Arizona to give tax credit for IT training

Arizona is slated to become the first state to give people tax credits for spending money to learn information technology skills.

Gov. Jane Hull announced last week that she intends to sign into a law a bill that would give a 100 percent tax credit up to $1,500 a year per person for IT training.

Arizona is the first state to adopt a credit program for technology training, though a few others are close behind. And the federal government is considering its own program — though the federal legislation aims the tax relief at businesses, while Arizona's law is geared toward individuals.

The Technology Workforce Coalition, http://www.techcoalition.org, a national group comprised of IT trade associations and corporations, lobbied for both the state and federal credits. Grant Mydland, the coalition manager, said Monday that Arizona's action is encouraging.

"It's incentive for anyone to continue their training or upgrade their current skills," Mydland said.

It's estimated that the United States is short more than 1 million skilled IT workers.

Maryland is the next state likely to adopt an IT training tax credit, Mydland said. The state is considering a program similar to Arizona's for individuals, but Maryland's program would provide a 30 percent credit up to $5,000.

Five other states are also considering such credits, Mydland said.