2012-93 AMENDING THE DECATUR MACON COUNTY ENTERPRISE ZONE - TERMINATION DATE - TAX ABATEMENT

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oECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION ECATUR 6 MACON COUNTY TO: Mayor Michael T. McElroy City Manager Ryan McCrady Members of the Decatur City Council From: Craig Coil Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone Administrator Date: December 10, 2012 Subject: Ordinances and Resolutions related to the Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone 1) Intergovernmental Agreement Between the City of Decatur and County of Macon 2) Ordinance for City of Decatur Property Tax Abatement within the Enterprise Zone 3) Administration Agreement between the City of Decatur&the Economic Development Corporation At this time,the Economic Development Corporation of Decatur& Macon County(EDC), as the designated zone administrator by formal agreement with the City of Decatur is requesting your approval of three items related to the operation of the Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone. History In 2003,the Decatur Enterprise Zone, which had been in place since 1983,was reauthorized by the State of Illinois for an additional 10 years ending in July 2013. As a result of the passage of new Enterprise Zone legislation by the Illinois General Assembly in May 2012, which was signed into law by Governor Pat Quinn in Decatur on August 7, 2012,the Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone received an automatic extension until December 31, 2016,with the potential to extend the zone for an additional 25 years to December 31, 2041, subject to application submission and approval by the State of Illinois. Prior to the expiration of the original Zone authority in 2003,the City and the EDC entered into an Administration Agreement to authorizing the EDC to manage and operate the Decatur Enterprise Zone. As a result of the 2003 renewal process and Zone life extension managed by the EDC,the County and City entered into an agreement in 2004 to allow the Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone to expand into unincorporated areas of Macon County. The City of Decatur also approved, in 2003, a property tax abatement incentive for eligible employers located within the Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone. Since 2003,The EDC, utilizing the Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone has assisted nearly 120 area employers as they created 1,471 direct jobs and retained just over 10,000 direct jobs resulting in capital investments approaching$1 billion. Additionally, according to DCEO Annual Reports,the local Enterprise Zone has proven itself to be one of the best performing zones in the State, as well as a critical component to the region's job attraction and retention efforts. Lack of an aggressive Enterprise Zone in Decatur and Macon County would place us at a serious competitive disadvantage compared to other Illinois communities and with other out of state locations. The Decatur Macon County Enterprise Zone is frequently cited a model Zone and has been used as a benchmark for other Zones throughout Illinois.