Market Assistance

Business Incentives

New York is a great State, with beautiful and plentiful natural resources, a diverse and educated population, and direct access to expansive markets throughout the Northeast, the United States and
the world. It serves as the center of the global economy. It is for these reasons and more that Empire State Development (ESD), New York’s economic development agency, welcomes the chance to show
investors that New York would be a great location for a new or expanding business.

New York State has a variety of incentives: there are tax credits, low-interest loans and grants to name a few. Eligibility, applicability, and incentives are determined on a case-by-case basis. We encourage those considering an expansion into New York to visit ESD’s website to learn more about potential state economic development opportunities.

NYS Governor and State legislators are committed to making the state a good choice for an expansion project. State corporate income tax on upstate businesses is 0%. Other tax incentives are also available; for example: Investment Tax Credit (ITC) – Credit equals 5% of investment in buildings and tangible personal property, acquired by purchase, with a useful life of four years or more and used in production, and is refundable to new businesses; Employment Incentive Credit (EIC) – credit, based on the same qualifying investment for the ITC, equal to 1.5% to 2.5% of investment, based on increased employment over the year prior to the investment. They have also instituted a property tax cap to encourage localities to limit local tax increases. And our partners at the local level also provide aid to economic development projects.

Excelsior Jobs Program
The Excelsior Jobs Program provides job creation and investment incentives to firms in such targeted industries as agriculture and manufacturing. Firms that create and maintain new jobs or make significant financial investment are eligible to apply for up to four new, fully refundable, tax credits:

Firms in the Excelsior Jobs Program may qualify for four new, fully refundable tax credits. Businesses claim the credits over a 10-year period. To earn any of the following credits, firms must first meet and maintain the established job and investment thresholds outlined in Program Eligibility below:

The Excelsior Jobs Tax Credit: A credit of up to 6.85 percent of wages per new job to cover a portion of the associated payroll cost.
The Excelsior Investment Tax Credit: Valued at two percent of qualified investments.
The Excelsior Research and Development Tax Credit: A credit of 50 percent of the Federal Research and Development credit up to three six percent of research expenditures in NYS.
The Excelsior Real Property Tax Credit: Available to firms locating in certain distressed areas (see Investment Zone list below) and to firms in targeted industries that meet higher employment and investment thresholds (Regionally Significant Project).

For more information go to: http://esd.ny.gov/BusinessPrograms/Excelsior.html

Grant Funds (chosen based on project specifics)
Another program based on qualifying capital investment and job creation and/or
retention is via grant funds.

Grant funds can assist with construction, expansion and rehabilitation of facilities;
and acquisition of machinery and equipment. Funds can be used for:
Real Estate and Land Acquisition
Demolition
Construction and Renovations
Site and Infrastructure
Machinery and Equipment
Construction Related Planning and Design
Soft Costs, etc.

For more information go to: https://esd.ny.gov/doing-business-ny.

Job Development Authority (JDA) Direct Loan Program
This program provides Direct Loans for the growth of manufacturing and other eligible businesses within New York State by assisting in financing a portion of the cost of acquiring and renovating existing buildings or constructing new buildings (“Real Estate” projects) or for purchasing Machinery & Equipment
(“M&E” projects).

In most cases, JDA Loans can be for up to 40% of the total project cost of Real Estate projects or Machinery & Equipment projects. The combination of a bank loan and a JDA Loan allows up to 90% financing of a
project. Typical financing structure:

50% Bank Loan
40% JDA Loan
10% Borrower Equity

A JDA Real Estate Loan is normally a second mortgage loan, subordinate to a first-mortgage loan provided by a bank; Machinery & Equipment Loans are secured by a first lien, co-equal with the bank’s lien, on the M&E being financed.

Real Estate project costs include the cost of an existing building and renovations, purchase of land and construction of a new building and soft costs normally associated with a real estate transaction.

M&E project costs include the cost of the machinery and its delivery, installation costs solely attributable to the machinery being purchased and soft costs related to the Machinery & Equipment acquisition.

For more information go to: https://esd.ny.gov/businessprograms/jdadirectloanprogram.html

Re-Charge NY - New York Power Authority
For many businesses, low-cost power represents a significant opportunity. Almost all of the utilities in New York offer discounts on delivery to new manufacturers choosing to invest or grow in the State. In addition, the New York Power Authority’s ReCharge NY Program can allocate supplies of cleaner, less expensive power to qualified businesses across the State for up to seven years. ReCharge NY applications are accepted on an on-going basis via the Consolidated Funding Application.

For more information go to: https://www.nypa.gov/innovation/programs/recharge-ny

Local Assistance
Almost all will negotiate PILOTs (payments in lieu of taxes), and can offer sales tax exemptions for M&E and infrastructure going into new business operations, and a mortgage recording tax exemption.

Procurement Assistance

New York's Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTAC) provide free contract counseling to assist firms in selling to the military, federal, state and local governments.

PTAC’s support to businesses includes registration in systems such as the System for Award Management (SAM), identification of contract opportunities, help in understanding requirements and in preparing and submitting bids. PTACs are the bridge between buyer and supplier, bringing to bear their knowledge of both government contracting and the capabilities of contractors to maximize fast, reliable service to our government with better quality and at lower costs. Learn more at https://www.sba.gov/tools/local-assistance/ptac.

Contact the PTAC closest to your location:

North Country PTAC