Small business stands to benefit.
Ahead of the Annapolis Preview and the beginning of legislative session in January, Gov. Larry Hogan announced a new 2016 tax relief program to the tune of $480 million.
“The proposals we are announcing today will deliver an additional $480 million in tax relief to those Marylanders who desperately need it most, and will put our administration on track to provide more than $1 billion in tax relief to people all across the state of Maryland,” Hogan said. “Reducing and eliminating taxes, tolls, and fees will not only help to create efficiencies and streamline state government – it also has a direct, dramatic, and positive impact on our state economy and the livelihoods of Maryland’s retirees, working families, and small businesses.”
The moderately good news for small business owners includes a reduction in the business filing fee from $300 to $250 for four years. “This proposal will benefit approximately 300,000 businesses, and will have a disproportionate impact on small businesses, eventually returning $164 million to taxpayers over the next five years,” according to a statement released by the governor’s office.
For small business owners in the manufacturing industry, new “Empowerment Zones” could also prove to be a benefit. For new manufacturers who set up shop in these high unemployment areas—in Western Maryland, the lower Eastern Shore and Baltimore—the state corporate income tax would be eliminated for their first 10 years of business.
