Section 518. Wages

1. Limitation. (a) "Wages" means all remuneration paid,
  except that such term does not include remuneration paid to an  employee
  by  an employer after eight thousand five hundred dollars have been paid
  to such employee by such employer with respect to employment during  any
  calendar  year.  The term "employment" includes for the purposes of this
  subdivision services  constituting  employment  under  any  unemployment
  compensation law of another state or the United States.
    (b)  Subject to the same limitation the term "wages" includes also all
  compensation paid by an employer to persons in his employ  with  respect
  to which he is not liable for contributions under any other unemployment
  insurance  law,  even  though  such  compensation is not remuneration as
  defined by section five  hundred  seventeen  of  this  article,  or  the
  services  of  such  persons  are not in employment as defined by section
  five hundred eleven of this article, if the employer is liable for a tax
  on such compensation under the federal unemployment tax act.
    2.  Joint  consideration.  If  an  employer  has   acquired   all   or
  substantially  all,  or  a  segregable  portion of the assets of another
  employer liable for contributions under this article,  or  has  acquired
  all  or  a  segregable portion of the organization, trade or business of
  another employer liable for contributions pursuant to subdivision  seven
  of section five hundred eighty-one of this article, remuneration paid by
  both  employers  shall  be  deemed  paid  by  a  single employer for the
  purposes of this section.