Green Bill Would Give Tax Credit for Printing

The “Print Buyer’s Reduction in Taxes Bill of 2010” (PRINT), which was presented to the U.S. Congress on Wednesday, is said to offer print purchasers a credit against income tax for the completion of sustainable print projects. The proposed bill was detailed at a Legislative Intensive Session held during the ninth annual Print Oasis Print Buyers Conference in Washington, DC.

If the legislation is passed, a print buyer will qualify for the credit if the project meets at least 13 out of the 15 sustainability requirements outlined in the bill. PRINT limits the tax cut a print buyer can take to no more than 25 percent of their federal taxes, in keeping with congressional standards for tax incentives. To qualify for the credit, a print buyer must spend $100,000 or above on general print projects in the taxable year.

Among the other requirements:

• Materials used in the print project must be recyclable.

• The project cannot include inks that contain heavy metals, such as metallics and fluorescents, scratch off devices, foils, plastic polystyrenes and/or polyesters.

• The job must contain language that encourages the reader to recycle the printed piece.

• The paper or substrate must contain more than 25 percent post-consumer waste for coated paper stock and 50 percent post-consumer waste for uncoated paper stock.