North Carolina hopes for $1 billion Apple investment
State lawmakers are trying to sweeten the pot to get Apple to open a server farm there, the Associated Press reports.
Update at 8:25 a.m. PDT: Further attribution has been added.
North Carolina officials are pushing to change state tax law in hopes of attracting new companies, specifically Apple, according to an Associated Press report.
The state is pursuing a $1 billion investment from Apple over a nine-year period to build a server farm, the AP said, citing an anonymous state official. However, the law must be changed to give state officials the ability to attract Apple through tax breaks and other incentives.
The tax breaks offered to Apple would be worth an estimated $46 million over the life of the deal, the AP reported. But Apple must jump a few hurdles itself. The company would have to meet its $1 billion investment target in order to get the tax breaks, the AP said. Apple would also have to locate the server farm in an area of the state with high unemployment--Catawba and Cleveland counties are said to be potential sites for investment.
Offering tax incentives is not a new practice for any state government, but North Carolina does have experience in attracting high-tech companies. Google signed a deal in 2007 worth $600 million to open a server farm in the state for a promised $260 million worth of incentives over 30 years, the AP reported.
The proposed tax changes that could potentially bring Apple to North Carolina are scheduled for a vote Tuesday.