Published Friday, September 03, 2010

New job incentives may be available in Coweta

The Newnan Times-Herald

The Coweta County Development Authority has approved what could amount to a set of increased incentives for companies to locate in Newnan.

The incentives are actually made possible by the shutdown of Rite Aid's Newnan distribution center operations, explained Greg Wright, president of the development authority, at the Thursday morning meeting held in the Coweta County Commission chambers on Perry Street.

Those job losses are tracked by the U.S. Census Bureau, and if the county plays its cards right, it could open up some new opportunities, Wright said.

Specifically, a job tax credit that's now worth $1,250 per job could more than double, to $3,500 per job.

Also, while the current available tax credit offsets 50 percent of a company's corporate income tax liability, the modified credit -- if approved -- can be used to offset withholding tax, Wright said.

"They just have to create five net new jobs" to qualify, he said.

"We could use this to recruit new companies to this specific area" near the former Rite-Aid facility, he said.

The tax credit would only be good through Dec. 31, but the county can re-apply, he said.

The Coweta County Commission must also approve the plan, Wright said, and the measure will be considered at the next meeting.

Wright said that this will be an excellent tool to have in the toolbox, since prospect activity has been "very strong" during the past 30 days.

"I'm happy to report that activity has been extremely heavy," he said.

"During the month of August, we hosted three manufacturing companies for visits to the county," he said. "Two of the three were international companies.

"Feedback from the project managers has been positive about the visits," Wright said.

"Based on the parameters of the projects, we were able to show sites and buildings in Coweta Industrial Park and Shenandoah Industrial Park, and at Creekside Industrial Park, as well.

"We've had some very positive comments," said Wright. "We will continue to follow up with these companies."

He said the new tax credit, if approved, should make Coweta more competitive against Tier 1 counties such as Meriwether County, which can already offer a $4,000 per job tax credit to use against withholding tax.

"This is commonly used to recruit companies to those areas," he said.

Georgia's economic development, finance and tax organizations provide a range of incentive programs to initiate new business and commercial investment. Specific programs include job creation tax credits, capital investment, and additional credit in less-developed areas.

Georgia offers job creation tax credits for manufacturing, warehousing, distribution, processing, telecommunications, tourism, and research and development firms. The state's counties are grouped by economic factors into four tiers:

* In Tier 1 counties, companies creating five or more jobs receive a $3,500 tax credit for each new job.

* In Tier 2 counties that create 10 or more jobs receive a $2,500 per job tax credit.

* In Tier 3 counties, firms creating 15 or more jobs receive a $1,250 credit for each.

* In Tier 4 counties, firms creating 25 or more jobs receive a $750 credit for each.

Credits apply for five years after jobs are created and are limited to 50 percent of corporate tax liability. Unused credits may be carried forward 10 years.

An additional $500 per job credit applies to companies locating in counties with joint development authorities, making possible tax credits up to $4,000 per job.

Local government may provide tax breaks for businesses that create jobs in depressed communities.

Job tax credits are available to businesses of any kind, including retail businesses, in counties recognized and designated as the 40 least developed counties.

A $3,500 job tax credit can become available when 10 or more jobs are created in specially designated census tracts and at least 30 percent of jobs are for local residents.