Descripción

Local areas in Missouri can be designated as Renewable Energy Generation Zones and receive property tax abatements as part of the Enhanced Enterprise Zone program. Legislation (H.B. 737) enacted in July 2011 allows for new, expanded, or replacement business facilities to receive a property tax exemption from the applicable local government authority. Local governments must award at least a 50% property tax abatement for 10-25 years for improvements made to real property in an Enhanced Enterprise Zone. In addition, local governments have the option of awarding up to a 100% property tax abatement for up to 25 years if the facility has created and maintained at least 50 jobs averaging at least 35 hours a week.

In order to be designated as an Enhanced Enterprise Zone, the following criteria must be met:

• New or expanded business facilities must hire and maintain positions for 2 new employees and make a new investment of at least $100,000
• Replacement business facilities must hire and maintain positions for 2 new employees and make a new investment of at least $1,000,000
• All facilities must provide health insurance at all times, of which at least 50% must be paid by the employer

A Renewable Energy Generation Zone must be an area found by the local governing body to be a blighted area, and must contain "land, improvements, or a lock and dam site which is unutilized or underutilized for the production, generation, conversion, and conveyance of electrical energy from a renewable energy resource." Eligible renewable resources include wind, solar thermal, photovoltaics, energy crops, cellulosic agricultural residues, plant residues, landfill gas or methane from agricultural operations or wastewater treatment, pyrolysis or thermal depolymerization, clean and untreated wood, hydroelectric power, and fuel cells using hydrogen produced from one of the eligible renewable resources.  Application materials and instructions for Enhanced Enterprise Zone designation are available on the program web site.