Senate committee hears bipartisan bill to raise New Hampshire R&D tax credit caps
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Summary
Senator Ruth Ward presented Senate Bill 276 to the Senate Ways and Means Committee, which would raise the state's R&D tax credit aggregate cap to $10 million and the per-filer cap to $100,000.
Senator Ruth Ward, prime sponsor of Senate Bill 276, told the Senate Ways and Means Committee the measure would increase New Hampshire's research-and-development tax credit limits.
"The aggregate of the tax credits issued by the commissioner to all tax base claiming the credit shall not exceed 10,000,000," Ward said during the committee's public hearing, noting the aggregate cap had been $7,000,000 and that the bill would raise the per-filer cap from $50,000 to $100,000.
The bill drew bipartisan backing from business and life-science groups. Mike Skelton, president and CEO of the Business & Industry Association of New Hampshire, said the tax credit has helped attract investment and higher-paying advanced-industry jobs, citing recent state job-growth statistics and a forthcoming report the association commissioned.
Val Zanchuk, president of GraphiCast, described how small and medium manufacturers use R&D credits to offset hours spent on tooling, process design and quality programming. "Every time we receive orders for those parts, we take what we learned during the last production run and try to reduce the time or improve the quality of the part," Zanchuk said, explaining that a small shop can dedicate two full-time positions and one part-time position to R&D work.
Connor, representing Pirouette, a life-science start-up developing a naloxone auto-injector, and Andrea Hechevarria of the New Hampshire Life Sciences Association both urged passage. Hechevarria cited a 2023 industry assessment that counted about 600 life-science companies and more than 11,000 jobs in the state and recommended expanding the credit to keep New Hampshire competitive for commercialization.
Committee members later moved the bill in executive session. The committee adopted a technical amendment requested by the Department of Revenue Administration to change the bill's effective date so it aligns with state fiscal and tax-year timing; the amendment sets the effective date to July 1, 2026, to match application and collection processes.
Supporters said the change would help startups bridge long development timelines and help smaller manufacturers invest in process improvements. No formal opposition spoke during the public hearing; written testimony and multiple witnesses were entered in support.
