MichiganVotes Weekly Report: Juy 1, 2022

The Michigan Legislature has adjourned until July 20 after passing scores of bills deep into the night of June 30/July 1. Roll call tallies for all those votes have not yet been published, so this report describes a few of the bills introduced in this 101st Michigan Legislature to grant selective income and business tax credits to certain individuals and businesses. Next week's report will contain key roll call votes from this week’s sessions.

House Bill 6262: Give employers tax credits to subsidize workers’ college loans Introduced by Rep. Sarah Anthony (D), to give employers state business tax credits of up to $1,800 that would cover half of the contributions the employer makes to repaying the college loans of up to 20 employees. The amount the credit exceeds the employer’s tax liability would not be “refunded” (i.e. a cash subsidy) but could be “carrier forward” and used against up 10 years of future tax liability. The bill earmarks $1.5 million for the credits, payable on a first-come-first serve basis, with half reserved for smaller employers. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bill 6238: Authorize income tax credit for donating bloodIntroduced by Rep. Rachel Hood (D), to authorize an income tax credit of $25 for each time a taxpayer donates blood, up to $100 per tax year. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bill 6236: Give $1,000 to electric car buyersIntroduced by Rep. Samantha Steckloff (D), to authorize giving a $1,000 income tax credit to individuals who pay up to $80,000 to buy a car powered solely by electric batteries. If the credit exceeds the taxpayer’s annual tax bill the unused portion could be “carried forward” and applied against up to five years of future income tax liability. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

House Bill 6237: Authorize income tax credit for buying solar cellsIntroduced by Rep. Abraham Aiyash (D), to authorize an income tax credit for both businesses and individuals equal to 10% of the cost of a photovoltaic energy system. If the credit exceeds the taxpayer’s annual income tax bill the unused portion could be “carried forward” and applied against up to five years of future income tax liability. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.

Senate Bill 697: Give selective income tax credits for certain farm salesIntroduced by Sen. Kim LaSata (R), to authorize individual income tax credits of to $32,000 for an owner who sells a farm or other “agricultural assets” to a “beginning farmer” as defined in the bill, and smaller credits for renting-out the property or assets, subject to approval by specified state officials. Reported from committee to the full Senate, further action pending.

Senate Bill 862 and 863: Give $110 million annually in tax credits to some film producers Introduced by Sen. Adam Hollier (D) and Sen. Wayne Schmidt (R), to authorize giving up to $110 million annually in state income tax credits to certain film producers who do all or part of a production in Michigan. The amount that a credit exceeds a producer's tax liability could be carried forward and used to reduce taxes in future years. Provisions of the proposal are divided between Senate Bills 862 and 863, and House Bill 5724 and 5725. An earlier version of his program repealed in 2015 delivered more than $400 million state taxpayer dollars to Hollywood producers and others. Referred to committee, no further action at this time.