The governor’s new tax credit package for businesses includes the California Competes Credit, a credit against corporate tax for California business owners who plan to grow or expand their business within the state. Any business can apply for the credit. It is available statewide for all industries. These tax credits are awarded through an application and negotiation process by Go-Biz, the state’s business arm.
Go-Biz has announced the following application periods for the credit for the 2015-2016 fiscal year. Below are the three application periods and the amount of money available for each application period:
- July 20, 2015 through August 17, 2015 ($75 million)
- January 4, 2016 through January 25, 2016 ($75 million)
- March 7, 2016 through March 28, 2016 ($50.9 million plus any remaining unallocated amounts from previous periods)
Of the total credit of $200.9 million to be awarded, 25% of that is reserved for small business. A small business is defined as one with under 2 million gross receipts in 2014.
These are short application periods; each is only three or four weeks long. It’s best to apply during the FIRST application period and then, if not selected, you may do a simple adjustment of the application online and be eligible for the next application period.
The minimum credit you may apply for is $20,000. The awards in 2014-2015 ranged from $15,000,000 to Tesla Motors, Inc. to $20,000 to a small business wanting to hire two additional employees. Over 200 companies were awarded credits!
The first application period is now open. That means that now is the time to get your questions answered about this valuable credit. LSL has the answers, so call now at 714.569.1000.
By: Carolyn A. Bryant
