Representative Adriano Espaillat announced today that the IRS will continue to provide tax credits to help local small businesses cover the costs of providing paid sick and family leave for workers through September.
Along with using the leave to care for themselves and family who are sick, workers can also use leave to get their COVID vaccinations and take time off to recover from any temporary side effects from the shot.
Research has shown that states, where employees gained access to paid sick leave through this tax credit, experienced a slow-down in the spread of COVID.
“Small businesses are the stalwart of our economy and were hit especially hard by the pandemic,” said Rep. Espaillat. “As communities recover, we must ensure small businesses receive the support necessary to get back on track. This tax credit for small business owners helps their bottom lines, the health and well-being of their employees, and confidence that our community will crush this virus and continue to grow our economy by keeping paychecks in pockets, small businesses open and workers safe.”
Thanks to the American Rescue Plan Rep. Espaillat helped pass, employers with fewer than 500 employees may receive up to $17,110 per employee to provide employees with up to 10 days of paid sick leave and up to 12 weeks of paid family leave, from April 1 through September 30, 2021.
Certain self-employed individuals in similar circumstances are entitled to similar credits as are schools, public hospitals and other state and local government employers.
Businesses can access the advanceable, refundable tax credit in real-time by reducing their amounts they set-aside to pay payroll taxes and employee withholding, and then claim any excess on their quarterly tax filings or request for an advance payment from the IRS.
Roughly 6 million businesses and more than 30 million workers are eligible for this credit.
Businesses can find instructions for how to claim their credit HERE.
Representative Espaillat is the first Dominican American to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives and his congressional district includes Harlem, East Harlem, West Harlem, Hamilton Heights, Washington Heights, Inwood, Marble Hill and the northwest Bronx.
First elected to Congress in 2016, Representative Espaillat is serving his third term in Congress. Representative Espaillat currently serves as a member of the influential U.S. House Committee on Appropriations responsible for funding the federal government’s vital activities.
He is also a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC), where he serves as the Second Vice Chair and is a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, where he serves as Deputy Whip.
Representative Espaillat also currently serves as a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus. To find out more about Rep. Espaillat, visit online at https://espaillat.house.gov/
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