261—68.2 (15) Eligibility requirements.
	 68.2(1) Community approval. If the qualifying investment is $10 million or more, the community in which the business’s project is or will be located shall approve by ordinance or resolution the start-up, location, expansion, or modernization of the business for purposes of receiving tax incentives and assistance under this program.
	 68.2(2) Closures or relocations. The business shall not close or substantially reduce operations in one area of this state and relocate substantially the same operations in a community in another area of this state. This subrule shall not be construed to prohibit the business from expanding its operations in a community if existing operations of a similar nature in this state are not closed or substantially reduced.
	 68.2(3) No retail or service businesses. The business shall not be a retail or service business. For purposes of this subrule, a service business is a business providing services to a local consumer market which does not have a significant proportion of its sales coming from outside the state.
	 68.2(4) Created and retained jobs. The business shall create or retain jobs as part of a project.
	  a.   	 The business shall pay the qualifying wage threshold for HQJP as established in 261—Chapter 174.
	  b.   	 If the business is creating jobs, the business shall demonstrate that the jobs will pay at least 100 percent of the qualifying wage threshold at the start of the project completion period, at least 130 percent of the qualifying wage threshold by the project completion date, and at least 130 percent of the qualifying wage threshold until the maintenance period completion date.
	  c.   	 If the business is retaining jobs, the business shall demonstrate that the jobs retained will pay at least 130 percent of the qualifying wage threshold throughout both the project completion period and the maintenance period.
	 68.2(5) Determination of sufficient benefits. The business shall provide a sufficient package of benefits to each employee holding a created or retained job. The business shall offer a sufficient benefits package to its employees as defined in 261—Chapter 173.
	 68.2(6) Sufficient fiscal impact. The business shall demonstrate that the jobs created or retained will have a sufficient impact on state and local government revenues as determined by the department after calculating the fiscal impact ratio of the project.
	 68.2(7) Violations of law. If the department finds that a business has a record of violations of law over a period of time that tends to show a consistent pattern as described in 261—Chapter 172, the business shall not qualify for tax incentives and assistance under this program.
	 68.2(8) Competition. The department shall consider the impact of the proposed project on other Iowa businesses in competition with the business that is seeking tax incentives and assistance. The department shall make a good faith effort to identify existing Iowa businesses within an industry in competition with the business that is seeking tax incentives and assistance. The department shall make a good faith effort to determine the probability that the proposed financial assistance will negatively impact other existing Iowa businesses including but not limited to displacing employees of the existing business.
	 68.2(9) Other benefits. A business may seek benefits and assistance for its project from other applicable federal, state, and local programs in addition to those provided in this program. However, a business which has received assistance for its project from the wage-benefit tax credit program or the enterprise zone program shall not be eligible for tax incentives and assistance under this program. A business which has received assistance for its project from the new jobs and income program or the new capital investment program shall not be eligible for tax incentives and assistance under this program for the same project. However, the business may receive tax incentives and assistance under this program for subsequent projects.
	 68.2(10) Ineligibility—no high quality jobs created or retained. If a project is creating or retaining jobs, but none are high quality jobs, then the project is not eligible to receive benefits and assistance under this program.
[ARC 7557B, IAB 2/11/09, effective 3/18/09; ARC 7970B, IAB 7/15/09, effective 7/1/09]