(a) By this section, the “Coshocton City Job Creation Tax Credit Program” is hereby added to these Codified Ordinances to establish the job creation tax credit program.
(b) By this section, the Mayor and/or his designee are hereby authorized to administer the program and to take all necessary and appropriate actions to achieve its objectives.
(c) By this section, the following criteria are hereby established as general guidelines for the consideration of applications for participating in the Coshocton City Job Creation Tax Credit program. (The City may consider applications that do not meet all of the below referenced criteria on a case-by-case basis, if extenuating circumstances exist and the spirit of the program is satisfied.)
(1) Any office or manufacturing firm which commits to the creation of at least twenty-five (25) new full-time or full-time equivalent jobs in the City of Coshocton may be eligible for the job creation tax credit. Firms new to the City and current businesses that are expanding are eligible to participate.
(2) Each participant shall commit to establish, within three years of an executed tax credit agreement, a minimum of twenty-five (25) new jobs in the City of Coshocton. “New jobs” do not include transfers from affiliated companies within the City of Coshocton. Each participant must commit to retaining the current number of jobs and to maintaining current levels of payroll. The job creation tax credit program does not apply to existing employees or to wage and salary increases of existing jobs.
(3) Each participant shall concurrently secure a state Job Creation Tax Credit pursuant to a job creation agreement with the State of Ohio as authorized by the Ohio Revised Code. (This requirement in this section is mandatory.)
(4) Each participant shall document that receiving the City income tax credit is a major factor in the taxpayer’s decision to go forward with the Job Creation Tax Credit Program.
(5) The average wage of new jobs should be at least one hundred fifty percent (150%) of the federal minimum wage rate.
(6) The availability of this income tax credit program shall expire on December 31, 2010 unless renewed by action of the Coshocton City Council.
(7) Tax credit are not available for those jobs filled by employees not fully paying tax to the City of Coshocton.
(8) The participant shall comply with all applicable Municipal Code provisions.
(d) By this section, for those participants who meet the Income Tax Credits criteria, the following apply:
(1) Refundable income tax credits shall be established by a written job creation tax credit agreement with each participant, each separately authorized by municipal ordinance.
(2) This is a refundable credit against the company’s Coshocton business profit tax or an individual’s income tax.
(3) The tax credit shall only apply to income taxes annually collected from the qualifying new jobs.
(4) The maximum term of credit granted under this provision shall be fifteen years, but no longer than the period allowed under the State of Ohio Tax Credit Agreement with the participant.
(5) Failure to comply with the terms and conditions of the Job Creation Income Tax Credit Agreement may result in the loss of subsequent credit for the duration of the agreement and repayment of previous credits.
(e) By this section, confidentiality of applications is hereby established.
(1) Financial statements and other information (including, but not limited to, tax returns submitted to the City of Coshocton or the Executive Director of the Coshocton Port Authority by the applicant are generally not considered public records subject to Ohio R.C. 149.43. The Mayor or Executive Director of the Coshocton Port Authority may, however, make use of the information received, including but not limited to the following, for the purpose of issuing public reports:
A. Name of the business entity;
B. Description of the project;
C. Location of the project;
D. Number of jobs created and/or retained;
E. Amount of fixed-asset investment in the project;
F. Percent and terms of the tax credit, dollar value of the tax credit, years the company wants the tax credit to begin and end.
(2) The Mayor or Executive Director of the Coshocton Port Authority may also make use of the statements and other information in connection with court proceedings concerning the Tax Credit Agreement.
(Ord. 28-07. Passed 6-26-07.)