From the Elkhart Truth:
The Elkhart City Council adopted a resolution Monday, Dec. 2, agreeing to join Goshen and Elkhart County in using the same type of application when companies seek tax breaks.
The resolution is non-binding, but establishes a sense of continuity of expectations that companies can depend on when looking to locate or expand in most parts of Elkhart County.
Most importantly for some council members is that the new policy establishes a salary threshold that companies will be expected to meet when asking for a tax abatement when expanding or relocating.
While the city is not locked into the policy, the resolution embraces the use of a salary benchmark based on state statistics.
For now, companies seeking tax breaks will be expected to provide a median salary of $29,990 to at least 70 percent of the new employees being added as a result of the expansion or relocation.
That figure reflects a hourly wage of $14.42.
The benchmark will shift each year depending on a statistic summary collected by the state for the Elkhart-Goshen metropolitan statistical area, officials said.
The current figures are based on 2012 data.
In the past — especially as the city worked to recover from the recent economic recession — the city council had approved tax abatement for companies knowing the average wages were closer to $10 per hour.
“At least this gives us a measuring stick that says this is the kind of wage we want to see — this or something higher,” said Barkley Garrett, director of economic development for the city.
The Middlebury Town Council is also expected to consider a similar proposal already embraced by Goshen, Elkhart and the county. Wakarusa and Nappanee were also encouraged to participate, but representatives from those towns have not responded.
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http://www.elkharttruth.com/article/20131202/NEWS01/712029929
