§235-110.9 High technology business investment tax credit. (a) There shall be allowed to each taxpayer, subject to the taxes imposed by this chapter, a high technology investment tax credit that shall be deductible from the taxpayer's net income tax liability, if any, imposed by this chapter for the taxable year in which the credit is properly claimed. The tax credit shall be an amount equal to ten per cent of the investment made by the taxpayer in each qualified high technology business, up to a maximum allowed credit of $500,000 for the taxable year for the investment made by the taxpayer in a qualified high technology business.
(b) The credit allowed under this section shall be claimed against the net income tax liability for the taxable year. For the purpose of this section, "net income tax liability" means net income tax liability reduced by all other credits allowed under this chapter.
(c) If the tax credit under this section exceeds the taxpayer's income tax liability, the excess of the tax credit over liability may be used as a credit against the taxpayer's income tax liability in subsequent years until exhausted. All claims, including any amended claims, for tax credits under this section shall be filed on or before the end of the twelfth month following the close of the taxable year for which the credit may be claimed. Failure to comply with the foregoing provision shall constitute a waiver of the right to claim the credit.
(d) As used in this section:
"Qualified high technology business" means a business, employing or owning capital or property, or maintaining an office, in this State that:
(1) More than fifty per cent of whose total business activities are qualified research; provided that the business conducts more than seventy-five per cent of its qualified research in this State; or
(2) More than seventy-five per cent of its gross income is derived from qualified research; provided that the income is received from:
(A) Products sold from, manufactured in, or produced in the State; or
(B) Services performed in this State.
The term "qualified high technology business" does not include:
(1) Any trade or business involving the performance of services in the field of law, architecture, accounting, actuarial science, consulting, athletics, financial services, or brokerage services;
(2) Any banking, insurance, financing, leasing, rental, investing, or similar business; any farming business, including the business of raising or harvesting trees; any business involving the production or extraction of products of a character with respect to which a deduction is allowable under section 611 (with respect to allowance of deduction for depletion), 613 (with respect to basis for percentage depletion), or 613A (with respect to limitation on percentage depleting in cases of oil and gas wells) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(3) Any business operating a hotel, motel, restaurant, or similar business; and
(4) Any trade or business involving a hospital, a private office of a licensed health care professional, a group practice of licensed health care professionals, or a nursing home.
"Qualified research" means:
(1) The same as in section 41(d) of the Internal Revenue Code;
(2) The development and design of computer software using fourth generation or higher software development tools or native programming languages to design and construct unique and specific code to create applications and design databases for sale or license; or
(3) Biotechnology.
(e) This section shall not apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2005. [L 1999, c 178, §24; am L 2000, c 297, §8]