As Introduced

130th General Assembly
Regular Session
2013-2014
S. B. No. 112


Senator Beagle 

Cosponsors: Senators LaRose, Lehner, Seitz, Uecker 

A BILL
To amend sections 5709.62, 5709.63, and 5709.632 of 1
the Revised Code to extend the authority of 2
municipal corporations and counties to enter into 3
enterprise zone agreements with businesses until 4
October 15, 2014.5


BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:

       Section 1.  That sections 5709.62, 5709.63, and 5709.632 of 6
the Revised Code be amended to read as follows:7

       Sec. 5709.62.  (A) In any municipal corporation that is 8
defined by the United States office of management and budget as a 9
principal city of a metropolitan statistical area, the legislative 10
authority of the municipal corporation may designate one or more 11
areas within its municipal corporation as proposed enterprise 12
zones. Upon designating an area, the legislative authority shall 13
petition the director of development for certification of the area 14
as having the characteristics set forth in division (A)(1) of 15
section 5709.61 of the Revised Code as amended by Substitute 16
Senate Bill No. 19 of the 120th general assembly. Except as 17
otherwise provided in division (E) of this section, on and after 18
July 1, 1994, legislative authorities shall not enter into 19
agreements under this section unless the legislative authority has 20
petitioned the director and the director has certified the zone 21
under this section as amended by that act; however, all agreements 22
entered into under this section as it existed prior to July 1, 23
1994, and the incentives granted under those agreements shall 24
remain in effect for the period agreed to under those agreements. 25
Within sixty days after receiving such a petition, the director 26
shall determine whether the area has the characteristics set forth 27
in division (A)(1) of section 5709.61 of the Revised Code, and 28
shall forward the findings to the legislative authority of the 29
municipal corporation. If the director certifies the area as 30
having those characteristics, and thereby certifies it as a zone, 31
the legislative authority may enter into an agreement with an 32
enterprise under division (C) of this section.33

       (B) Any enterprise that wishes to enter into an agreement 34
with a municipal corporation under division (C) of this section 35
shall submit a proposal to the legislative authority of the 36
municipal corporation on a form prescribed by the director of 37
development, together with the application fee established under 38
section 5709.68 of the Revised Code. The form shall require the 39
following information:40

       (1) An estimate of the number of new employees whom the 41
enterprise intends to hire, or of the number of employees whom the 42
enterprise intends to retain, within the zone at a facility that 43
is a project site, and an estimate of the amount of payroll of the 44
enterprise attributable to these employees;45

       (2) An estimate of the amount to be invested by the 46
enterprise to establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a facility, 47
including investment in new buildings, additions or improvements 48
to existing buildings, machinery, equipment, furniture, fixtures, 49
and inventory;50

       (3) A listing of the enterprise's current investment, if any, 51
in a facility as of the date of the proposal's submission.52

       The enterprise shall review and update the listings required 53
under this division to reflect material changes, and any agreement 54
entered into under division (C) of this section shall set forth 55
final estimates and listings as of the time the agreement is 56
entered into. The legislative authority may, on a separate form 57
and at any time, require any additional information necessary to 58
determine whether an enterprise is in compliance with an agreement 59
and to collect the information required to be reported under 60
section 5709.68 of the Revised Code.61

       (C) Upon receipt and investigation of a proposal under 62
division (B) of this section, if the legislative authority finds 63
that the enterprise submitting the proposal is qualified by 64
financial responsibility and business experience to create and 65
preserve employment opportunities in the zone and improve the 66
economic climate of the municipal corporation, the legislative 67
authority, on or before October 15, 20132014, may do one of the 68
following:69

       (1) Enter into an agreement with the enterprise under which 70
the enterprise agrees to establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a 71
facility and hire new employees, or preserve employment 72
opportunities for existing employees, in return for one or more of 73
the following incentives:74

       (a) Exemption for a specified number of years, not to exceed 75
fifteen, of a specified portion, up to seventy-five per cent, of 76
the assessed value of tangible personal property first used in 77
business at the project site as a result of the agreement. If an 78
exemption for inventory is specifically granted in the agreement 79
pursuant to this division, the exemption applies to inventory 80
required to be listed pursuant to sections 5711.15 and 5711.16 of 81
the Revised Code, except that, in the instance of an expansion or 82
other situations in which an enterprise was in business at the 83
facility prior to the establishment of the zone, the inventory 84
that is exempt is that amount or value of inventory in excess of 85
the amount or value of inventory required to be listed in the 86
personal property tax return of the enterprise in the return for 87
the tax year in which the agreement is entered into.88

