In June 1995, the community of Lindsay was named the only unanimous choice as an All-America City for 1995. Some 23 citizens of Lindsay went to Cleveland, Ohio to participate in the finals of the 1995 All-America City Awards. This extremely prestigious award is given annually to the ten cities in the United States which have provided outstanding examples of community problem solving. These cities are recognized not so much for their current status but for their innovation and hard work at identifying and addressing community problems.

This program is sponsored by the National Civic League and the Allstate Foundation. It is anticipated that other cities in America can benefit from the trails blazed by the 1995 All-America Cities. This is Lindsay’s story.

Nestled at the base of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in California’s rich San Joaquin Valley, Lindsay historically has depended on seasonal agricultural production and processing, with citrus and olive growing as the local mainstay. As the region grew and developed, however, many downtown businesses moved to area malls, and low-income migrant workers settled in Lindsay, resulting in a major ethnic shift from Anglo to Hispanic. Faced with a decaying downtown, a stagnant tax base, an increasingly needy population, and an agriculture-dependent economy, Lindsay began to fight back in 1986, establishing a downtown redevelopment project and founding Healthy Kids-Healthy Lindsay to spearhead education on cultural diversity and deliver health and social services to needy families.

If you have a business in this city, contact us directly to see how much you can be saving through the enterprise zone tax credits.

In an effort to jumpstart the local economy, the Salinas Valley area has been granted a California Enterprise Zone approval status.  This means that businesses operating in the Salinas Valley area will be able to take advantage of numerous tax breaks.

The area includes the cities of Salinas, Gonzales, Soledad, Greenfield and King City as well as Monterey County areas connecting the five cities along Highway 101 and additional Monterey County properties identified in the map boundaries.

If you have a business in the Salinas Valley area, click here to contact us directly.

Delano is a culturally diverse community and has long been regarded as an international community. Though the population is drawn from multiple origins, the citizens still have many things in common, including a strong sense of community and work ethic. Delano is strategically located along Highway 99, one of California’s primary north/south arteries.

City of Delano Enterprise Zone: The City of Delano Enterprise Zone was first established in 1991. In November 2006, Delano received conditional approval for a new, expanded Enterprise Zone that now includes all businesses within the City limits and some County unincorporated areas.

The major benefits of the Enterprise Zone program are the tax savings on California business income tax. These include:

• Sales or Use Tax Credit: A tax credit against the purchase of new manufacturing, assembly, data processing or communications equipment equivalent to the amount of sales or use tax, or up to $1.35 million annually.
  
• Hiring Tax Credit: A tax credit on up to 50 percent of the wages to qualified new employees over a five-year period (up to 50 percent in the first year, 40 percent in the second year, etc.). Effective January 1, 2008 the maximum credit will be over $37,000 per employee.
  
• Accelerated Depreciation Deduction: The option to accelerate depreciation on business property. A business may treat 40 percent of the cost of qualified property as a business expense in the first year it is placed into service for a maximum deduction of $20,000 per year, whichever is smaller.
  
• Loss Carry Forward: All net operating losses may be carried forward as a deduction for fifteen years.
  
• Net Interest Deduction for Lenders: Allows lenders a deduction on the net interest earned from loans made to Enterprise Zone businesses.
  
• Qualified loans include business loans, mortgages and loans from noncommercial sources.
  
• Preference on State Contracts: Enterprise Zone businesses receive special points when bidding on State contracts.
  

The City of Barstow is located in the Inland Empire North region of San Bernardino County, midway between Los Angeles and Las Vegas.  With Interstates 15 and 40, and highways 58 and 247 all converging in Barstow, the city is a major transportation corridor with more than 60 million people in 19 million vehicles traveling through Barstow each year. The city is home to an Amtrak depot at its Historic Harvey House.

Catering to the tourists is Barstow Outlet and Tanger Outlet Center which together boasts more than 100 outlet stores. Barstow offers all the major conveniences of small town living with the resources of major metropolitan areas only a short drive away.

If you have a company in Barstow, click here for a free consultation and tips on how to take advantage of the Enterprise Zone tax credits available to you.

Bakersfield is a large city at the southern end of the San Joaquin Valley in Kern County, California, United States. It is one of the fastest-growing large-population cities in the USA, and is located roughly equidistant between Los Angeles and Fresno, 110 miles (180 km) to the south and north respectively. As of 2008, the population was estimated at 328,692 within the city limits, making it the 11th largest city in California and the 58th largest city in the United States according to U.S. Census estimates.

