Oregon Business Development Department
Chapter 123
Division 674
STANDARD EXEMPTION ON TAXABLE ENTERPRISE ZONE PROPERTY
123-674-0200
General Employment Terminology and Issues
As used in OAR 123-674-0100, with respect to counting the ‘number of employees’ for purposes of this division of administrative rules, especially 123-674-4000 to 123-674-4800:
(1) It does not involve averaging based on hours worked, such as full-time equivalency, but rather relies on counting full-time, year-round jobs associated with relevant business operations throughout the enterprise zone, either at a particular time or on average over a year or 12-month period.
(2) It relates primarily to “employees of the firm” or “employment of the firm,” as used in ORS 285C.200 and 285C.210, which:
(a) Includes positions or persons who are:
(A) Employed directly by the business firm, including but not limited to being hired or retained through lease or contract with the person or with a third party serving such a leasing or payroll function for the firm, provided that the firm nevertheless selected and directly manages their work, but excluding any employee of an independent contractor, or anyone whom the firm leases or contracts out to another business;
(B) Engaged a majority of their working time in eligible operations under ORS 285C.135, including but not limited to persons who perform eligible activities as described in OAR 123-674-1100 or 123-674-1200(3) or (4); and
(C) Located anywhere inside the enterprise zone in terms of where they spend at least 75 percent of their time on the job, as well as official work site.
(b) Excludes positions or persons who are employed or performing work:
(A) In temporary or seasonal jobs;
(B) For 32 or fewer hours per week;
(C) Solely in the construction, modification or installation of qualified property;
(D) Regularly outside the zone boundary;
(E) With ineligible operations at least half of their time; or
(F) At any other business firm, including but not limited to affiliates or commonly owned companies.
(3) Consistent with subsection (2) of this rule, only full-time jobs with the firm that are filled indefinitely and exist year-round at the firm’s eligible operations inside the zone are normally counted. The following are exceptions:
(a) Only employees who work at the particular headquarter-type facility are relevant in the case of OAR 123-674-1700, irrespective of other eligible employees inside the zone and paragraph (2)(a)(C) of this rule, and such employees may perform professional services or other normally ineligible activities regardless of paragraphs (2)(a)(B) and (b)(E);
(b) For the transfer of eligible operations within 30 miles of zone boundary, further requirements described in OAR 123-674-4100(3) and 123-674-4600(2) also cover employees at affected sites outside the zone, irrespective of paragraphs (2)(a)(C) and (b)(D) of this rule.
(c) The prohibition on jobs losses in Oregon more than 30 miles outside the zone also encompasses persons employed by any commonly controlled company (see 123-674-4200) irrespective of paragraph (2)(b)(F) of this rule.
(d) Jointly owned firms may combine their employment throughout the zone subject to section (4) of this rule, irrespective of paragraph (2)(b)(F) of this rule.
(e) Temporary workers filling permanent positions are acceptable in a one-off situation, irrespective of paragraph (2)(b)(A) of this rule, if the county assessor and the local zone manager conclude that:
(A) The qualified business firm is making every reasonable effort to fill such positions with permanent, regular hires; and
(B) The temporary workers and other potentially available job applicants do not meet reasonable, minimum standards of the firm for permanent hire, such as a high school diploma or equivalency.
(4) Under ORS 285C.135(4), two or more eligible business firms with 100-percent common ownership may elect to be treated as a single firm for combining zone employment, if authorized representative(s) of the firms or a parent company formally notify the local zone manager and county assessor to that effect before or with the initial exemption claim under 285C.220. Such an election affects all applicable provisions under 285C.050 to 285C.250 and this division of administrative rules, including but not limited to rendering moot any inter-firm lease of qualified property (which would then all be simply owned by the Firm/applicant), but it does not carry over to any subsequent authorization except in a terminated zone.
(5) Only newly created jobs may satisfy required increases in employment levels, as opposed to any employee associated with the merger or acquisition of another business firm or of its existing operations or property, except positions inside the zone that were vacant for 60 or more days at the time of Application, and for whom rehiring or reemployment was otherwise unlikely.
(6) As used in this rule and under ORS 285C.050:
(a) “Person” may mean two or more part-time employees who together perform a single job involving more than 32 hours of work per week by virtue of an established (job-sharing) arrangement.
(b) “32 hours per week” is computed by taking the total number of hours over the course of a year, for which the person is remunerated in the form of wage or salary, excluding holidays, vacation and other paid leave, and dividing by 52.
(c) “Temporary or seasonal jobs” are nonpermanent positions, including but not limited to persons recruited and receiving compensation through the firm or an outside agency on a short-term, ad hoc or as-needed basis, or where the firm hires, leases or contractually employs a persons for a period expected to be less than 12 consecutive months.
(7) There is no necessary relationship between minimum employment requirements and the requisite First Source Hiring Agreement, as addressed in OAR 123-070 and 123-674-7700 to 123-674-7730.
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS 285A.075 & 285C.060(1)
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS 285C.050, 285C.135, 285C.200 & 285C.210
History:
OBDD 7-2017, amend filed 11/29/2017, effective 11/29/2017
OBDD 14-2016, f. & cert. ef. 9-16-16
OBDD 15-2012, f. & cert. ef. 8-15-12
OBDD 31-2010, f. 6-30-10, cert. ef. 7-1-10
OBDD 27-2010, f. & cert. ef. 6-14-10