       (b) Exemption for a specified number of years, not to exceed 89
fifteen, of a specified portion, up to seventy-five per cent, of 90
the increase in the assessed valuation of real property 91
constituting the project site subsequent to formal approval of the 92
agreement by the legislative authority;93

       (c) Provision for a specified number of years, not to exceed 94
fifteen, of any optional services or assistance that the municipal 95
corporation is authorized to provide with regard to the project 96
site.97

       (2) Enter into an agreement under which the enterprise agrees 98
to remediate an environmentally contaminated facility, to spend an 99
amount equal to at least two hundred fifty per cent of the true 100
value in money of the real property of the facility prior to 101
remediation as determined for the purposes of property taxation to 102
establish, expand, renovate, or occupy the remediated facility, 103
and to hire new employees or preserve employment opportunities for 104
existing employees at the remediated facility, in return for one 105
or more of the following incentives:106

       (a) Exemption for a specified number of years, not to exceed 107
fifteen, of a specified portion, not to exceed fifty per cent, of 108
the assessed valuation of the real property of the facility prior 109
to remediation;110

       (b) Exemption for a specified number of years, not to exceed 111
fifteen, of a specified portion, not to exceed one hundred per 112
cent, of the increase in the assessed valuation of the real 113
property of the facility during or after remediation;114

       (c) The incentive under division (C)(1)(a) of this section, 115
except that the percentage of the assessed value of such property 116
exempted from taxation shall not exceed one hundred per cent;117

       (d) The incentive under division (C)(1)(c) of this section.118

       (3) Enter into an agreement with an enterprise that plans to 119
purchase and operate a large manufacturing facility that has 120
ceased operation or announced its intention to cease operation, in 121
return for exemption for a specified number of years, not to 122
exceed fifteen, of a specified portion, up to one hundred per 123
cent, of the assessed value of tangible personal property used in 124
business at the project site as a result of the agreement, or of 125
the assessed valuation of real property constituting the project 126
site, or both.127

       (D)(1) Notwithstanding divisions (C)(1)(a) and (b) of this 128
section, the portion of the assessed value of tangible personal 129
property or of the increase in the assessed valuation of real 130
property exempted from taxation under those divisions may exceed 131
seventy-five per cent in any year for which that portion is 132
exempted if the average percentage exempted for all years in which 133
the agreement is in effect does not exceed sixty per cent, or if 134
the board of education of the city, local, or exempted village 135
school district within the territory of which the property is or 136
will be located approves a percentage in excess of seventy-five 137
per cent.138

       (2) Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised Code to the 139
contrary, the exemptions described in divisions (C)(1)(a), (b), 140
and (c), (C)(2)(a), (b), and (c), and (C)(3) of this section may 141
be for up to fifteen years if the board of education of the city, 142
local, or exempted village school district within the territory of 143
which the property is or will be located approves a number of 144
years in excess of ten.145

       (3) For the purpose of obtaining the approval of a city, 146
local, or exempted village school district under division (D)(1) 147
or (2) of this section, the legislative authority shall deliver to 148
the board of education a notice not later than forty-five days 149
prior to approving the agreement, excluding Saturdays, Sundays, 150
and legal holidays as defined in section 1.14 of the Revised Code. 151
The notice shall state the percentage to be exempted, an estimate 152
of the true value of the property to be exempted, and the number 153
of years the property is to be exempted. The board of education, 154
by resolution adopted by a majority of the board, shall approve or 155
disapprove the agreement and certify a copy of the resolution to 156
the legislative authority not later than fourteen days prior to 157
the date stipulated by the legislative authority as the date upon 158
which approval of the agreement is to be formally considered by 159
the legislative authority. The board of education may include in 160
the resolution conditions under which the board would approve the 161
agreement, including the execution of an agreement to compensate 162
the school district under division (B) of section 5709.82 of the 163
Revised Code. The legislative authority may approve the agreement 164
at any time after the board of education certifies its resolution 165
approving the agreement to the legislative authority, or, if the 166
board approves the agreement conditionally, at any time after the 167
conditions are agreed to by the board and the legislative 168
authority.169

