consecutive period prior to his employment.

(b) Each participant of Family Independence Work Program provided that the employer has not entered into a contract with the office of children and family services of the Department of Children and Family Services to reimburse the employer for providing training and additional supervision through the On-the-Job Training (OJT) Program to that employee.

(3) The credit shall only be allowed for employment of Louisiana residents who have resided in Louisiana for at least six months prior to such employment. To qualify for said credit, the employer shall obtain a notarized statement that he is in compliance with the provisions of this Section and shall furnish such statement to the secretary.

B.(1) The amount of the credit allowed for the taxable period shall be an amount equal to the sum of:

(a) A carryover of prior unused credits arising from taxable periods beginning on or after January 1, 1990, carried to such taxable period, plus

(b) The amount of the credit determined under Subsection A for the taxable period.

(2) If the sum of the amount of credits as determined under the provisions of Subsection B of this Section for the current taxable period exceeds the amount of taxes for which the credit is claimed, the excess shall be treated as a carryover credit and may be carried over for a maximum of five consecutive periods following the taxable period in which the credit originated. Such carryover credits are to be applied in reduction of the tax in the order of the taxable periods in which the credit originated, beginning with the credit for the earliest taxable period. The credit shall be in lieu of R.S. 47:287.748, 287.749, and 287.753, and R.S. 51:1787.

C. Commencing no later than January 31, 2016, the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Revenue and Fiscal Affairs shall review the credit authorized pursuant to the provisions of this Section to determine if the economic benefit provided by such credit outweighs the loss of revenue realized by the state as a result of awarding such credit. The House and Senate committees shall make a specific recommendation no later than March 1, 2017, to either continue the credit or to terminate the credit.

Acts 1991, No. 369, §1, eff. for taxable periods beginning on or after Jan. 1, 1992; Acts 1992, No. 786, §1; Acts 1997, No. 1172, §8, eff. June 30, 1997; Acts 2015, No. 125, §2, eff. July 1, 2015; Acts 2015, No. 357, §1, eff. June 29, 2015; Acts 2016, 1st Ex. Sess., No. 29, §2; Acts 2017, No. 400, §§1, 4, eff. June 26, 2017.