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BOOK 98 P},tirl 51 <br />• A business must pay an average wage of at least 115 percent <br />of area wages. <br />• A business must create at least 100 new jobs in any of the <br />state's target industries. If an expansion, the expansion <br />must result in at least &-10 percent increase in the <br />business's employment. <br />• The local government must provide a 20o match of the total <br />taxes to be refunded. <br />Through the Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program, the <br />county intends to encourage the growth of high -value-added <br />employment in the county. <br />Attachment 1 provides a summary of the Qualified Target Industry <br />Tax Refund Program. This summary includes a list of industries <br />that qualify for the program, certification and application <br />requirements of the Division of Economic Development of the <br />Department of Commerce, written agreement criteria needed to <br />finalize the program, and a list of funds eligible for tax refund. <br />LOCAL JOBS GRANT PROGRAM <br />Since the Board of County Commissioners approved the county's <br />participation in the Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program, <br />there have been no applications from eligible businesses. Most <br />likely, one of the reasons that no applications have been submitted <br />is the requirement that a new business applying for a refund must <br />create at least 100 new jobs. In a small county, few new <br />businesses create that many new jobs. <br />Because the Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program focuses on <br />large employers, several counties have established a local jobs <br />grant program with a lower job creation threshold. <br />St. Lucie and Palm Beach are two counties that have established <br />their own jobs grant program independent of the state's Qualified <br />Target Industry Tax Refund Program. If Indian River County created <br />a similar program, that program could provide grants to all' <br />qualified industrial businesses based on criteria established by <br />the Board of County Commissioners. Businesses that meet the <br />state's Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program could also use <br />the county match to get state tax refunds. <br />• Survey of other surrounding counties <br />The following table identifies surrounding counties that offer jobs <br />grant programs. <br />46 <br />May 14, 1996 <br />I <br />