Bill Text: CA SJR32 | 2013-2014 | Regular Session | Amended
Bill Title: Technology: biotechnology industry: corporate taxation.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2014-08-22 - From committee with author's amendments. Read second time and amended. Re-referred to Com. on RLS. [SJR32 Detail]
Download: California-2013-SJR32-Amended.html
BILL NUMBER: SJR 32 AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 22, 2014 INTRODUCED BY Senator Correa ( Coauthors: Senators Anderson, Huff, and Walters ) ( Coauthors: Assembly Members Allen, Buchanan, Conway, Harkey, Mullin, and Quirk-Silva ) AUGUST 7, 2014 Relative to the biotechnology industry. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SJR 32, as amended, Correa. Technology: biotechnology industry: corporate taxation. This measure would declare the support of the Legislature for federal tax policies designed to encourage growth, incentivize corporations to remain in the United States, and reduce competitive disadvantages for companies based in the United States, particularly those in the biomedical and life sciences industry. The measure would further urge the President and Congress to enact specified tax strategies to encourage domestic economic growth. Fiscal committee: no. WHEREAS, California has a rich history of innovation and a long list of entrepreneurs and corporations that have changed the world in the high technology and biotechnology industries and is proud of its reputation as a global leader in the world economy; and WHEREAS, The biotechnology industry was born in California in 1976, with the Bay Area being home to the first biotechnology company, the first biotechnology public offering, and the first biotechnology drug to be approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration; and WHEREAS, The life sciences industry, including research, development, and educational activities as well as the manufacturing of biopharmaceuticals and medical devices, has had a significant impact on California by creating life-saving treatments for patients, beginning in the lab and spanning years of efforts to transform discoveries into vaccines, diagnostics, devices, and therapies to improve patients' lives; and WHEREAS, The life science and biomedical industries are driving the economy forward both at the national level and in California, creating a highly educated and well-paid workforce and generating billions of dollars of tax revenue that support critical public service programs; and WHEREAS, California's life science industry contributes significant economic benefits toCalifornia,California by creating $258 billion in economic activity and generating over 1 million jobs paying $76 billion in salaries, wages, and benefits. California companies introduced 8 new therapeutics to patients in 2013, representing roughly a third of the new molecular entities launched last year. The biomedical industry in California alone employs over 267,000 people in 2,490 companies with total revenue of $96 billion; and WHEREAS, The United States biomedical industry, which includes biopharmaceutical, medical devices and related research and development, testing, and labs, employed 1,219,200 people in 2007; and WHEREAS, The existing federal and state tax structure is a disincentive for companies that are domiciled domestically, and makes American businesses more vulnerable to foreign takeovers; and WHEREAS, The basic United States corporate income tax rate is as high as 39 percent for certain corporations, the highest rate in the world, while the average rate among other major industrialized countries is 25 percent; and WHEREAS, Existing tax policies make companies based in the United States and California less competitive in the global market, resulting in 20 major American companies over the last 2 years reincorporating outside of the United States to reduce their tax liabilities; and WHEREAS, Favorable tax policies in foreign countries may encourage American firms to locate research and development facilities, production facilities, distribution networks, and headquarters overseas, taking with them countless jobs and substantial tax revenue and economic activity that they produce; and WHEREAS, In light of these challenges, it is necessary to protect American jobs, grow our domestic economy, and enable our companies to compete globally; now, therefore, be it Resolved by the Senate and the Assembly of the State of California, jointly, That the Legislature declares its support of efforts to encourage more broad-based federal tax policies that promote job growth, incentivize corporations to remain in the United States, and level the playing field for companies based in the United States by reducing competitive disadvantages for all industries, particularly the biomedical and life sciences industry; and be it further Resolved, That the Legislature urges the President and Congress of the United States to implement tax strategies that promote domestic economic growth, such as the reduction of the federal corporate tax rate, renewal and permanent establishment of the federal research and development tax credit, and repatriation of foreign-earned income; and be it further Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the President and Vice President of the United States, to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, to the Majority Leader of the Senate, and to each Senator and Representative from California in the Congress of the United States.