Section 701.53.11. Additional deduction for wages paid or accrued for work done in Iowa by certain individuals.

For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 1984, a taxpayer which is considered to be a small business corporation, as defined by subrule 53.11(2), is allowed a deduction for 50 percent of the first 12 months of wages paid or accrued during the tax years for work done in Iowa for employees first hired on or after January 1, 1984.

A handicapped individual domiciled in this state at the time of hiring.

An individual domiciled in this state at the time of hiring who meets any of the following conditions:

        1.            Has been convicted of a felony in this or any other state or the District of Columbia.

        2.            Is on parole pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 906.

        3.            Is on probation pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 907 for an offense other than a simple misdemeanor.

        4.            Is in a work release program pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 904.

An individual, whether or not domiciled in this state at the time of the hiring, who is on parole or probation and to whom the interstate probation and parole compact under Iowa Code chapter 913 applies.

For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 1989, a taxpayer which is considered to be a small business corporation, as defined by subrule 53.11(2) is allowed a deduction for 65 percent not to exceed $20,000 of the first 12 months of wages paid or accrued during the tax year for work done in Iowa for employees first hired after January 1, 1989, who meet the above criteria.

       53.11(1) The additional deduction shall not be allowed for wages paid to an individual who was hired to replace an individual whose employment was terminated within the 12-month period preceding the date of first employment. However, if the individual being replaced left employment voluntarily without good cause attributable to the employer or if the individual was discharged for misconduct in connection with the individual’s employment as determined by the Iowa division of job service of the department of employment services, the additional deduction shall be allowed.

The determination of whether an individual left employment voluntarily without good cause attributable to the employer or if the individual was discharged for misconduct is a factual determination which must be made on a case-by-case basis.

       53.11(2) The term “small business corporation” includes the operation of a farm but does not include the practice of a profession. The following conditions apply for the purpose of determining what constitutes a small business corporation.

        a.           A small business corporation shall not have had more than 20 full-time equivalent positions during each of the 26 consecutive weeks within the 52-week period immediately preceding the date on which the individual for whom an additional deduction for wages is taken was hired. Full-time equivalent position means any of the following:

        1.            An employment position requiring an average work week of 40 or more hours;

        2.            An employment position for which compensation is paid on a salaried full-time basis without regard to hours worked; or

        3.            An aggregation of any number of part-time positions which equal one full-time position. For purposes of this subrule each part-time position shall be categorized with regard to the average number of hours worked each week as a one-quarter, half, three-quarter, or full-time position, as set forth in the following table:

	Average Number of Weekly Hours	Category
	More than 0 but less than 15	¼
	15 or more but less than 25	½
	25 or more but less than 35	¾
	35 or more	1 (full-time)

        b.           A small business corporation shall not have more than $1 million in annual gross revenues or after July 1, 1984, $3 million in annual gross revenues or as the average of the three preceding tax years. “Annual gross revenues” means total sales, before deducting returns and allowances but after deducting corrections and trade discounts, sales taxes and excise taxes based on sales, as determined in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.

        c.           A small business corporation shall not be an affiliate or subsidiary of a business which is dominant in its field of operation. “Dominant in its field of operation” means having more than 20 full-time equivalent employees and more than $1 million of annual gross revenues or after July 1, 1984, $3 million of annual gross revenues or as the average of the three preceding tax years. “Affiliate or subsidiary of a business dominant in its field of operations” means a business which is at least 20 percent owned by a business dominant in its field of operation, or by partners, officers, directors, majority stockholders, or their equivalent, of a business dominant in that field of operation.

        d.           “Operation of a farm” means the cultivation of land for the production of agricultural crops, the raising of poultry, the production of eggs, the production of milk, the production of fruit or other horticultural crops, grazing or the production of livestock. Operation of a farm shall not include the production of timber, forest products, nursery products, or sod and operation of a farm shall not include a contract where a processor or distributor of farm products or supplies provides spraying, harvesting or other farm services.

        e.           “The practice of a profession” means a vocation requiring specialized knowledge and preparation including but not limited to the following: medicine and surgery, podiatry, osteopathy, osteopathic medicine and surgery, psychology, psychiatry, chiropractic, nursing, dentistry, dental hygiene, optometry, speech pathology, audiology, pharmacy, physical therapy, occupational therapy, mortuary science, law, architecture, engineering and surveying, and accounting.

       53.11(3) Definitions.

        a.           The term “handicapped person” means any person who has a physical or mental impairment which substantially limits one or more major life activities, has a record of such impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment.

