SALT LAKE CITY — Utah lawmakers are considering a bill that would create $30 million in tax credits to businesses providing jobs for people looking for higher pay who are veterans, disabled or have been convicted of a crime.
The Senate Business and Labor Committee voted 5-2 in favor of SB196, the Employment Advantage Act.
Ryan Dressler, with Advantage Capital, said the bill is designed to get people who are out of the workforce to a place where they can earn a living wage and take advantage of the high quality of life in Utah. He said the money would go back to the state if the predetermined number of jobs are not created.
But Heather Williamson, of Americans for Prosperity Utah, said the state is already thriving and the tax breaks are counterproductive and unnecessary. She said Forbes has rated Utah the best state for business and Utah leads the nation in job growth and unemployment rates.
"Why should Utah spend millions of dollars in taxpayer money for a job creation program in a state that, by nearly all measures, doesn't need it," Williamson said.
The sponsor of the bill, Sen. Curt Bramble, R-Provo, thanked Williamson for her comments and said the statistics she shared supported the concept of his bill as they are the result of similar incentives.
"It's been programs like this that have put Utah No. 1 for the last 11 years," Bramble said.
Ben Hart, deputy director at the Governor's Office of Economic Development, said this bill would help to fill gaps the market is not fixing.
"We, always, only believe in an incentive where there is a market failure. We've got a market failure here where we're still seeing a lot of these people who are not able to take advantage of the prosperity," Hart said.
Hart said now is the right time for the bill and it is the right approach to help those in the Utah economy flourish.
The bill will now go to the full Senate for consideration.
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