Maryland manufacturers could soon receive some tax relief, thanks to a bill Gov. Larry Hogan signed into law last month.
The bill, called The More Jobs for Marylanders Act of 2017, provides sales tax refunds, state property tax credits, relief from filing fees, and a 5.75 percent credit against income tax for wages paid for new manufacturers creating jobs over the next 10 years. There would be a cap on the income and sales tax breaks—$10 million per year statewide. The bill would also allow companies to write off the cost of capital purchases in one year thanks to accelerated depreciation and would allow some existing manufacturers to qualify for the state’s income tax credit.
In order to receive these benefits, the manufacturers are required to offer employees programs that would help them improve job skills. The law offers scholarships for those workers and institutes an annual $1 million spending mandate to fund the program.
And while the original bill applied to “distressed counties,” including Baltimore and several in both Western Maryland and on the Eastern Shore, the final version allows the state Commerce Department to select three more counties for eligibility. Ultimately, Gov. Hogan says, the legislation is designed to incentivize and encourage manufacturers to create thousands of jobs in the areas of the state that need them the most.
