Income taxes: credit: hiring.

The Personal Income Tax Law and the Corporation Tax Law allow various credits against the taxes imposed by those laws, including a credit for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2009, in the amount of $3,000 for each full-time employee hired by a qualified employer, with a maximum cumulative credit of $400,000,000 for all taxable years. Those laws define "qualified employer" as a taxpayer that employed 20 or fewer employees as of the last day of the preceding taxable year. This bill would, under both laws, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2012, redefine "qualified employer" to mean a disabled veteran business enterprise, a disadvantaged business enterprise, a microbusiness, or a small business, as defined. This bill would, for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2012, allow a credit in the amount of $4,500 for each net increase in full-time employees, who are paid qualified wages of less than $16 per hour and a credit in the amount of $9,100 for each net increase in full-time employees, who are paid qualified wages of $16 or more per hour, as provided. This bill would include a change in state statute that would result in a taxpayer paying a higher tax within the meaning of Section 3 of Article XIIIA of the California Constitution, and thus would require for passage the approval of 23 of the membership of each house of the Legislature. This bill would take effect immediately as a tax levy.