U.S. Sen. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev., detailed her new policy proposal extending startup tax credits to some veteran-owned businesses during a stop today in Las Vegas.
The Veterans Jobs Opportunity Act, introduced Thursday, would give veterans interested in starting a small business in underserved communities a 15% tax credit on the first $50,000 of startup costs.
“This gives our veterans a really great launching pad to come home, use the skills that they have or the dreams that they have ... and be able to keep serving their community,” she said.
Rosen detailed the proposal at Lazer Ladies, an engraving and gift business in North Las Vegas owned by sisters Cindy Soto and Marylou Soto, an Air Force veteran.
According to data from Rosen’s office, one in eight businesses in Nevada is veteran owned.
The bill has bipartisan backing, with Sens. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., and Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., signing onto it with Rosen and Sen. Doug Jones, D-Ala.
Rosen said the bill would help veterans coming home use skills learned in the military to open small businesses. For example, a mechanic in the military could use this bill to open an auto repair shop, she said.
“They have served us so proudly, and we need to let them take the leadership skills, all the things that they’ve learned, and give them a launching pad when they transition,” she said.