Requirements for area to be designated zone; exception

(1) An enterprise zone must be located in a local area in which: (a) Fifty percent or more of the households have incomes below 80 percent of the median income of this state, as defined by the most recent federal decennial census; (b) The unemployment rate is at least 2.0 percentage points greater than the comparable unemployment rate for this entire state, as defined by the most recently available data published or officially provided and verified by the United States Government, the Employment Department, the Portland State University Population Research Center or special studies conducted under a contract with a regional academic institution; or (c) The Oregon Business Development Department determines on a case-by-case basis using evidence provided by the cities, counties or ports designating the enterprise zone that there exists a level of economic hardship at least as severe as that described in paragraph (a) or (b) of this subsection. The evidence must be based on the most recently available data from official sources and may include a contemporary decline of the population in the enterprise zone, the percentage of persons in the enterprise zone below the poverty level relative to the percentage of the entire population of this state below the poverty level or the unemployment rate for the county or counties in which the enterprise zone is located. (2)(a) An urban enterprise zone may consist of a total area of not more than 12 square miles in size. (b) A rural enterprise zone may consist of a total area of not more than 15 square miles in size. (c) For purposes of this subsection, the area of the zone must be calculated by excluding that portion of the zone that lies below the ordinary high water mark of a navigable body of water. (3) Except as provided in subsection (4) of this section: (a) An urban enterprise zone must have 12 miles or less, and a rural enterprise zone must have 15 miles or less, as the greatest distance between any two points within the zone; and (b) Unconnected areas of an enterprise zone may not be more than five miles apart. (4) Unconnected areas of a rural enterprise zone may not be more than 15 miles apart when an unconnected area is entirely within a sparsely populated county, and the zone: (a) Must have 20 miles or less as the greatest distance between any two points within the zone, if only a portion of the zone is contained within a sparsely populated county; or (b) Must have 25 miles or less as the greatest distance between any two points within the zone, if the zone is entirely contained within a sparsely populated county. (5) This section does not apply to the designation or redesignation of a reservation enterprise zone or a reservation partnership zone. [Formerly 285B.662; 2005 c.94 §4; 2005 c.704 §9; 2007 c.71 §85; 2010 c.76 §19; 2012 c.71 §2; 2015 c.648 §8] (Electronic Commerce)