Agenda - 05-18-2010 - 8b - Laserfiche WebLink

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Appendix V. Wake County Business Investment Grant Policy The policy objective of Wake County's Business Investment Grant is to support the development of an economic enviromnent that attracts or encourages new investment, creates new jobs and results in a diverse tax base. A Company may be eligible for a Business Investment Grant if they meet both a New Investment Threshold and New Jobs Threshold. Special consideration may be given to corporate, regional or divisional headquarters projects for Fortune 500 companies and large international companies. New Investment Threshold New companies may be eligible for a Business Investment Grant for new investments, which exceed $100,000,000 in 2004 dollars. For each subsequent year, the amount of new investment will be increased by CPI and rounded to the nearest million dollars. New investment is defined as, "improvements to real estate, machinery, equipment, and other business personal property." The Value of land is not included in the calculation of new investment. New investment must exceed $100,000,000 in assessed valuation, as determined by the Wake County Revenue Department. Existing Wake County businesses may be eligible for a Business Investment Grant for new investments, which exceed $50,000,000 in 2004 dollars provided that existing taxable assessed valuation exceeds $75,000,000 in the year the grant agreement is approved. Only the value of the new investment will be used to calculate the amount of the incentive grant. New Jobs Threshold New companies are eligible for a business investment grant when the investment threshold is met and at least 50 new jobs are created. New jobs are defined as a net increase in the company's number of full - time Wake County employees. A full -time employee is defined as a person who is employed by the company for at least 35 hours per week and whose wages are subject to withholding. The average wage for new jobs must pay 120% of the average wage for Wake County, as defined by the North Carolina Department of Commerce Finance Center. (In 2004, the average wage was $605 per week; 120% would be $726 per week.) Existing Companies are eligible for a Business Investment Grant when the investment threshold is met, the company currently employs at least 250 full -time employees, and at least 50 new jobs are created. The average wage for the new and existing jobs must pay 120% of the average wage for Wake County, as defined by the North Carolina Department of Commerce Finance Center. The Company must also agree to provide health insurance in at least the minimum amount required for tax credits under the William S. Lee Act, as it existed on the date of the approval of the policy. Under these provisions, a company must provide health insurance for full -time positions and pay a minimum of 50% of the premiums. Policy Guidelines 1. Business Investment Grants will be considered for companies meeting the new investment and new job thresholds. The Board of Commissioners is not obligated to make any grants. 2. All projects will be considered on a case -by -case basis. The County will consider a number of factors (in addition to level of new investment and number of new jobs) when determining approval of a Business Incentive Grant, including: • Type of business, relative to current tax base • Types of new jobs • Reputation of company • The presence of competition for the project 3. The amount of the grant payment to be paid by the County shall be up to 2.25% assessed value of the new investment paid over a period of up to eight years. In no event shall the grant amount exceed the amount of ad valorem taxes paid by the company on the new investment in that calendar year. 441Page