       If a board of education has adopted a resolution waiving its 170
right to approve agreements and the resolution remains in effect, 171
approval of an agreement by the board is not required under this 172
division. If a board of education has adopted a resolution 173
allowing a legislative authority to deliver the notice required 174
under this division fewer than forty-five business days prior to 175
the legislative authority's approval of the agreement, the 176
legislative authority shall deliver the notice to the board not 177
later than the number of days prior to such approval as prescribed 178
by the board in its resolution. If a board of education adopts a 179
resolution waiving its right to approve agreements or shortening 180
the notification period, the board shall certify a copy of the 181
resolution to the legislative authority. If the board of education 182
rescinds such a resolution, it shall certify notice of the 183
rescission to the legislative authority.184

       (4) The legislative authority shall comply with section 185
5709.83 of the Revised Code unless the board of education has 186
adopted a resolution under that section waiving its right to 187
receive such notice.188

       (E) This division applies to zones certified by the director 189
of development under this section prior to July 22, 1994.190

       On or before October 15, 20132014, the legislative authority 191
that designated a zone to which this division applies may enter 192
into an agreement with an enterprise if the legislative authority 193
finds that the enterprise satisfies one of the criteria described 194
in divisions (E)(1) to (5) of this section:195

       (1) The enterprise currently has no operations in this state 196
and, subject to approval of the agreement, intends to establish 197
operations in the zone;198

       (2) The enterprise currently has operations in this state 199
and, subject to approval of the agreement, intends to establish 200
operations at a new location in the zone that would not result in 201
a reduction in the number of employee positions at any of the 202
enterprise's other locations in this state;203

       (3) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 204
intends to relocate operations, currently located in another 205
state, to the zone;206

       (4) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 207
intends to expand operations at an existing site in the zone that 208
the enterprise currently operates;209

       (5) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 210
intends to relocate operations, currently located in this state, 211
to the zone, and the director of development has issued a waiver 212
for the enterprise under division (B) of section 5709.633 of the 213
Revised Code.214

       The agreement shall require the enterprise to agree to 215
establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a facility in the zone and 216
hire new employees, or preserve employment opportunities for 217
existing employees, in return for one or more of the incentives 218
described in division (C) of this section.219

       (F) All agreements entered into under this section shall be 220
in the form prescribed under section 5709.631 of the Revised Code. 221
After an agreement is entered into under this section, if the 222
legislative authority revokes its designation of a zone, or if the 223
director of development revokes a zone's certification, any 224
entitlements granted under the agreement shall continue for the 225
number of years specified in the agreement.226

       (G) Except as otherwise provided in this division, an 227
agreement entered into under this section shall require that the 228
enterprise pay an annual fee equal to the greater of one per cent 229
of the dollar value of incentives offered under the agreement or 230
five hundred dollars; provided, however, that if the value of the 231
incentives exceeds two hundred fifty thousand dollars, the fee 232
shall not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars. The fee shall 233
be payable to the legislative authority once per year for each 234
year the agreement is effective on the days and in the form 235
specified in the agreement. Fees paid shall be deposited in a 236
special fund created for such purpose by the legislative authority 237
and shall be used by the legislative authority exclusively for the 238
purpose of complying with section 5709.68 of the Revised Code and 239
by the tax incentive review council created under section 5709.85 240
of the Revised Code exclusively for the purposes of performing the 241
duties prescribed under that section. The legislative authority 242
may waive or reduce the amount of the fee charged against an 243
enterprise, but such a waiver or reduction does not affect the 244
obligations of the legislative authority or the tax incentive 245
review council to comply with section 5709.68 or 5709.85 of the 246
Revised Code.247

       (H) When an agreement is entered into pursuant to this 248
section, the legislative authority authorizing the agreement shall 249
forward a copy of the agreement to the director of development and 250
to the tax commissioner within fifteen days after the agreement is 251
entered into. If any agreement includes terms not provided for in 252
section 5709.631 of the Revised Code affecting the revenue of a 253
city, local, or exempted village school district or causing 254
revenue to be forgone by the district, including any compensation 255
to be paid to the school district pursuant to section 5709.82 of 256
the Revised Code, those terms also shall be forwarded in writing 257
to the director of development along with the copy of the 258
agreement forwarded under this division.259

       (I) After an agreement is entered into, the enterprise shall 260
file with each personal property tax return required to be filed, 261
or annual report required to be filed under section 5727.08 of the 262
Revised Code, while the agreement is in effect, an informational 263
return, on a form prescribed by the tax commissioner for that 264
purpose, setting forth separately the property, and related costs 265
and values, exempted from taxation under the agreement.266

