Schumer vows to save tax credits for companies that hire veterans

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Tuesday that he hopes to use the lame-duck session of Congress to extend a tax credit that companies can use when they hire veterans, which will otherwise expire at the end of the year.

The Returning Heroes and Wounded Warriors Tax Credit, which was signed into law a year ago, gives companies tax breaks of up to $9,600 for each veteran hired. In remarks at a company in the Southern Tier of New York, Schumer said an extension is needed in light of the large number of veterans who are still having trouble finding work.

"Renewing the veterans' tax credits isn't just the smart thing to do for manufacturers and other companies in the Southern Tier and across the country, it's the right thing to do to honor the sacrifices made by our heroes in uniform," he said. "Our veterans have spent months and even years of their lives protecting our freedom, and I am going to fight to renew these tax breaks so that veterans don't spend the same amount of time in the unemployment line."

Current law allows a $2,400 tax credit for each veteran hired that has been looking for work for up to six months, and $5,600 for veterans who have been looking longer. Hiring longer-term unemployed vets with disabilities can net a company a $9,600 tax break.

The tax break was passed in 2011 as part of a bill that also repealed a requirement that the government withhold 3 percent of all payments to government contractors in an effort to boost tax collections.

The tax break was paid for by extending for five years a fee that is charged to veterans for a home mortgage program. Schumer did not say Tuesday how he might propose to pay for another extension.

In 2011, the Senate approved the bill in a 95-0 vote, and the House approved it 422-0.

---