NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A517
SPONSOR: Woerner TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the tax law, in relation to providing a deduction
against adjusted gross income for dues paid by small businesses to cham-
bers of commerce
PURPOSE:
This legislation creates a credit in the amount paid as dues to a local
chamber of commerce when the dues are paid by a small business of fifty
employees or less.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 adds a new paragraph 48 to subsection (c) of Section 612 of
the tax law to allow a credit in the case when a taxpayer is a small
business, an amount equal to what was paid as dues to the local chamber
of commerce, as defined under section 1410 of the non-profit corporation
law. This section specifically prohibits any amount dedicated towards
lobbying from being deductible. This applies to businesses of fifty or
less employees.
Section 2 is the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Dues to chambers of commerce vary across New York State and while
membership in a Chamber includes numerous benefits for a small business,
often any amount can serve as a disincentive. Currently other states
allow for Chamber dues to be tax deductible. In New York we have a law
allowing union dues to be tax deductible. With so many small businesses
struggling, and being the backbone of our main streets, as well as the
State's economy, this legislation seeks to allow Chamber dues for small
businesses to be deductible to remove any disincentive in joining a
Chamber of Commerce.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
A.53 of 2023/24:Referred to Ways and Means. S.3001 of 2023/24: Referred
to Budget and Revenue.
A.598 of 2022: Referred to Ways and Means. S.114 of 2022: Referred to
Budget and Revenue.
2021: Reported and committed to Finance. A.10491 of 2020: Referred to
Ways and Means. S.7354 of 2020: Reported and committed to Finance.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to taxable years
beginning on or after January 1, 2027.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
517
2025-2026 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY(Prefiled)
January 8, 2025
___________
Introduced by M. of A. WOERNER -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Ways and Means
AN ACT to amend the tax law, in relation to providing a deduction
against adjusted gross income for dues paid by small businesses to
chambers of commerce
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subsection (c) of section 612 of the tax law is amended by
2 adding a new paragraph 48 to read as follows:
3 (48) In the case of a taxpayer who is a small business, an amount
4 equal to the amount paid by such taxpayer as dues to the local chamber
5 of commerce within which such business is located, provided that such
6 chamber of commerce is incorporated under section fourteen hundred ten
7 of the not-for-profit corporation law. The amount deductible pursuant to
8 this paragraph shall not include any portion of the amount of dues paid
9 by the taxpayer that are used or intended to be used for the purposes of
10 lobbying. For purposes of this paragraph, the term "small business"
11 shall mean a business with fifty employees or less.
12 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to taxable
13 years beginning on or after January 1, 2027.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD01399-01-5
