NC approves Apple handout

The General Assembly of North Carolina has approved a new tax bill specifically geared towards attracting an Apple server farm, the Associated Press writes. The bill was approved by the state Senate on Monday night with a 40-to-8 vote, leaving only a signature from Gov. Beverly Perdue in the way of transformation into law. The final debate is reported to have lasted less than a minute, with Republican Senator Tom Apodaca noting that the state has been focusing too heavily on attracting large corporations, at the expense of small businesses.

The view was challenged by another Republican, Sen. David Hoyle, who argued that businesses around the server farm will benefit from the need to provide supplementary services. Provisions of the bill specify that the farm must be built out in a rural area, and generate $1 billion in investments over nine years in order to qualify for approximately $46 million in tax breaks, distributed over 10 years. If built, the farm should also generate hundreds of temporary construction jobs, to be followed by somewhat under 100 full-time positions in the complex.

Legislators have been careful to avoid naming a specific company in debating the tax bill, but it is widely acknowledged that politicians are favoring Apple, which has been hunting for an east-coast server site. The company has however declined to comment on matters in North Carolina, which means it is still unknown if any location in the state will be chosen.

by MacNN Staff