Nanticoke, October 26, 2022 – State Senator John Yudichak (I-Luzerne/Carbon) and State Senator Lisa Baker (Luzerne/Wyoming/Susquehanna/Wayne/Pike) announced today that new jobs and more investment will be coming to northeastern Pennsylvania after the Senate voted to create and expand tax credit programs to support targeted investments in key industries.
House Bill 1059 would make new resources available for job growth under the newly established Pennsylvania Economic Development for a Growing Economy (PA EDGE) tax credit program. The program will be made up of four components to attract major new investments to Pennsylvania communities.
A key component of the House Bill 1059 legislation is the increase of the cap of the Local Resource Manufacturing Tax Credit Program from $26.6 million to $56.6 million annually, while ensuring tax credits remain available for construction of a smaller project facility in the near future. The new tax credits are intended to continue to build on Pennsylvania’s success in bringing high-quality jobs to the state.
Act 66, the Local Resource Manufacturing Tax Credit Program was sponsored by Senator Yudichak and State Representative Aaron Kaufer (R-Luzerne) and was enacted into law in 2020 to provide tax credits for petrochemical and fertilizer manufacturing within the Commonwealth.
With today’s passage of House Bill 1059, the Local Resource Manufacturing Tax Credit legislation will now fall under the PA EDGE package and will provide $115 million in new tax credits annually and features the following parameters:
- Expands the existing tax credit from $26,666,668 to $56,666,668 for petrochemical and fertilizer manufacturing.
- The taxpayer that qualifies for the smaller tax credit must make a $400 million capital investment and create 800 new and permanent jobs.
- The taxpayer that qualifies for the larger tax credit must make a $1 billion capital investment and create 1800 new and permanent jobs.
“The package of tax credit expansion bills passed today will help to continue to build on the historic economic growth we are experiencing here in northeastern Pennsylvania and will set the stage for transformative economic growth across a wide array of industries throughout the Commonwealth,” said State Senator Yudichak. “Specifically, the $30 million increase of the cap with the Local Resource Manufacturing Tax Credit Program will help secure good-paying and family-sustaining jobs for Pennsylvanians. The PA EDGE legislation passed today invests in the working families of Pennsylvania.”
Even before today’s passage of the expansion of the program, the Local Resource Manufacturing Tax Credit Program was already making a significant impact as it led to Nacero Inc. committing to build a new $6 billion lower carbon gasoline manufacturing facility in northeastern Pennsylvania.
“This legislation is one more step in the direction of bringing a generational investment to Luzerne County,” said State Representative Kaufer. “Nacero offers the single greatest economic opportunity our region has ever seen and will make northeastern Pennsylvania a major hub in the clean energy revolution.”
“This tax credit program is an exciting initiative that represents a tremendous opportunity for continued economic advancement and job expansion across northeastern Pennsylvania,” said State Senator Lisa Baker. “We must ensure good, family-sustaining jobs are accessible throughout our region, while pursuing new ways to foster greater workforce development.”
“I applaud Senator Yudichak’s efforts along with the entire NEPA Delegation of Senators and Representatives in tonight’s bipartisan support for new PA EDGE Tax Credit Bill,” said Warren Faust, President, Northeast Pennsylvania Building and Construction Trades Council. “The historic PA EDGE Tax Credit is another step in making sure we can attract projects like Nacero, that the Northeastern Pennsylvania Building & Construction Trades Skilled Members are ready to build. The tax credit also advances core labor issues, like prevailing wage rates, and positions Pennsylvania to secure more than 200 million construction hours for the Pennsylvania Building Construction Trade Unions on projects that will transform Pennsylvania communities with thousands of jobs.”
State Senators David Argall, John Gordner and Marty Flynn and State Representatives Robert Schnee, Eddie Day-Pashinski, Mike Carroll, Karen Boback and Gerald Mullery were all instrumental in the passage of the PA EDGE legislation.