How Ohio Impacts the Bottom Line

Above, Cincinnati, Southern Ohio's big city neighbor. As the 1.6 million people in the metro area of Cincinnati push east, Southern Ohio is sketching new lines of growth. The Cincinnati overflow is already affecting Clermont County, where Ford has its big Transmission Plant in Batavia. Next to feel the impact is Brown County. Cincinnati's beltway -- I-275 -- is just 20 minutes west, and many of Brown County's people commute to jobs in the River City. The first area to see attention from industry is the intersection of the Appalachian Highway and U.S. 68 at Mount Orab. Already the area is peppered with signs calling attention to available rail-served industrial land in Mount Orab's Enterprise Zone. Brown County's population has grown 11 percent since 1990, making it one of the fastest growing counties in Ohio. Neighboring Highland County, also on Cincinnati's threshold, comes close to matching Brown County's population growth. Says Highland County economic developer Tom Wyatt: "We're still country, still small town, but we're seeing a lot of action." Left, Cincinnati Milacron employs 483 in Brown County in production of plastic injection molding equipment.

One of the key factors supporting Ohio's economic development successes of this decade are Gov. George Voinovich's series of "jobs" bills. Ackowledged as one of the most innovative packages of initiatives in the nation, the measures reward job creation and capital investment.

The Job Creation Act provides tax credits and rebates for businesses that expand their employment rolls, introduce or expand export activity or are involved in R&D activity.

Other key programs fund infrastructure improvements and expedite highway construction.

The Machinery and Equipment (M&E) tax credit provides a nonrefundable corporate franchise or state income tax credit for Ohio manufacturers who purchase new machinery and equipment and use it in production and assembly of manufactured goods. The credit is taken against the percentage increase in investment over the 1992-94 annual average. The qualifying period for purchases extends to Dec. 31, 1998.

While the M&E credit is 7.5 percent for most of the state, it rises to 13.5 percent in counties with high unemployment.

Some of Southern Ohio's counties are eligible for the higher level of tax credit.

Another state program encourages reuse of "brownfield sites." A tax credit encourages the private sector to clean up environmentally damaged sites, and the state has dedicated funds for site clean-up loans.

This program attracted a new industry to Scioto County recently. OSCO Industries is hiring 150 workers for a new $17 million iron products factory. The plant is being constructed on part of a 150-acre site that was once occupied by a steel mill.

Local incentives are also attractive. Many cities and counties in Southern Ohio offer Enterprise Zones and Community Reinvestment Areas, where attractive property tax incentives apply to new and expanded industry. The incentives run as high as 100 percent in some Southern Ohio counties.