§ 9-247. Credit for property used as a publicly sponsored business incubator

   (a) "Business incubator" defined. -- In this section, "business incubator" means a program in which units of space are leased by multiple early-stage businesses that share physical common space, administrative services and equipment, business management training, mentoring, and technical support.

(b) In general. -- The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City or the governing body of a county or of a municipal corporation may grant, by law, a property tax credit against the county or municipal property tax imposed on property that is used as a business incubator if the State, a county, a municipal corporation, an organization exempt from taxation under § 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, a public institution of higher education, or an agency or instrumentality of the State, a county, a municipal corporation, or a public institution of higher education:

   (1) owns, controls, or leases the space that is used as a business incubator;

   (2) provides at least 50% of the total funding received by the business incubator from all sources, not including rents received from incubator tenant firms; or

   (3) is represented on the governance board that authorizes the annual budget of the business incubator.

(c) Amount, duration, eligibility, regulation. -- The Mayor and City Council of Baltimore City or the governing body of a county or municipal corporation may provide, by law, for:

   (1) the amount and duration of the property tax credit under this section;

   (2) additional eligibility criteria for the tax credit under this section;

   (3) regulations and procedures for the application and uniform processing of requests for the tax credit; and

   (4) any other provision necessary to carry out this section.

HISTORY: 2007, chs. 572, 573.