       (J) Enterprises may agree to give preference to residents of 267
the zone within which the agreement applies relative to residents 268
of this state who do not reside in the zone when hiring new 269
employees under the agreement.270

       (K) An agreement entered into under this section may include 271
a provision requiring the enterprise to create one or more 272
temporary internship positions for students enrolled in a course 273
of study at a school or other educational institution in the 274
vicinity, and to create a scholarship or provide another form of 275
educational financial assistance for students holding such a 276
position in exchange for the student's commitment to work for the 277
enterprise at the completion of the internship.278

       (L) The tax commissioner's authority in determining the 279
accuracy of any exemption granted by an agreement entered into 280
under this section is limited to divisions (C)(1)(a) and (b), 281
(C)(2)(a), (b), and (c), (C)(3), (D), and (I) of this section and 282
divisions (B)(1) to (10) of section 5709.631 of the Revised Code 283
and, as authorized by law, to enforcing any modification to, or 284
revocation of, that agreement by the legislative authority of a 285
municipal corporation or the director of development.286

       Sec. 5709.63.  (A) With the consent of the legislative 287
authority of each affected municipal corporation or of a board of 288
township trustees, a board of county commissioners may, in the 289
manner set forth in section 5709.62 of the Revised Code, designate 290
one or more areas in one or more municipal corporations or in 291
unincorporated areas of the county as proposed enterprise zones. A 292
board of county commissioners may designate no more than one area 293
within a township, or within adjacent townships, as a proposed 294
enterprise zone. The board shall petition the director of 295
development for certification of the area as having the 296
characteristics set forth in division (A)(1) or (2) of section 297
5709.61 of the Revised Code as amended by Substitute Senate Bill 298
No. 19 of the 120th general assembly. Except as otherwise provided 299
in division (D) of this section, on and after July 1, 1994, boards 300
of county commissioners shall not enter into agreements under this 301
section unless the board has petitioned the director and the 302
director has certified the zone under this section as amended by 303
that act; however, all agreements entered into under this section 304
as it existed prior to July 1, 1994, and the incentives granted 305
under those agreements shall remain in effect for the period 306
agreed to under those agreements. The director shall make the 307
determination in the manner provided under section 5709.62 of the 308
Revised Code.309

       Any enterprise wishing to enter into an agreement with the 310
board under division (B) or (D) of this section shall submit a 311
proposal to the board on the form and accompanied by the 312
application fee prescribed under division (B) of section 5709.62 313
of the Revised Code. The enterprise shall review and update the 314
estimates and listings required by the form in the manner required 315
under that division. The board may, on a separate form and at any 316
time, require any additional information necessary to determine 317
whether an enterprise is in compliance with an agreement and to 318
collect the information required to be reported under section 319
5709.68 of the Revised Code.320

       (B) If the board of county commissioners finds that an 321
enterprise submitting a proposal is qualified by financial 322
responsibility and business experience to create and preserve 323
employment opportunities in the zone and to improve the economic 324
climate of the municipal corporation or municipal corporations or 325
the unincorporated areas in which the zone is located and to which 326
the proposal applies, the board, on or before October 15, 2013327
2014, and with the consent of the legislative authority of each 328
affected municipal corporation or of the board of township 329
trustees may do either of the following:330

       (1) Enter into an agreement with the enterprise under which 331
the enterprise agrees to establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a 332
facility in the zone and hire new employees, or preserve 333
employment opportunities for existing employees, in return for the 334
following incentives:335

       (a) When the facility is located in a municipal corporation, 336
the board may enter into an agreement for one or more of the 337
incentives provided in division (C) of section 5709.62 of the 338
Revised Code, subject to division (D) of that section;339

       (b) When the facility is located in an unincorporated area, 340
the board may enter into an agreement for one or more of the 341
following incentives:342

       (i) Exemption for a specified number of years, not to exceed 343
fifteen, of a specified portion, up to sixty per cent, of the 344
assessed value of tangible personal property first used in 345
business at a project site as a result of the agreement. If an 346
exemption for inventory is specifically granted in the agreement 347
pursuant to this division, the exemption applies to inventory 348
required to be listed pursuant to sections 5711.15 and 5711.16 of 349
the Revised Code, except, in the instance of an expansion or other 350
situations in which an enterprise was in business at the facility 351
prior to the establishment of the zone, the inventory that is 352
exempt is that amount or value of inventory in excess of the 353
amount or value of inventory required to be listed in the personal 354
property tax return of the enterprise in the return for the tax 355
year in which the agreement is entered into.356

