Fattman files bill to let corporations claim credit on first $500,000 of revenue

Ryan C. Fattman, a legislator from the Worcester and Hampden district, filed a petition in the Massachusetts General Court on Jan. 14, 2025, seeking to let business corporations claim a credit against their Chapter 63 excise tax equal to up to the first $500,000 of revenue earned during a taxable year.

The bill, filed as Senate docket No. 683 and labeled Senate No. 1979, would insert a new Section 38NN into Chapter 63 of the General Laws. The proposed language says a business corporation “shall be allowed a credit against its tax liability imposed under this chapter equal to not more than the first $500,000 of revenue earned by said corporation during the taxable year for which the tax is due.” The bill also specifies that the credit “shall not reduce the excise to an amount less than the amount due under subsection (b) of section 39 of this chapter.”

The measure is presented in the filing as “An Act stimulating small business investment.” The filing notes similar matter filed in the prior session as Senate No. 1805 of 2023–2024. The text in the filing records the bill sponsor and district but does not include debate, committee referral, votes, or an implementation timetable.

If enacted, the change would modify state excise computations in Chapter 63 by creating a dollar-limited credit that applies to a corporation’s first $500,000 of revenue for the taxable year, subject to the statutory floor established by subsection (b) of section 39. The filing does not define eligibility criteria beyond the term “business corporation” as used in the chapter, nor does it specify how the credit would be administered or whether regulations would follow.

The document in the filing packet does not record any formal action on the measure beyond the petition itself.