The Bakersfield Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) has a population of 780,711, making it the 65th largest metropolitan area in the country. It is California’s third largest inland city, after Fresno and Sacramento. The city’s economy relies on agriculture, petroleum extraction and refining, and manufacturing. Bakersfield is also the 11th fastest growing city in the United States with a population of over 100,000, and the fastest growing city in the United States with a population of over 250,000.

If you have a business in Kern, please click here to contact us and see what tax credits you can take advantage of.

The State designated Agua Mansa Enterprise Zone is located at the center of one of Southern California’s transportation hubs- served by Interstate 10 and 215, as well as the 91 and 60 freeways. The Zone is also conveniently located near three international airports, class-1 railroads, major trucking terminals and within close proximity to the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles.

The Agua Mansa Enterprise Zone offers expanding or relocating businesses State tax credits and various local government incentives.

Enterprise Zone advantages and incentives include:

• 100% Net Operating Loss (NOL) carry-forward for up to 15 years.
• Firms can earn $26,894 or more in State credits for each qualified employee hired.
• Corporations can earn sales tax credits on purchases of up to $20 million per year for qualified machinery and machinery parts.
• Up-front expensing of certain depreciable property.
• Lenders to Zone businesses may receive a net interest deduction.
• Unused tax credits can be applied to future tax years, stretching out the benefit of the initial investment.
• Enterprise Zone companies can earn preference points on State contracts.

San Diego County lies just north of the Mexican border—sharing a border with Tijuana—and lies south of Orange County. It is home to miles of beaches, a mild Mediterranean climate and 16 military facilities hosting the United States Navy, the United States Coast Guard and the United States Marine Corps.

San Diego’s economy is largely composed of agriculture, biotechnology/biosciences, computer sciences, electronics manufacturing, defense-related manufacturing, financial and business services, ship-repair and construction, software development, telecommunications, and tourism. The presence of the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) with the affiliated UCSD Medical Center promotes research in biotechnology.

If you have a business in the San Diego area, contact us for a free consultation on how you can take advantage of the California State Enterprise Zones.

Here’s to a Happy and Prosperous 2009 from the entire team here at C & I Tax!

In September 2006, the cities of South Gate and Lynwood, applied to the State of California for an Enterprise Zone designation. This is a competitive process and on November 3, 2006, the cities of South Gate and Lynwood were awarded conditional designation. The City of South Gate was also authorized to receive and process applications from eligible businesses located within the Enterprise Zone area.

WHO IS ELIGIBLE?
Any individual or company operating a trade or business within the Enterprise Zone is eligible to participate in the program.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS?
The Enterprise Zone program may provide substantial tax savings for your business. There are five incentives available to taxpayers that invest in or operate a trade or business located within the Enterprise Zone. For additional information about each incentive, refer to the State of California Franchise Tax Board Publication: FTB 3805Z Enterprise Zone Business Booklet 2006 or call the Voucher Coordinator in either the City of South Gate or City of Lynwood.

The incentives are:

1) Hiring Tax Credit

2) Sales and Use Tax Credit

3) Business Expense Deduction

4) Net Operating Loss Carryover

5) Net Interest Deduction for Lenders and Bankers

WHAT ARE STATE HIRING CREDITS?

• A business within the Enterprise Zone boundary may reduce its State income tax by a percentage of the amount of wages paid to one or more qualified employee(s).
• A business/firm can claim up to 50% of an employee’s wages in the first year of employment. The credit percentage decreases by 10% annually, phasing out after five years.
• Approximately $31, 570 or more in State tax credits is potentially available per qualifying employee hired over a five-year period.

Long Beach is a large city located in southern California, USA, on the Pacific coast. It is situated in Los Angeles County, about 20 miles (30 km) south of downtown Los Angeles. Long Beach borders Orange County on its southeast edge.

Long Beach is the 34th-largest city in the nation and the fifth-largest in California. As of 2008, its estimated population was 492,642. In addition, Long Beach is its county’s 2nd largest city after Los Angeles, and also the largest city nationwide that is not a county seat.

The Port of Long Beach is one of the world’s largest shipping ports. The city also has a large oil industry; oil is found both underground and offshore. Manufacturers include aircraft, automobile parts, electronic and audiovisual equipment, and home furnishings. It is also home to headquarters for corporations such as Epson America, Molina Healthcare, and Scan Health Plan. Long Beach has grown with the development of high-technology and aerospace industries in the area.