What is JOBZ?
Passed into law by the 2003 Legislature and launched on January 1, 2004, the Job Opportunity Building Zone (JOBZ) initiative is Minnesota’s marquee rural economic development stimulus program. The program provides substantial tax relief to companies that start up or expand in targeted areas of Greater Minnesota – from the date they sign a business subsidy agreement until the program expires on December 31, 2015. The program identifies 10 zones encompassing more than 300 communities in every region of the state (except in the seven Twin Cities metropolitan counties). Besides targeting areas hit by economic distress, the program also aims to promote development in places that are already poised for business growth and have adequate infrastructure in place. It also seeks out places where favorable conditions exist for restoring productivity to under-used and unproductive properties through development, redevelopment, reclamation or recycling.
