Portman Amendment Incentivizing Employers to Hire Long-Term Unemployed Ohioans Included in Year-End Tax Extenders Bill

Washington, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-Ohio), a member of the Senate Finance Committee, announced that his amendment to the tax extenders bill that would make long-term unemployed Americans eligible for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) was included in the end-of-year tax extenders package. Currently, the WOTC provides an employer tax credit of between $1,200 and $9,600 per employee for hiring and retaining veterans, ex-felons, the disabled, summer youth employees, and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, and Supplemental Security Income recipients. Portman’s amendment adds to this a $2,400 credit for first year wages paid to the long-term unemployed.

“I am pleased that my amendment that was reported out of the Senate Finance Committee was included in the year-end tax package because it will encourage businesses to hire long-term unemployed Ohioans, helping them get back on their feet,” said Portman.  “Six years after the recession was declared over, more than 2 million Americans have been unemployed 27 weeks or longer – and even that excludes the approximately 6 million Americans who say they want a job but are not counted as unemployed because they have given up searching.  This provision creates an incentive for employers to hire those folks, the very people who have the most trouble finding work.”

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