Bill would let some tier 6 businesses pay to elect agreement rules

The proposed text lets a taxpayer elect to apply its section 77-5723 rules to an active tier 6 project agreement. The option covers a tier 6 project agreement that is still active when the act takes effect. The taxpayer must make a one-time election within the Tax Commissioner’s deadline and pay a $90,000 fee. Without the election, the version of section 77-5723 in effect before the act takes effect would continue to apply to the agreement. The election must be made once, within the time set by the Tax Commissioner after the act takes effect.

The proposed text states deadlines for a taxpayer to meet project employment and investment targets. These deadlines apply to projects under the Nebraska Advantage Act, with timing depending on the project tier and, for some tier 6 projects, when the Tax Commissioner approved the project. For a tier 5 project following a tier 2 large data center project, the investment target has a separate deadline: before the end of the fourth year after the tier 2 project’s sales tax exemption period ends. The text gives an unclear deadline for tier 6 projects submitted and approved on or after December 1, 2020; see warning. The deadline is before the end of the stated year after the year the application was submitted: the fourth year for tier 1 and 3 projects, and tier 6 projects approved before December 1, 2020; the sixth year for tier 2, 4, and 5 projects.