       (ii) Exemption for a specified number of years, not to exceed 357
fifteen, of a specified portion, up to sixty per cent, of the 358
increase in the assessed valuation of real property constituting 359
the project site subsequent to formal approval of the agreement by 360
the board;361

       (iii) Provision for a specified number of years, not to 362
exceed fifteen, of any optional services or assistance the board 363
is authorized to provide with regard to the project site;364

       (iv) The incentive described in division (C)(2) of section 365
5709.62 of the Revised Code.366

       (2) Enter into an agreement with an enterprise that plans to 367
purchase and operate a large manufacturing facility that has 368
ceased operation or has announced its intention to cease 369
operation, in return for exemption for a specified number of 370
years, not to exceed fifteen, of a specified portion, up to one 371
hundred per cent, of tangible personal property used in business 372
at the project site as a result of the agreement, or of real 373
property constituting the project site, or both.374

       (C)(1)(a) Notwithstanding divisions (B)(1)(b)(i) and (ii) of 375
this section, the portion of the assessed value of tangible 376
personal property or of the increase in the assessed valuation of 377
real property exempted from taxation under those divisions may 378
exceed sixty per cent in any year for which that portion is 379
exempted if the average percentage exempted for all years in which 380
the agreement is in effect does not exceed fifty per cent, or if 381
the board of education of the city, local, or exempted village 382
school district within the territory of which the property is or 383
will be located approves a percentage in excess of sixty per cent.384

       (b) Notwithstanding any provision of the Revised Code to the 385
contrary, the exemptions described in divisions (B)(1)(b)(i), 386
(ii), (iii), and (iv) and (B)(2) of this section may be for up to 387
fifteen years if the board of education of the city, local, or 388
exempted village school district within the territory of which the 389
property is or will be located approves a number of years in 390
excess of ten.391

       (c) For the purpose of obtaining the approval of a city, 392
local, or exempted village school district under division 393
(C)(1)(a) or (b) of this section, the board of county 394
commissioners shall deliver to the board of education a notice not 395
later than forty-five days prior to approving the agreement, 396
excluding Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays as defined in 397
section 1.14 of the Revised Code. The notice shall state the 398
percentage to be exempted, an estimate of the true value of the 399
property to be exempted, and the number of years the property is 400
to be exempted. The board of education, by resolution adopted by a 401
majority of the board, shall approve or disapprove the agreement 402
and certify a copy of the resolution to the board of county 403
commissioners not later than fourteen days prior to the date 404
stipulated by the board of county commissioners as the date upon 405
which approval of the agreement is to be formally considered by 406
the board of county commissioners. The board of education may 407
include in the resolution conditions under which the board would 408
approve the agreement, including the execution of an agreement to 409
compensate the school district under division (B) of section 410
5709.82 of the Revised Code. The board of county commissioners may 411
approve the agreement at any time after the board of education 412
certifies its resolution approving the agreement to the board of 413
county commissioners, or, if the board of education approves the 414
agreement conditionally, at any time after the conditions are 415
agreed to by the board of education and the board of county 416
commissioners.417

       If a board of education has adopted a resolution waiving its 418
right to approve agreements and the resolution remains in effect, 419
approval of an agreement by the board of education is not required 420
under division (C) of this section. If a board of education has 421
adopted a resolution allowing a board of county commissioners to 422
deliver the notice required under this division fewer than 423
forty-five business days prior to approval of the agreement by the 424
board of county commissioners, the board of county commissioners 425
shall deliver the notice to the board of education not later than 426
the number of days prior to such approval as prescribed by the 427
board of education in its resolution. If a board of education 428
adopts a resolution waiving its right to approve agreements or 429
shortening the notification period, the board of education shall 430
certify a copy of the resolution to the board of county 431
commissioners. If the board of education rescinds such a 432
resolution, it shall certify notice of the rescission to the board 433
of county commissioners.434

       (2) The board of county commissioners shall comply with 435
section 5709.83 of the Revised Code unless the board of education 436
has adopted a resolution under that section waiving its right to 437
receive such notice.438

