2023 New York Laws › COM - Economic Development Law › Article 20 - Empire State Jobs Retention Program › 424 - Application and Approval Process.

§ 424. Application and approval process. 1. A business enterprise must
submit  a  completed application as prescribed by the commissioner. Such
completed application must be submitted to the commissioner  within  (a)
one  hundred  eighty  days  of  the  declaration  of an emergency by the
governor in the county in which the business enterprise  is  located  or
(b)  one  hundred  eighty days of the enactment of this article, if such
date is  later  than  the  date  specified  in  paragraph  (a)  of  this
subdivision.
2. As part of such application, each business enterprise must:
(a) agree to allow the department of taxation and finance to share its
tax  information with the department. However, any information shared as
a result of this agreement shall not  be  available  for  disclosure  or
inspection under the state freedom of information law.
(b)  agree  to  allow  the  department  of  labor to share its tax and
employer information  with  the  department.  However,  any  information
shared  as  a  result  of  this  agreement  shall  not  be available for
disclosure or inspection under the state freedom of information law.
(c) allow the department and its agents access to any  and  all  books
and records the department may require to monitor compliance.
(d)  agree to be permanently disqualified for empire zone tax benefits
at any  location  or  locations  that  qualify  for  empire  state  jobs
retention  program  benefits  if  admitted  into  the  empire state jobs
retention program.
(e) provide the following information to the department upon request:
(i) a plan outlining the  schedule  for  meeting  the  jobs  retention
requirements  as  set forth in subdivision three of section four hundred
twenty-three of this article. Such plan must  include  details  on  jobs
titles and expected salaries;
(ii)  the  prior  three years of federal and state income or franchise
tax returns, unemployment insurance quarterly returns, real property tax
bills and audited financial statements; and
(iii) the employer identification or social security numbers  for  all
related  persons  to  the applicant, including those of any members of a
limited liability company or partners in a partnership.
(f) provide a clear and detailed presentation of all  related  persons
to  the  applicant  to  assure  the  department  that jobs are not being
shifted within the state.
(g) certify, under penalty of  perjury,  that  it  is  in  substantial
compliance  with all environmental, worker protection, and local, state,
and federal tax laws.
3. After reviewing a business enterprise's completed  application  and
determining  that  the  business enterprise will meet the conditions set
forth in subdivision three of section four hundred twenty-three of  this
article,  the  department  may  admit the applicant into the program and
provide  the  applicant  with  a  certificate  of  eligibility   and   a
preliminary  schedule  of  benefits  by  year  based  on the applicant's
projections as set forth in its application. This  preliminary  schedule
of  benefits  delineates  the maximum possible benefits an applicant may
receive.
4. In order to become a participant in the program, an applicant  must
submit  evidence that it satisfies the eligibility criteria specified in
section four hundred twenty-three of this article and subdivision two of
this section in such form  as  the  commissioner  may  prescribe.  After
reviewing  such evidence and finding it sufficient, the department shall
certify the applicant as a participant and issue to that  participant  a
certificate of tax credit for one taxable year. To receive a certificate
of  tax credit for subsequent taxable years, the participant must submit
to  the  department  a  performance  report   demonstrating   that   the

participant  continues  to satisfy the eligibility criteria specified in
section four hundred twenty-three of this article and subdivision two of
this section.
5.  A  participant  may  claim  tax  benefits  commencing in the first
taxable year that the business enterprise receives a certificate of  tax
credit  or  the first taxable year listed on its preliminary schedule of
benefits, whichever is later. A participant may claim such benefits  for
the  next  nine consecutive taxable years, provided that the participant
demonstrates  to  the  department  that  it  continues  to  satisfy  the
eligibility  criteria  specified in section four hundred twenty-three of
this article and subdivision two  of  this  section  in  each  of  those
taxable years.