Rep. Wendi Thomas (R-Bucks) announced funding for Angel Tax Credits was included in the budget for fiscal year 2021-22 and signed into law by Gov. Tom Wolf.
The funds will be dedicated to kick-starting new high-wage, high-tech companies in Pennsylvania.
“With our world-renowned educational institutions, talented workforce of researchers, engineers and scientists, and well-established culture of hard work and ingenuity, Pennsylvania is uniquely positioned to be a global leader in startup industries, specifically in the biotech space,” Thomas said. “To capitalize on this opportunity and to put Pennsylvania on the map for innovation, we need starter investor tax credits that will kickstart job creation by giving tax benefits to investors of startups headquartered in Pennsylvania.”
Earlier this year, Thomas prepared legislation to create Angel Tax Credits. Instead, after negotiations with the administration, her plan was incorporated into the budget’s fiscal code.
The fiscal code, also known as House Bill 1348, included $5 million to create the Angel Investment Venture Capital Program within the executive branch, to provide state grants for new tech firms that need early stage financing.
Angel investments are funds used to boost seed money in early stage companies.
To qualify under this Angel program, startups must have fewer than 100 employees with 51 percent or more working in Pennsylvania. Also, they must have been in business less than two years and received less than $2 million in private investments.
“If we want to be the envy of the east, we need to encourage innovation and attract the jobs of the future,” Thomas said. “I’m happy the legislature and the administration saw the value in my proposal.”
The newly-enacted Act 37 of 2021 creates the Microenterprise Loan Program through which municipalities can offer property tax abatements to help low-income individuals advance business startups.
