Manufacturing and logistics are hot growth markets in today’s COVID 19 economy launching what could be seen as a second Industrial Revolution.  A sites’ property tax rate and the availability of property tax abatement programs to provide an economic incentive for logistics and manufacturing projects both impact opportunities to gain these jobs.  Shifts in consumer […]

State Representative Mark Frazier (R-Newark) introduced Ohio House Bill 123 to reform Ohio’s tax abatement law.  Property taxes are a large cost for communities attempted to develop or redevelop land for housing, office, commercial or industrial uses.  The large capital investment needed for these jobs producing projects often dramatically increase the property taxes applied to […]

In an age of a global pandemic and civil unrest, it is still critical to remember to economic prosperity accessible to all is a critical societal goal.  A job truly can solve most societal challenges.  However, in a hyper competitive global economy, jobs simply do not appear.  Sound public policy, hardworking economic development leaders and […]

Agriculture, food, and related industries contributed $1.109 trillion to the U.S. GDP in 2019, a 5.2-percent share, and, the output of America’s farms contributed $136.1 billion of this sum—about 0.6 percent of GDP.[i] The overall contribution of agriculture to GDP is actually larger than 0.6 percent because sectors related to agriculture rely on agricultural inputs […]

Food manufacturing or food processing is a growing industry whose prospects are even brighter for U.S. production as the “eat local movement” and COVID 19 creates food security issues has the potential to drive additional production of this industry to domestic locations but is in regions with easy access to agriculture products.  Industries in the […]

Federal New Market Tax Credits provide a funding source for companies considering a corporate site location projects located in federally designated low income areas.  The Federal New Markets Tax Credit provides a 39% Federal Tax Credit Over 7 Years and $1M Ohio Tax Credit paired with Federal Credit for real estate investments in poor communities […]

Governor Mike DeWine’s Ohio Development Services Agency (DSA) operating budget proposal has clear winners and losers.  Fueled by a planned influx of federal funding and additional Ohio General Revenue Fund (GRF) funding, Governor DeWine’s proposed DSA operating budget proposes a 37% decrease from all funding sources for a total FY 2022 budget of $1.7B and […]

COVID 19 did not solve the workforce challenge facing communities and companies across the United States.  The growing group of unemployed are likely not skilled in the in-demand occupations companies are searching for.  In an attempt to answer the workforce challenge, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine submitted his state of Ohio operating budget for fiscal years […]

State operating budgets are the largest undertaking most state governments undertake.  Ohio operates based upon a two year budget that is generally introduced, debated and enacted in the first half of odd number years to ensure the state agencies, schools, hospitals, and universities have access to funding as the new fiscal year starts on July […]

Ohio House of Representative Speaker Bob Cupp and Ohio Senate President Matt Huffman announced which committees will be returning as well as the addition of new committees for the 134th General Assembly. The committee announcements also brought the list of committee chair and membership makeup, in many cases, impacted by the election of the new […]