FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 30, 2004
SAS LAUDS PASSAGE OF N.C. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
TAX-CREDIT LEGISLATION
Incentives critical to innovation and job creation in the state
CARY, N.C. - SAS, the leader in business intelligence, praised the recent passage of legislation for research and development (R&D) tax credits in North Carolina. The bill, signed into law by Gov. Mike Easley on July 20, offers tax incentives to companies who invest heavily in R&D. Supporters, such as SAS, believe these investments enhance the state's reputation as a center of innovation, attract outside business interests and create jobs.
"This legislation emphasizes that innovation is the road to the future for economic growth and that we need to support our companies and universities to make our state a haven for the brightest and most creative minds," said Mary U. Musacchia, counsel to the president/CEO and director for Global Government Affairs at SAS. "Dollars spent on research and development lead to new jobs. As we bring our young people out of our colleges and universities, we have an obligation to provide them with a future. SAS applauds the N.C. legislative leaders and the governor's office for taking this important step in encouraging economic growth for North Carolina."
The legislation provides greater support for small businesses and companies who partner with the university community in their R&D efforts. SAS' core technology was developed using funds from a research grant at North Carolina State University in the 1970s and has maintained close ties with the school, hiring many of its computer science graduates over the years. The bill passed in the state House by an overwhelming margin before heading to the governor's desk.
"This R&D tax credit puts North Carolina in the unique position of not just encouraging research and development but also encouraging research among small, as well as large, businesses, in both rural and urban areas, and also in our state's private and public universities," said N.C. Commerce Secretary Jim Fain. "The passage of this legislation demonstrates our state's commitment to supporting innovation in our economy and collaboration between our business community and universities."
There are similar tax credits available at the federal level, but they are not permanent and recently expired. "North Carolina should be proud of acting in advance of the federal government which allowed the federal research and development tax credit to once again lapse, effective June 30,"said Musacchia. "SAS strongly supports the seamless continuation of the federal credit."
The federal legislation, bill HR 4520, also known as the JOBS Act (Jumpstart Our Business Strength), would merely extend the current federal R&D tax credit for 18 months. "While a temporary extension is the only option being considered by Congress at this time, this credit should be made permanent," added Musacchia.
SAS traditionally reinvests at least a quarter of its revenues back into R&D and has increased employee headcount by at least 6 percent in each of the past three years, a period when many companies cut back or were forced to lay off workers.
ABOUT SAS
SAS is the market leader in providing a new generation of business intelligence software and services that create true enterprise intelligence. SAS solutions are used at more than 40,000 sites - including 96 of the top 100 companies on the FORTUNE Global 500® - to develop more profitable relationships with customers and suppliers; to enable better, more accurate and informed decisions; and to drive organizations forward. SAS is the only vendor that completely integrates leading data warehousing, analytics and traditional BI applications to create intelligence from massive amounts of data. For nearly three decades, SAS has been giving customers around the world The Power to Know ®.
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