       (D) This division applies to zones certified by the director 439
of development under this section prior to July 22, 1994.440

       On or before October 15, 20132014, and with the consent of 441
the legislative authority of each affected municipal corporation 442
or board of township trustees of each affected township, the board 443
of county commissioners that designated a zone to which this 444
division applies may enter into an agreement with an enterprise if 445
the board finds that the enterprise satisfies one of the criteria 446
described in divisions (D)(1) to (5) of this section:447

       (1) The enterprise currently has no operations in this state 448
and, subject to approval of the agreement, intends to establish 449
operations in the zone;450

       (2) The enterprise currently has operations in this state 451
and, subject to approval of the agreement, intends to establish 452
operations at a new location in the zone that would not result in 453
a reduction in the number of employee positions at any of the 454
enterprise's other locations in this state;455

       (3) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 456
intends to relocate operations, currently located in another 457
state, to the zone;458

       (4) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 459
intends to expand operations at an existing site in the zone that 460
the enterprise currently operates;461

       (5) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 462
intends to relocate operations, currently located in this state, 463
to the zone, and the director of development has issued a waiver 464
for the enterprise under division (B) of section 5709.633 of the 465
Revised Code.466

       The agreement shall require the enterprise to agree to 467
establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a facility in the zone and 468
hire new employees, or preserve employment opportunities for 469
existing employees, in return for one or more of the incentives 470
described in division (B) of this section.471

       (E) All agreements entered into under this section shall be 472
in the form prescribed under section 5709.631 of the Revised Code. 473
After an agreement under this section is entered into, if the 474
board of county commissioners revokes its designation of a zone, 475
or if the director of development revokes a zone's certification, 476
any entitlements granted under the agreement shall continue for 477
the number of years specified in the agreement.478

       (F) Except as otherwise provided in this division, an 479
agreement entered into under this section shall require that the 480
enterprise pay an annual fee equal to the greater of one per cent 481
of the dollar value of incentives offered under the agreement or 482
five hundred dollars; provided, however, that if the value of the 483
incentives exceeds two hundred fifty thousand dollars, the fee 484
shall not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars. The fee shall 485
be payable to the board of county commissioners once per year for 486
each year the agreement is effective on the days and in the form 487
specified in the agreement. Fees paid shall be deposited in a 488
special fund created for such purpose by the board and shall be 489
used by the board exclusively for the purpose of complying with 490
section 5709.68 of the Revised Code and by the tax incentive 491
review council created under section 5709.85 of the Revised Code 492
exclusively for the purposes of performing the duties prescribed 493
under that section. The board may waive or reduce the amount of 494
the fee charged against an enterprise, but such waiver or 495
reduction does not affect the obligations of the board or the tax 496
incentive review council to comply with section 5709.68 or 5709.85 497
of the Revised Code, respectively.498

       (G) With the approval of the legislative authority of a 499
municipal corporation or the board of township trustees of a 500
township in which a zone is designated under division (A) of this 501
section, the board of county commissioners may delegate to that 502
legislative authority or board any powers and duties of the board 503
of county commissioners to negotiate and administer agreements 504
with regard to that zone under this section.505

       (H) When an agreement is entered into pursuant to this 506
section, the board of county commissioners authorizing the 507
agreement or the legislative authority or board of township 508
trustees that negotiates and administers the agreement shall 509
forward a copy of the agreement to the director of development and 510
to the tax commissioner within fifteen days after the agreement is 511
entered into. If any agreement includes terms not provided for in 512
section 5709.631 of the Revised Code affecting the revenue of a 513
city, local, or exempted village school district or causing 514
revenue to be foregone by the district, including any compensation 515
to be paid to the school district pursuant to section 5709.82 of 516
the Revised Code, those terms also shall be forwarded in writing 517
to the director of development along with the copy of the 518
agreement forwarded under this division.519

       (I) After an agreement is entered into, the enterprise shall 520
file with each personal property tax return required to be filed, 521
or annual report that is required to be filed under section 522
5727.08 of the Revised Code, while the agreement is in effect, an 523
informational return, on a form prescribed by the tax commissioner 524
for that purpose, setting forth separately the property, and 525
related costs and values, exempted from taxation under the 526
agreement.527

       (J) Enterprises may agree to give preference to residents of 528
the zone within which the agreement applies relative to residents 529
of this state who do not reside in the zone when hiring new 530
employees under the agreement.531

