BILL NUMBER: S485
SPONSOR: OBERACKER
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the tax law, in relation to a tax credit for employment
of an individual who has successfully completed a judicial diversion
program or graduated from drug court
 
PURPOSE:
This bill provides a tax credit for employers who agree to hire individ-
uals who have either graduated from drug court or have successfully
completed a judicial diversion program.
 
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section one of the bill amends section 210-b of the tax law by adding a
new subdivision 59 to provide a tax credit for employers who hire indi-
viduals who have graduated from drug court or have successfully
completed a judicial diversion program, provided that the individual
works at least 35 hour per week and has been employed for at least one
year. The credit would be three thousand dollars per hired individual
for the first year the individual is employed and one thousand dollars
for the second year.
Sections two and three make corresponding changes to section 606 of the
tax law. Section 4 is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Drug courts and judicial diversion programs have proven to be an
extremely effective alternative to incarceration for individuals suffer-
ing from substance abuse. A total of 30,000 individuals successfully
completed drug courts and judicial diversion programs statewide. Through
drug court/judicial diversion, individuals are closely supervised and
receive intensive treatment for their addictions. Both programs have
proven to reduce costs, reduce crime rates, reunite families and,
perhaps most importantly, save lives.
The genesis for this proposal came directly out of one of the forums
held by the New York State Senate Task Force on Heroin and Opioid
Addiction. For individuals in the recovery community, it is important
that support services are in place when their treatment is completed so
that they may begin to rebuild their lives. A critical piece of the
rebuilding process is the ability to find gainful employment. Getting
individuals in recovery back into the workforce will help them to become
productive members of society, which will in turn make them less likely
to relapse. One of the challenges, however, is convincing employers to
take a chance on someone who has a history of addiction and hire indi-
viduals in recovery. A tax credit will provide the necessary incentive
to employers to hire individuals in recovery who have successfully
completed either a drug court or judicial diversion program.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S.2198 of 2023-2024
S.5358 of 2020-2021
S. 2076 of 2017-2018
S.2346 of 2015-2016
S.7668 of 2014 -2015
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
To be determined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall apply to taxable years
beginning on and after January 1, 2026 and shall apply to those employ-
ees hired after this act shall take effect.

Statutes affected:
S485: 210-B tax law, 606 tax law, 606(i) tax law