President Signs HIRE Act; New Law Provides Hiring Incentives, Expensing Extension And More

The $18 billion job creation pack­age, the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act (HR. 2847). is now law. President Obama signed this first major tax bill of 2010 on March 18. The Senate approved the HIRE Act on March 17. 2010. by a bi-partisan 68-29 vote following House passage on March 4. 2010, by 217 to 201. The new law provides incentives for hiring and retaining workers, along with a one-year extension of enhanced Code Sec. 179 expensing and changes to Build America Bonds. The HIRE Act is partially offset by a package of new foreign account tax compliance rules and a further delay in the worldwide interest allocation rules. Certain cor­porate estimated tax payments are also accelerated to help offset the cost of the tax incentives.