Das Williams: Assembly passes tax relief for middle class families

Assemblymember Das Williams

Plan also Closes Tax Loophole and Helps Small Businesses

SACRAMENTO — Assembly Democrats and two Republican’s approved a plan on Sept 8 that includes an income tax break for working families and provides an incentive for job creation here in California, the office of Assemblymember Das Williams, D-Santa Barbara, reported on Friday.

The plan, part of Governor Brown’s California Jobs First initiative, will eliminate a “toxic tax loophole” that rewards businesses who move jobs out of state, and use that savings to give working families an income tax break; lower taxes for California manufacturers and provide more than $300 million in permanent tax relief to small businesses.

“You mean I can give the average resident of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties $1,000 more in their pockets by simply closing a tax loophole on out of state corporations; absolutely, that sounds like a no brainer to me,” Assemblymember Das Williams said in support of the measure.

By applying the Mandatory Single Sales Factor (SSF) to all businesses in California, it eliminates an outrageous tax incentive that encourages multi-state businesses to create jobs outside of the state. This move puts California-based businesses at a competitive advantage and encourages out-of-state businesses to locate jobs here.

The plan also would provide hundreds of millions in tax relief to businesses that purchase new manufacturing equipment by exempting start-ups in their first three years from the state portion of sales tax (3.94 percent) and provides an exemption of 1 percent for all other firms on manufacturing equipment purchases.

“Boosting job growth in California is a top priority, and this proposal is a critical step in making sure the state does everything it can to support local job creation,” Governor Jerry Brown said. “Our state has added 116,000 jobs since January, but we must do more to build economic momentum. This legislation would expand a currently existing job credit to make it more effective while adding new tax incentives for growth in the manufacturing sector.”

The bipartisan plan encompassed in AB 40x will help working families and infuses hundreds of millions of dollars into the California economy by increasing the standard deduction that individuals and couples can claim on their income tax returns for tax years beginning on and after January 1, 2012. Individuals can claim an additional $1,000 (putting the standard deduction at approximately $4,780) and couples can claim an additional $2,000 (bringing the standard deduction at approximately $8,540).

That reflects 27 percent growth in the standard deduction for personal income tax.

“For too long those in power have been looking out for corporate interests while working families continue to struggle. This is real tax relief for those people who may not be doing so well,” Williams said.

For more information, call James Joyce III at 805.483.9808 (o), 805.253.3139 (c)