A. Any taxpayer who files an individual New Mexico income tax return and is not a dependent of another taxpayer and is entitled to claim the federal welfare-to-work credit provided by 26 U.S.C. Section 51A with respect to a state-qualified employee in a state-qualified job may take a tax credit equal to fifty percent of the amount of the welfare-to-work credit claimed and allowed under 26 U.S.C. Section 51A with respect to that employee in that job.

B. To be eligible for the credit provided by this section, a taxpayer must be in compliance with the following provisions:

(1) the hiring of any state-qualified employee shall not result in the displacement of any currently employed worker or position, including partial displacement such as a reduction in the hours of nonovertime work, wages or employment benefits, or in any infringement of the promotional opportunities of any currently employed individual;

(2) the hiring of any state-qualified employee shall not impair existing contracts for services or collective bargaining agreements, and no employment under the terms of this act [Chapter 7, Article 2 NMSA 1978] shall be inconsistent with the terms of a collective bargaining agreement or involve the performance of duties covered under a collective bargaining agreement unless the employer and the labor organization concur in writing;

(3) a state-qualified employee may fill or perform the duties of an employment position only in a manner that is consistent with existing laws, personnel procedures and collective bargaining contracts;

(4) no state-qualified employee shall be employed or assigned:

(a) when any other individual is on layoff from the same or any substantially equivalent job;

(b) if the employer has terminated the employment of any regular employee or otherwise caused an involuntary reduction of its work force with the effect of filling the vacancy so created with a state-qualified employee; or

(c) to any position at a particular work site when there is an ongoing strike or lockout at that particular work site;

(5) state-qualified employees shall be paid a wage that is substantially like the wage paid for similar jobs with the employer with appropriate adjustments for experience and training but not less than the federal minimum hourly wage; and

(6) employers shall:

(a) maintain health, safety and working conditions not less than those of comparable jobs offered by the employer; and

(b) maintain standard and customary entry-level wages and benefits and apply historical and normal increases in wages and benefits appropriate for experience and training of the state-qualified employee.

C. For the purposes of this section:

(1) "high-unemployment county" means a county in which the unemployment rate as reported by the labor department exceeds ten percent in six or more months of the calendar year preceding the year for which the tax credit provided by this section is claimed;

(2) "state-qualified employee" means a "long-term family assistance recipient", as that term is defined in 26 U.S.C. Section 51A(c), who resides in a high-unemployment county during the period of employment for which the welfare-to-work credit provided by 26 U.S.C. Section 51A applies with respect to that employee; and

(3) "state-qualified job" means a job established by the taxpayer that:

(a) when first occupied by a state-qualified employee results in the total number of the taxpayer's employees exceeding the average number of the taxpayer's employees during the taxpayer's preceding tax year; or

(b) was a position previously filled by a state-qualified employee and was vacant prior to the hiring of the new state-qualified employee in that position.

D. The labor department shall determine whether the employee is a state-qualified employee and whether the job is a state-qualified job and, if the employee is a state-qualified employee and the job is a state-qualified job, certify that fact to the employer. The taxpayer claiming the tax credit provided by this section shall provide a copy of the certification with respect to each employee for which the tax credit is claimed.

E. By July 1, 1998 and by January 31 of each subsequent year, the labor department shall certify to the taxation and revenue department the high-unemployment counties for the preceding calendar year.

F. A husband and wife who file separate returns for a taxable year in which they could have filed a joint return may each claim only one-half of the tax credit provided by this section that would have been allowed on a joint return.

G. A taxpayer who otherwise qualifies may claim his pro rata share of the tax credit provided by this section with respect to state-qualified employees employed by a partnership or other business association of which the taxpayer is a member. The total tax credit claimed by all members of the partnership or association shall not exceed the amount of tax credit provided pursuant to Subsection A of this section with respect to each state-qualified employee for which the credit is allowed.

H. The tax credit provided by this section may only be deducted from the taxpayer's income tax liability. Any portion of the tax credit provided by this section that remains unused at the end of the taxpayer's taxable year may be carried forward for three consecutive taxable years.

History: Laws 1998, ch. 97, § 2.

Effective dates. — Laws 1998, ch. 97 contained no effective date provision, but, pursuant to N.M. Const., art. IV, § 23, was effective May 20, 1998, 90 days after the adjournment of the legislature.