       (K) An agreement entered into under this section may include 532
a provision requiring the enterprise to create one or more 533
temporary internship positions for students enrolled in a course 534
of study at a school or other educational institution in the 535
vicinity, and to create a scholarship or provide another form of 536
educational financial assistance for students holding such a 537
position in exchange for the student's commitment to work for the 538
enterprise at the completion of the internship.539

       (L) The tax commissioner's authority in determining the 540
accuracy of any exemption granted by an agreement entered into 541
under this section is limited to divisions (B)(1)(b)(i) and (ii), 542
(B)(2), (C), and (I) of this section, division (B)(1)(b)(iv) of 543
this section as it pertains to divisions (C)(2)(a), (b), and (c) 544
of section 5709.62 of the Revised Code, and divisions (B)(1) to 545
(10) of section 5709.631 of the Revised Code and, as authorized by 546
law, to enforcing any modification to, or revocation of, that 547
agreement by the board of county commissioners or the director of 548
development or, if the board's powers and duties are delegated 549
under division (G) of this section, by the legislative authority 550
of a municipal corporation or board of township trustees.551

       Sec. 5709.632.  (A)(1) The legislative authority of a 552
municipal corporation defined by the United States office of 553
management and budget as a principal city of a metropolitan 554
statistical area may, in the manner set forth in section 5709.62 555
of the Revised Code, designate one or more areas in the municipal 556
corporation as a proposed enterprise zone.557

       (2) With the consent of the legislative authority of each 558
affected municipal corporation or of a board of township trustees, 559
a board of county commissioners may, in the manner set forth in 560
section 5709.62 of the Revised Code, designate one or more areas 561
in one or more municipal corporations or in unincorporated areas 562
of the county as proposed urban jobs and enterprise zones, except 563
that a board of county commissioners may designate no more than 564
one area within a township, or within adjacent townships, as a 565
proposed urban jobs and enterprise zone.566

       (3) The legislative authority or board of county 567
commissioners may petition the director of development for 568
certification of the area as having the characteristics set forth 569
in division (A)(3) of section 5709.61 of the Revised Code. Within 570
sixty days after receiving such a petition, the director shall 571
determine whether the area has the characteristics set forth in 572
that division and forward the findings to the legislative 573
authority or board of county commissioners. If the director 574
certifies the area as having those characteristics and thereby 575
certifies it as a zone, the legislative authority or board may 576
enter into agreements with enterprises under division (B) of this 577
section. Any enterprise wishing to enter into an agreement with a 578
legislative authority or board of county commissioners under this 579
section and satisfying one of the criteria described in divisions 580
(B)(1) to (5) of this section shall submit a proposal to the 581
legislative authority or board on the form prescribed under 582
division (B) of section 5709.62 of the Revised Code and shall 583
review and update the estimates and listings required by the form 584
in the manner required under that division. The legislative 585
authority or board may, on a separate form and at any time, 586
require any additional information necessary to determine whether 587
an enterprise is in compliance with an agreement and to collect 588
the information required to be reported under section 5709.68 of 589
the Revised Code.590

       (B) Prior to entering into an agreement with an enterprise, 591
the legislative authority or board of county commissioners shall 592
determine whether the enterprise submitting the proposal is 593
qualified by financial responsibility and business experience to 594
create and preserve employment opportunities in the zone and to 595
improve the economic climate of the municipal corporation or 596
municipal corporations or the unincorporated areas in which the 597
zone is located and to which the proposal applies, and whether the 598
enterprise satisfies one of the following criteria:599

       (1) The enterprise currently has no operations in this state 600
and, subject to approval of the agreement, intends to establish 601
operations in the zone;602

       (2) The enterprise currently has operations in this state 603
and, subject to approval of the agreement, intends to establish 604
operations at a new location in the zone that would not result in 605
a reduction in the number of employee positions at any of the 606
enterprise's other locations in this state;607

       (3) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 608
intends to relocate operations, currently located in another 609
state, to the zone;610

       (4) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 611
intends to expand operations at an existing site in the zone that 612
the enterprise currently operates;613

       (5) The enterprise, subject to approval of the agreement, 614
intends to relocate operations, currently located in this state, 615
to the zone, and the director of development has issued a waiver 616
for the enterprise under division (B) of section 5709.633 of the 617
Revised Code.618

