10-02-04 City Council Retreat Agenda

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. . . (b) Must be expected to create permanent employment for at least five people on a permanent basis in the designated zone, provided that this employment qualification shall take effect two years after the effective date of the agreement and continue through the term of the agreement. The abatement period shall not exceed five years from the effective date of abatement and the percentage of value to be abated shall be 100 percent of new value throughout the abatement period, subject to a maximum abatable new value of $750,000 per job created/retained. G) Taxability. From the execution of the abatement to the end of the agreement period, taxes shall be payable as follows: (I) the value of ineligible property as provided in Section 2(e) shall be fully taxable; (2) the non abatable real property within the reinvestment zone shall be fully taxable each year; (3) the additional value of new eligible property shall be taxable in the manner described in Section 2(g); (4) when due to the employment formula set out in section 2(g), the maximum amount eligible for abatement (the cap) is less than the total value of the new facility, the amount of the cap will be reduced each year at the same rate as the taxable improvements are reduced in value from the previous year's value; and (5) each year's exemption will be computed by HCAD in the following manner: (a) The Base Property Value will be the current value of all real property plus fixed-in- place machinery and equipment within the zone that is not subject to abatement. (b) The Base Year Value will be subtracted from the value of the Abated Property plus the Base Property Value, the result to be called Current Amount Eligible for Abatement. In no case can this amount exceed any cap set out in the abatement contract. (c) The Current Amount Eligible for Abatement is then multiplied by the abatement schedule set out in Section 2(e) to determine the amount of each year's exemption. (k) Environmental and Worker Safety Qualification. In determining whether to grant a tax abatement, consideration will be given to compliance with all state and federal laws designed to protect human health, welfare and the environment ("environmental laws") that are applicable to all facilities in the State of Texas owned or operated by the owner of the facility or lessee, its parent, subsidiaries and, if a joint venture or partnership, every member of the joint venture or partnership ("applicants"). Consideration may also be given to compliance with environmental and worker safley laws by applicants at other facilities within the United States. Section 3 APPLICATION (a) Any current or potential owner or lessee of taxable property in Harris County may request the creation of a reinvestment zone or tax abatement by filing a completed application with the Department of Management Services. (b) A completed application shall consist of a completed application form accompanied by: a general description of the new improvements to be undertaken; a descriptive list of the improvements for which an abatement is requested, a list of the kind, number and location of all proposed improvements of the property including the economic life of each and its HARRIS COUNTY GUIDELINES AND CRITERIA FOR GRANTING TAX ABATEMENT PAGE 6