INCENTIVES
City
The City of Stillwater leadership and the city council use economic development tools and incentives at their discretion.
Chamber of Commerce
The Chamber of Commerce works in collaboration with the city to connect businesses with options for incentivizing their new development, remodel or expansion.
State
Incentives are available at the State level through the Oklahoma Department of Commerce, Oklahoma Finance Authority and USDA Rural Development.
Tax Rates
Oklahoma is a competitive place to do business. Ranking 23rd in taxing structures in the United States and a strong history of pro-business politics, Stillwater is the best of Oklahoma's business practice.
Collaborative Effort
Economic Development is an effort of collaboration between the City of Stillwater and the Stillwater Chamber of Commerce. All possible incentives for business development will be levied at the discretion of the leadership of the City of Stillwater and Stillwater City Council.
In recent years, steps have been taken to implement economic development tools, such as Tax Increment Financing Districts to strategically redevelop different districts around Stillwater. The chamber is the "front porch" into the community, starting the conversation around incentives, with primary negotiations happening between the City of Stillwater and the business.
State Incentives
Available through the state department of commerce, there are many opportunities to incentivize your business development as it pertains to start-up expenses, property tax or talent and workforce development. Oklahoma is fantastic state to do business, with competitively low operating costs and incentives available to ease the burden of initial development.
Quality Jobs Program
This program provides quarterly cash payments up to 5% of new payrolls for up to 10 years. Companies must achieve an average wage threshold and $2.5 million in new annual payrolls within three years to qualify. Companies must offer basic health insurance to employees. In some cases, qualifying companies must also attain 75% out-of-state sales.
Small Employer Quality Jobs Program
Qualifying payrolls must be attributable to annual salaries that are at least 110% of the average wage of the county in which the jobs are located. Companies must attain 35% out-of-state sales during the first two years of participation and 60% thereafter.
21st Century Quality Jobs
This program is designed to attract growth industries and sectors to Oklahoma in the 21st century through a policy of rewarding businesses with a highly skilled, knowledge-based workforce. This incentive reduces out-of-state sales requirements from 75% to 50% for industries that are required to have out-of-state sales, and requires only 10 full-time jobs at an annual wage typically 300% of the county average wage. It also maximizes the eligible incentive by allowing a net benefit rate of up to 10% of payroll.
New Jobs Tax Credit
This tax credit provides growing manufacturers with a substantial tax credit based on either an investment in depreciable property or on the addition of full-time-equivalent employees engaged in manufacturing, processing or aircraft maintenance.
- Choice of tax credit based on investment or new employees.
- Five-year state tax credit on the greater of 1% per year of investment in new depreciable property, or $500 per new job.
- Credit doubles to 2% per year based on investment or $1,000 per employee when the business is located in an Enterprise Zone. It also doubles when investments are greater than $40 million.
- Minimum investment of $50,000.
- Investment in Priority Enterprise Zones (PEZs) may take advantage of Federal Opportunity Zone Funds. PEZs have the same benefits as regular Enterprise Zones, and are designed to match the boundaries and duration of Federal Opportunity Zones.
Aerospace Industry Engineering Workforce Tax Credit
Aerospace companies hiring engineers in a variety of fields will receive a tax credit equal to five (5) percent of the compensation paid to an engineer until January 1, 2026, or ten (10) percent if the engineer graduated from an Oklahoma college or university (up to $12,500 per employee per year), plus another credit of up to fifty (50) percent of the tuition reimbursed to an employee until January 1, 2026. Additionally, the engineer hired receives a tax credit of $5,000 per year until January 1, 2026.
Oklahoma Innovation Expansion Program
The Oklahoma Innovation Expansion Program (OIEP) makes $15 million in funding available to qualifying companies across the state. OIEP supports high-impact new capital investment across a broad range of industries to help diversify the state’s economy, lead to new product development or increase capacity at Oklahoma’s existing companies. In addition to encouraging new capital investment, these awards support existing jobs and the creation of new jobs. The program is administered by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the Oklahoma Development Finance Authority (ODFA).
NOTICE: The application period for 2024 OIEP will begin on Monday, April 1, 2024, and close on April 12, 2024, at 5 p.m.
Financial Incentive for Your Diversification, Expansion or Development
This incentive makes monthly cash payment awards in the form of payroll tax rebates to help companies grow and offset the cost of capital expenditures incurred through business expansion investments in Oklahoma.
- Lower the cost of a capital project
- Improve return on investment
- Increase the scope of a planned expansion
- Enhance ability to finance a project
In April 2021, Governor Kevin Stitt announced the launch of the Oklahoma Innovation Expansion Program (OIEP), making $10 million in funding available to qualifying manufacturers across the state. Based on the success of the Oklahoma Bounce Back Assistance Program in 2020, OIEP was developed to support high-impact new capital investment across a broad range of industries to help diversify the state’s economy, lead to new product development or increase capacity at Oklahoma’s existing companies. In addition to encouraging new capital investment, these awards support existing jobs and the creation of new jobs. The program is administered by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce (Commerce) and the Oklahoma Development Finance Authority (ODFA).
Results from TIF Projects
Different Projects
These projects span across 5 total TIF districts
Dollars of Investment
The TIF economic Development Tool has resulted in over $2,000,000 dollars in commercial investment from the City of Stillwater
New Restaurant Concepts
moved into the Downtown District in Stillwater since 2022.