During October 2021, New York State (NYS) passed legislation that made participation in the NYS Secure Choice Savings Program (the “Program”) mandatory for certain employers. The Program is one of many state-facilitated savings programs that are being adopted in states across the country. These state-facilitated savings programs are designed to solve a simple, but not easily fixed problem: getting more people to save for retirement. 

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, both federal and state legislatures passed a series of legislation to inject funding into the economy and sought specifically to tailor programs to support small businesses within the United States. With the enactment of the COVID-19 Capital Costs Tax Credit Program, New York seeks to “provide financial assistance to economically harmed businesses to offer relief and reduce the duration and severity of the current economic difficulties” stemming from the pandemic.

People come to the United States seeking the American Dream. To go from rags to riches. To own your own business and excel in this open market economy. But at the same time, what is more American than taxes?

Historically and still today, the IRS requires that compensation paid to nonprofit executives be reasonable and not excessive. Up until now, tax-exempt organizations have not been subject to compensation limits on executive compensation; they have, however, been subject to the private inurement doctrine, intermediate sanctions, and excess benefit rules that impose an excise tax on nonprofit executives and managers who benefit from and knowingly participate in assigning compensation that exceeds the value of services performed. 

In part one of this article, we provided an overview of common types of credits and incentives and discussed how these incentives could benefit businesses and business owners. In part two, we will look at common New York State credits and incentives, and some considerations for claiming them.