Written by Rob Lillpopp on February 18, 2010 – 7:13 am
Christian Livermore of the Times Herald-Record writes - “Sen. Chuck Schumer met with Orange County business leaders and unemployed workers Wednesday to discuss a jobs proposal up for debate in the Senate next week that would reward businesses with an upfront tax break for hiring unemployed workers.
“It’s not a panacea, but it could help,” Schumer said at the Orange County Business Accelerator in New Windsor.
Under the proposal, co-sponsored by Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, any private-sector company that hires a worker who has been unemployed for at least 60 days wouldn’t have to pay the 6.2 percent Social Security payroll tax on that employee for 2010. If the company keeps the worker for 53 consecutive weeks, it would get a $1,000 credit on its 2011 tax return. The Social Security trust fund would be made whole with spending cuts elsewhere in the budget by 2015. If a business hired a worker at $30,000 a year, that business would save $1,860.
Schumer said the proposal could create up to 3 million jobs, at a cost of $15 billion.”