Nicole Aimone, Editor-in-Chief
In the first legislative acts passed in nearly a year, Gov. Tony Evers signed two tax bills into law last week that will provide $480 million in tax relief to businesses and families that have been affected by COVID-19.
Assembly Bill 2, signed into law as Act 1, includes tax reforms and updates to align state tax code with federal changes that exclude forgive Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans from taxable state income. Along with many other tax code reforms for self-employed individuals, businesses and municipalities.
“I was proud to author this legislation which provides tax relief and tax reforms for the citizens of Wisconsin,” said Sen. Howard Marklein, an author of the bill. “Act 1 provides more than $400 million in tax relief. It also creates uniformity between the federal and state tax codes, allows self-employed people to subtract their medical care insurance costs and continues to update our statutes for the realities of e-commerce.”
The act also made state grants given to businesses and organizations throughout the pandemic exempt from taxable income.
Through these reforms and updates, the bill provides nearly $450 million in tax relief to businesses throughout the state, and nearly $30 million in tax relief for low-income families.
“This past year has been challenging and unrelenting for so many, but since the beginning of this pandemic, we’ve been committed to providing economic relief to the folks who’ve been affected by the pandemic,” said Evers. “We know business and families across Wisconsin need help now, so I’m proud to be able to deliver $480 million in tax relief for folks across our state.”
Evers also signed Assembly Bill 3 into law as Act 2, which simplifies tax rules for S corporations and partnerships.