Assemblyman Joe Giglio (R,I,C-Gowanda) and his Assembly Minority Conference yesterday introduced two amendments to improve the business climate for small businesses in New York state as part of Small Business Day in the state Assembly.

The legislation aims to attract new ventures to the state by eliminating burdensome taxes and making it more affordable for current small businesses to operate.

The Small Business Relief Act of 2007 (A.5460) would eliminate taxes on energy sources imposed on small businesses, restructure the corporate franchise tax, and subject certain businesses only to the personal income tax as they are in a majority of the other states.

“We need to provide small businesses with every necessary resource to flourish, which will improve the economy and create opportunities for employment,” said Giglio. “Current policy prohibits that and we must do better.”

A second floor amendment introduced by the Assembly Minority called for the elimination of the Corporate Franchise Tax and Personal Income Tax for manufacturers that would save businesses millions of dollars each year.

The Assembly Majority blocked both measures from a full house vote. An additional bill was held in committee that would help reduce health care costs for small businesses by 15 percent.

New York state’s economy depends in large part on the health of its small businesses. Nearly 98 percent of all businesses in New York are small businesses, and nearly 52 percent of working New Yorkers are employed by a small business.

“Small businesses face many difficult obstacles in this state,” said Giglio. “I will continue to fight for the needs of small businesses so that we do not continually lose potential employers to states with lower operating costs and less burdensome policies.”