       (C) If the legislative authority or board determines that the 619
enterprise is so qualified and satisfies one of the criteria 620
described in divisions (B)(1) to (5) of this section, the 621
legislative authority or board may, after complying with section 622
5709.83 of the Revised Code and on or before October 15, 2013623
2014, and, in the case of a board of commissioners, with the 624
consent of the legislative authority of each affected municipal 625
corporation or of the board of township trustees, enter into an 626
agreement with the enterprise under which the enterprise agrees to 627
establish, expand, renovate, or occupy a facility in the zone and 628
hire new employees, or preserve employment opportunities for 629
existing employees, in return for the following incentives:630

       (1) When the facility is located in a municipal corporation, 631
a legislative authority or board of commissioners may enter into 632
an agreement for one or more of the incentives provided in 633
division (C) of section 5709.62 of the Revised Code, subject to 634
division (D) of that section;635

       (2) When the facility is located in an unincorporated area, a 636
board of commissioners may enter into an agreement for one or more 637
of the incentives provided in divisions (B)(1)(b), (B)(2), and 638
(B)(3) of section 5709.63 of the Revised Code, subject to division 639
(C) of that section.640

       (D) All agreements entered into under this section shall be 641
in the form prescribed under section 5709.631 of the Revised Code. 642
After an agreement under this section is entered into, if the 643
legislative authority or board of county commissioners revokes its 644
designation of the zone, or if the director of development revokes 645
the zone's certification, any entitlements granted under the 646
agreement shall continue for the number of years specified in the 647
agreement.648

       (E) Except as otherwise provided in this division, an 649
agreement entered into under this section shall require that the 650
enterprise pay an annual fee equal to the greater of one per cent 651
of the dollar value of incentives offered under the agreement or 652
five hundred dollars; provided, however, that if the value of the 653
incentives exceeds two hundred fifty thousand dollars, the fee 654
shall not exceed two thousand five hundred dollars. The fee shall 655
be payable to the legislative authority or board of commissioners 656
once per year for each year the agreement is effective on the days 657
and in the form specified in the agreement. Fees paid shall be 658
deposited in a special fund created for such purpose by the 659
legislative authority or board and shall be used by the 660
legislative authority or board exclusively for the purpose of 661
complying with section 5709.68 of the Revised Code and by the tax 662
incentive review council created under section 5709.85 of the 663
Revised Code exclusively for the purposes of performing the duties 664
prescribed under that section. The legislative authority or board 665
may waive or reduce the amount of the fee charged against an 666
enterprise, but such waiver or reduction does not affect the 667
obligations of the legislative authority or board or the tax 668
incentive review council to comply with section 5709.68 or 5709.85 669
of the Revised Code, respectively.670

       (F) With the approval of the legislative authority of a 671
municipal corporation or the board of township trustees of a 672
township in which a zone is designated under division (A)(2) of 673
this section, the board of county commissioners may delegate to 674
that legislative authority or board any powers and duties of the 675
board to negotiate and administer agreements with regard to that 676
zone under this section.677

       (G) When an agreement is entered into pursuant to this 678
section, the legislative authority or board of commissioners 679
authorizing the agreement shall forward a copy of the agreement to 680
the director of development and to the tax commissioner within 681
fifteen days after the agreement is entered into. If any agreement 682
includes terms not provided for in section 5709.631 of the Revised 683
Code affecting the revenue of a city, local, or exempted village 684
school district or causing revenue to be forgone by the district, 685
including any compensation to be paid to the school district 686
pursuant to section 5709.82 of the Revised Code, those terms also 687
shall be forwarded in writing to the director of development along 688
with the copy of the agreement forwarded under this division.689

       (H) After an agreement is entered into, the enterprise shall 690
file with each personal property tax return required to be filed 691
while the agreement is in effect, an informational return, on a 692
form prescribed by the tax commissioner for that purpose, setting 693
forth separately the property, and related costs and values, 694
exempted from taxation under the agreement.695

       (I) An agreement entered into under this section may include 696
a provision requiring the enterprise to create one or more 697
temporary internship positions for students enrolled in a course 698
of study at a school or other educational institution in the 699
vicinity, and to create a scholarship or provide another form of 700
educational financial assistance for students holding such a 701
position in exchange for the student's commitment to work for the 702
enterprise at the completion of the internship.703

       Section 2.  That existing sections 5709.62, 5709.63, and 704
5709.632 of the Revised Code are hereby repealed.705