Because of Cottage Grove’s location, we can offer businesses moving to our community some great rural incentives. Our community is declared an Enterprise Zone offering tax incentives that few communities can beat. In Cottage Grove we can offer a three year tax abatement for qualifying businesses. The Oregon Department of Energy also offers the Business Energy Tax Credit to those who invest in energy conservation, recycling, renewable energy-related manufacturing and less-polluting transportation fuels. These competitive tax incentives will help offset the cost of moving or developing a business in Cottage Grove. For more details visit www.oregon4biz.com. For developers Cottage Grove has one of the lowest Service Development Charges in the state. Our low fees are just one of the many ways that Cottage Grove is inviting developers to “Come Grow With Us!”

Because of Cottage Grove’s location, we can offer businesses moving to our community some great rural incentives. Our community is declared an Enterprise Zone offering tax incentives that few communities can beat. In Cottage Grove we can offer a three year tax abatement for qualifying businesses. The Oregon Department of Energy also offers the Business Energy Tax Credit to those who invest in energy conservation, recycling, renewable energy-related manufacturing and less-polluting transportation fuels. These competitive tax incentives will help offset the cost of moving or developing a business in Cottage Grove.

Prior to commencing construction/installations, eligible business firms submit an application to “precertify.” Such firms include manufacturers, processors, shippers and other operations that serve businesses, and some types of headquarters and call centers, as well as hotels, motels and resorts in 28 of the 44 zones where the local governments opted to allow such businesses in addition to industrial operations. Retail, construction, financial and certain other activities are explicitly ineligible. Qualified property includes new buildings, additions, equipment and machinery, but land, existing property and minor items of personal property may not qualify.

The requirements for the business firm to qualify for at least the three-year enterprise zone exemption are as follows:
• Increase full-time, permanent employment of the firm inside the enterprise zone by the greater of one new job or 10 percent
• No concurrent job losses more than 30 miles from the zone
• Maintain mandatory employment levels during exemption period
• Enter into first-source agreement with local job training providers
• Satisfy local additional conditions, potentially imposed in an urban enterprise zone.

The extended abatement of four or five consecutive years depends on:
(1) “compensation” of new workers at 150 percent of county average wage,
(2) a written agreement with the local zone sponsor, and
(3) additional requirements that the local zone sponsor reasonably requests.

County assessors and local zone managers handle day-to-day business assistance and oversight of their enterprise zones, with state level support and coordination.

In exchange for locating or expanding in an enterprise zone, eligible (generally nonretail) business firms receive total exemption from the property taxes normally assessed on new plant and equipment for three to five years. Longer-term tax incentives may be offered in certain zones under a 1997 Law. An enterprise zone is sponsored by local city/county governments and typically serves as a focal point for local development efforts and incentives. Seventy-four cities in 31 counties currently use enterprise zones to create better economic opportunities.

Read more about tax incentives in an enterprise zone.