Tax Incentives
The Work Opportunity Tax Credit provides a tax credit to employers hiring individuals from certain targeted groups, such as persons with disabilities. We can certify blind applicants for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. Download a Work Opportunity Tax Credit fact sheet (pdf).
Contact Brenda Criswell if you have questions about certifying a blind applicant for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit.
Brenda.Criswell@blind.state.ia.us or 515-281-1333 ext. 1363.
You can find more information about tax credits available at the Iowa Workforce website on tax incentives.
Social Security Incentives
If your business hires many people with disabilites, consider becoming an Employment Network through Social Security's Ticket to Work program. As an Employment Network, you may be eligible for Social Security reimbursements when you hire a person receiving Social Security or Supplemental Security Income.
To learn more about becoming an Employment Network, go to: www.cessi.net/ttw/EN/one_stops/index.asp.
If you have a question about Employment Networks / Partnership Plus, contact Keri Osterhaus, keri.osterhaus@blind.state.ia.us or (515) 281-1281.
Economic Benefits of Successful VR Services
The vocational rehabilitation of persons who are blind is one government program that is truly cost-effective. Persons who are rehabilitated into competitive employment will return far more money to the state and federal treasuries in the form of taxes and Social Security payments than is spent on their rehabilitation. An employed individual who is blind becomes an asset to the taxpayers of Iowa, rather than a liability. This can be shown in the example of a 25-year-old person who becomes unemployed because of blindness. That person by remaining unemployed, will draw about $1004 a month in Social Security Disability Income payments (the average payment in 2008) for a total of over $480,000 until age 65. That person by being rehabilitated and returning to work at the wage rate of $9.50 per hour, will pay over $150,000 in federal and state taxes and Social Security during those 40 years. That's a difference of over $600,000 to the taxpayers of Iowa!
Each rehabilitated person is unique, not only in terms of personal characteristics but also in terms of circumstances. Thus, a number of factors determine the bottom line of benefits realized. Persons can become blind at any age; some keep their jobs only a few years; some die before 65. On the other hand, some draw Social Security Income for far longer than 40 years. Some achieve full self-support, while others become only partially self-supporting. It is not necessary to set a fixed figure for tax money saved per rehabilitant to make the point. Even if only half the figure projected here is actualized, 40 rehabilitations per year would pay for the entire operation of the Iowa Department for the Blind--not just for services which place persons who are blind directly in employment, but for each and every one of its programs and activities; for every phase of its work. The Department currently rehabilitates about 100 persons who are blind in a year.