The term handicapped does not include any person who is an alcoholic or drug abuser whose current use of alcohol or drugs prevents the person from performing the duties of employment or whose employment, by reason of current use of alcohol or drugs, would constitute a direct threat to the property or the safety of others.

        b.           The term “physical or mental impairment” means any physiological disorder or condition, cosmetic disfigurement, or anatomical loss affecting one or more of the following body systems: neurological; musculoskeletal; special sense organs; respiratory, including speech organs; cardiovascular; reproductive; digestive; genitourinary; hemic and lymphatic; skin and endocrine; or any mental or psychological disorder, such as intellectual disability, organic brain syndrome, emotional or mental illness, and specific learning disabilities.

        c.           The term “major life activities” means functions such as caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, and working.

        d.           The term “has a record of such impairment” means has a history of, or has been misclassified as having, a mental or physical impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities.

        e.           The term “is regarded as having such an impairment” means:

        1.            Has a physical or mental impairment that does not substantially limit major life activities but that is perceived as constituting such a limitation;

        2.            Has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits major life activities only as a result of the attitudes of others toward such impairment; or

        3.            Has none of the impairments defined as physical or mental impairments, but is perceived as having such an impairment.

        f.            The term “successfully completing a probationary period” includes those instances where the employee quits without good cause attributable to the employer during the probationary period or was discharged for misconduct during the probationary period.

        g.           The term “probationary period” means the period of probation for newly hired employees, if the employer has a written probationary policy. If the employer has no written probationary policy for newly hired employees, the probationary period shall be considered to be six months from the date of hire.

       53.11(4) If a newly hired employee has been certified as either a vocational rehabilitation referral or an economically disadvantaged ex-convict for purposes of qualification for the work opportunity tax credit under Section 51 of the Internal Revenue Code, that employee shall be considered to have met the qualifications for the additional wage deduction.

A vocational rehabilitation referral is any individual certified by a state employment agency as having a physical or mental disability which, for the individual, constitutes or results in a substantial handicap to employment. In addition, the individual must have been referred to the employer after completion or while receiving rehabilitation services pursuant to either a state or federal approved vocational rehabilitation program.

For all other newly hired employees, the employer has the burden of proof to show that the employees meet the qualifications for the additional wage deduction.

       53.11(5) The taxpayer shall include a schedule with the filing of its tax return showing the name, address, social security number, date of hiring and wages paid of each employee for which the taxpayer claims the additional deduction for wages.

       53.11(6) If the employee for which an additional deduction for wages was allowed fails to successfully complete a probationary period and the taxpayer has already filed an Iowa corporation income tax return taking the additional deduction for wages, the taxpayer shall file an amended return adding back the additional deduction for wages. The amended return shall state the name and social security number of the employee who failed to successfully complete a probationary period.

       53.11(7) For tax years ending after July 1, 1990, a taxpayer who did not qualify for the additional deduction for wages paid or accrued for work done in Iowa by certain individuals set forth above is allowed an additional deduction of 65 percent not to exceed $20,000 of the first 12 months of wages paid or accrued for work done in Iowa for employees first hired on or after July 1, 1990, if the new employee is:

        a.           An individual domiciled in this state at the time of the hiring who meets any of the following conditions:

       (1)             Has been convicted of a felony in this or any other state or the District of Columbia.

       (2)             Is on parole pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 906.

       (3)             Is on probation pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 907, for an offense other than a simple misdemeanor.

       (4)             Is in a work release program pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 904, division IX.

        b.           An individual, whether or not domiciled in this state at the time of the hiring, who is on parole or probation and to whom the interstate probation and parole compact under Iowa Code section 907A.1 applies.

The additional deduction is not allowed for wages paid to an individual who was hired to replace an individual whose employment was terminated within the 12-month period preceding the date of first employment. However, if the individual being replaced left employment voluntarily without good cause attributable to the employer or if the individual was discharged for misconduct in connection with the individual’s employment as determined by the Iowa division of job service of the department of employment services, the additional deduction is allowed.

The determination of whether an individual left employment voluntarily without good cause attributable to the employer or if the individual was discharged for misconduct is a factual determination which must be made on a case-by-case basis.

The taxpayer must include a schedule with the filing of its tax return showing the name, address, social security number, date of hiring, and wages paid of each employee for whom the taxpayer claims the additional deduction for wages.

If the employee for whom an additional deduction for wages was allowed fails to successfully complete a probationary period and the taxpayer has already filed an Iowa corporation income tax return taking the additional deduction for wages, the taxpayer must file an amended return adding back the additional deduction for wages. The amended return must state the name and social security number of the employee who failed to successfully complete a probationary period.

       53.11(8) The additional deduction applies to any individual hired on or after July 1, 2001, whether or not domiciled in Iowa at the time of hiring, who is on parole or probation and to whom either the interstate probation and parole compact under Iowa Code section 907A.1 or the compact for adult offenders under Iowa Code chapter 907B applies. The amount of additional deduction for hiring this individual is equal to 65 percent of the wages paid, but the additional deduction is not to exceed $20,000 for the first 12 months of wages paid for work done in Iowa. The conditions set out in the unnumbered paragraphs under paragraph “b” of subrule 53.11(7) also apply to the deduction for the hiring of certain individuals in this subrule.

This rule is intended to implement 2011 Iowa Code Supplement section 422.35 as amended by 2012 Iowa Acts, Senate File 2247.

[ARC 0337C, IAB 9/19/12, effective 10/24/12]