The 6th annual Oxnard Economic Outlook event speakers are predicting a slow road to recovery for the region. “Clearly we’re at the bottom,” said Chris Thornberg, of Beacon Economics, who made the presentation as part of UC Santa Barbara’s Economic Forecast Project which did the research for the economic outlook.

Thornberg has a moderate view of the economic recovery, he believes the worst is over, however he also is estimating a considerably long rebound for businesses. During his speech, he did reveal that the city of Oxnard has fared better than many other California cities.

Scott Hadly, from the Ventura County Star, reported, “The data he used, from 2008, showed that employment fell by just .03 percent in the city while countywide employment dropped by 2 percent. More recent numbers, however, show that while the nation as a whole is seeing unemployment rates of 9.8 percent as of September, California’s rate was 12.2 percent. Ventura County’s unemployment rate was 11.2 percent. Oxnard’s rate was 15.1 percent in August.”

Despite a strong effort, the State of California has not given the city of Oxnard its desired Enterprise Zone. This has caused a significant stir in the region, since, from all appearances, Oxnard seemed to be an excellent candidate.  Instead of Oxnard, the state chose to award its new designations to:

• Hesperia
• Taft
• Tulare
• Pittsburg
• Sacramento

The Pacific Coast Business Times showed considerable consternation at the state’s decision:

“Oxnard is the biggest city in the biggest county in the tri-county region. It has a pro-business attitude, plenty of land and utility resources, a large and eager workforce and a desire to lead the state’s economic recovery. But that apparently means nothing in Sacramento, where the California Enterprise Zone Program recently turned down Oxnard’s request to join 41 other enterprise-zone locations in the state.”

With the need for economic development, certain regions in California are strongly pushing for Enterprise Zone designation.  Most recently, Bruce Stenslie and Steve Kinney, of the Ventura County Star, had this to say about the value of the California Enterprise Zone program:

To understand why cities seek an enterprise-zone designation, and to evaluate its merits, it’s important to understand how it works. Enterprise zones are tied to areas that suffer higher-than-average unemployment and poverty. Businesses within an enterprise zone may receive tax credits for hiring new workers, but only for workers who reside within the enterprise zone or who face serious barriers to employment. The benefits for Oxnard are unique. We have high levels of joblessness in neighborhoods near the city’s industrial and commercial districts, but a disconnect between employers and residents. An enterprise-zone designation will place a premium on the skills developed by workers in the city, by rewarding business with a tax incentive for training and hiring local workers.

If you have a business in an Enterprise Zone, please contact us directly for a free consultation to see the tax credits that are available to you.