Incentives - Business Development

Overview

Various incentive programs are available at the federal, state and local level to encourage growth in industry sectors most likely to stimulate and stabilize our economy and provide good paying jobs for our community. Some are specific to designated areas within the City of Spokane, such as the CEZ and HUBZone programs, and others are available statewide. Sometimes a business can benefit from a combination of incentives whose target areas all overlap, as depicted in this map.

A full summary of all Washington state business incentives can be found at http://www.choosewashington.com/state_data/Incentives.asp and http://dor.wa.gov/content/FindTaxesAndRates/TaxIncentives/IncentivePrograms.aspx.

Empowerment Zone

For development and redevelopment projects within the Empowerment Zone a significant portion of the GFCs are waived for water and sewer connections.

Section 13.04.2042 Water General Facilities Charge – Schedule of Charges
Section 13.03.0732 Wastewater General Facilities Charge – Schedule of Charges

Community Empowerment Zone (CEZ

The Spokane Community Empowerment Zone (CEZ) program is designed to stimulate economic development throughout Spokane County by offering special tax incentives to qualified businesses in order to create new business and employment opportunities for low income populations.

A range of B&O tax credits are available to certain types of businesses who locate in and/or employ residents of the Spokane Community Empowerment Zone (CEZ):

To qualify for tax incentives, businesses must:

Be engaged in Manufacturing, Research & Development or Software Development.
Apply for tax credits prior to ground breaking or hiring.
Locate or expand within the designated geographic area; and/or
Locate in a county having a designated zone and hire employees who are residents of the zone.

Companies interested in learning more about the CEZ program should contact Gary Mallon (509-710-3611, gmallon@greaterspokane.org) or Stan Key (509-742-9353, skey@greaterspokane.org) at Greater Spokane Incorporated for information and assistance.

More information is available on Greater Spokane Incorporated's website.

Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Zone

The HUBZone Empowerment Contracting Program stimulates economic development and creates jobs in urban and rural communities by providing Federal contracting preferences to small businesses. These preferences go to small businesses that obtain HUBZone certification in part by employing staff who live in a HUBZone. The company must also maintain a "principal office" in one of these specially designated areas.

Competitive contracts can be awarded with a price evaluation preference. The offer of the HUBZone small business must not be 10 percent higher than the offer of a non-small business. In addition, eligible HUBZone firms can qualify for higher SBA-guaranteed surety bonds on construction and service contract bids.

More information can be found at http://www.sba.gov/hubzone. For further information or assistance, contact the SBA Seattle District office, 206-553-7310. You can also contact Leslie Miller lmiller@greaterspokane.org, Eastern Washington PTAC manager, at (509) 321-3641. More information is available through PTAC's Resource Page – http://gsiptac.org/.

HUB Zone Coverage Map

Film Incentives

Motion Picture Competitiveness Program
Businesses who contribute to Washington State's Motion Picture Competitiveness Program are eligible for a B&O tax credit. This important incentive helps to both strengthen Washington's economy and enable our film industry to compete with other states that have incentive programs. The program provides the funding for rebates to film production companies that use local talent, goods and services. More information is available by clicking on this link.

Customized Training Program

Businesses expanding in or relocating to Washington State are eligible for a program that pays the up-front costs of employee training. The community colleges will create customized training programs tailored to the specific skill needs of a business. Participating businesses then receive a state business and occupation (B&O) tax credit for 50 percent of the cost of that training. By partnering with Washington's 34 community and technical colleges and its licensed private career colleges, businesses will receive the quality training and education they need to grow. To further explore training options in Spokane, contact Joanne Murcar at Community Colleges of Spokane's Business and Community Training Center, (509) 434-5172, jmurcar@iel.spokane.edu. More information about this program is available by clicking on this link.

"Locally Owned & Operated" Business Recognition

Locally owned business recognition image Looking to support locally owned businesses? The City of Spokane is trying to make it easier for you.
The City has developed the Locally Owned Recognition Program to draw attention to small businesses that are owned and operated within the City. Qualified business will receive a decal to display in their windows that lets customers know they’re helping to support their local economy.
For more information please contact: Taxes and Licenses, (509) 625-6070, or Business and Development Services, Teri Stripes, (509) 625-6597 or tstripes@spokanecity.org