As proffered by Governor Andrew Cuomo in his proposed 2019 budget, payment of certain business tax credits, including those under the New York State Brownfield Cleanup Program (“BCP”), would be deferred for three years for those claiming more than a combined $2 million in such credits. For taxpayers with more than $2 million in credits in the 2019 and 2020 tax years, deferred credits would be allowed in tax years starting in 2021 and would only provide 50 percent of the deferred credits in 2021, 75 percent of the remaining credits in 2022 and the remainder in 2023. No interest would be paid on these deferred tax credits.

Early Saturday morning, New York State lawmakers approved a $168 billion budget for fiscal year 2019. The budget for fiscal year 2019, which began on April 1, 2018, does NOT include the controversial business tax credit deferral proposal.

The absence of the business tax credit deferral in the final budget is good news for brownfield developers and anyone else who has been counting on receiving their full BCP tax credits in the next two fiscal years. This should allow the BCP to remain in an acknowledged leadership position, as well as to continue to provide fiscal certainty and a strong incentive to develop contaminated sites across the State.