The Utah Legislature created the Economic Development Tax Increment Finance (EDTIF) corporate incentive program in 2005. The EDTIF program offers a post-performance, refundable tax credit drawing on up to 30% of new state sales, and corporate income and employee personal income taxes for up to 20 years.
Discretionary, post-performance grants are available to companies that create at least 50 high paying jobs in urban counties. To qualify, the wages of the newly created jobs must be at least 110% of the county average wages within both rural and urban communities and the company must operate within one of the state’s targeted industry sectors. Corporate headquarters projects are also eligible. The jurisdiction within which a project is to locate must provide local incentives.
In 2014, the Utah State Legislature enacted the Utah Small Business Jobs Act to attract additional investment in the most severely distressed areas of the state. New Market Tax Credit programs are an effective tool used by the federal government and 13 states, including Utah, to attract private capital investment in areas in need of job growth and economic development
During the 2016 general session, the Utah State Legislature made changes to Technology and Life Science Economic Development Act giving the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) authority to issue tax credits to qualifying life science and technology investors. Eligible investors may submit applications to GOED for tax credits drawn from $300,000 of funds expressly set aside by the legislature.
The Housing and Transit Reinvestment Zone Act (S.B. 217) requires a municipality or public transit county to submit a Housing and Transit Reinvestment Zone proposal to the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity (Go Utah).
Go Utah will initiate an analysis of the feasibility, efficiency, rate of return, and other aspects of the proposed Housing and Transit Reinvestment Zone.
Municipalities or public transit counties approved for the Reinvestment Zone receive certain tax advantages based on their proposal’s merits.
Interested municipalities or public transit counties should contact the office for additional information and submit Reinvestment Zone proposals to htrz@utah.gov.