The IDA of Russell County is serious about attracting new businesses into our county. Historically, we've proven our capacity to provide rewarding incentives, as exemplified by our negotiations on behalf of IT giant CGI, now operating in our Russell Regional Business Technology Park in Lebanon.

We have access to an array of financial outlets through partnerships with local, regional, and state economic development organizations. The amount of financial support provided is based in part on the proposed number of permanent jobs, your company's wage rates, and the scope of the capital investment. All incentives and financing programs are subject to certain eligibility, application, due diligence, and approval requirements.

Russell County is a county-wide HUBZone. Here are some of the advantages of locating your business in our County.

Listed below are some of the organizations and entities with which we often work to provide incentives, along with descriptions of some of their key programs. We will work with you to determine which ones are the most appropriate.

Russell County and the Town of Lebanon have a history of working together to achieve economic development goals. This has involved contributions of land, site preparation and/or partnering for bond issuance to facilitate an incentive negotiation. Russell County also has the authority to offer incentives (waivers, exemptions and grants) related to its technology zone, located in Russell Regional Business Technology Park in Lebanon.

Created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1988, the VCEDA was designed to enhance and diversify a seven-county (including Russell County), one-city, coal-producing area in Southwest Virginia. VCEDA's financing programs are funded by taxes paid by the coal and natural gas industries in this region. The organization commonly provides low-interest loans to for-profit employers and industrial development authorities.

Also known as the Virginia Tobacco Commission or VTC, this commission was created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1999. The VTC uses proceeds from the national tobacco settlement to promote economic growth and development in tobacco-dependent communities. A commonly applied VTC program is the Tobacco Region Opportunity Fund, which provides discretionary cash grants to localities that help with recruitment.

Virginia has developed a number of ways to encourage economic development, including provision of tax credits and exemptions for businesses choosing to locate in the state. For example, items purchased for direct use or consumption in manufacturing operations are tax-exempt.

The VEDP is a state authority that was created in 1995 to cultivate new business investment, foster international trade growth and encourage expansion of existing businesses in the Commonwealth. The VEDP sponsors the Commonwealth's Opportunity Fund (COF), a cash grant that could be applied if certain criteria are met (e.g., at least $1.5 million in qualifying investment and 15 full-time employees with salaries of at least $29,582 annually). A COF is awarded to the locality for the benefit of the company and may be used toward certain qualifying expenditure, including site acquisition and development, transportation and utility infrastructure, construction or build-out of buildings and training.

The Virginia Jobs Investment Program (VJIP) is a discretionary program that provides funding to companies creating new jobs or experiencing technological change to reduce the human resource development costs for new companies, expanding companies, and companies retraining their employees. In addition to direct funding to offset a company's recruitment and training costs, Business Managers offer human resource consultative support at no charge.

The Virginia Talent Accelerator Program, delivered by VEDP in partnership with the Virginia Community College System, provides world-class training and recruitment solutions that are fully customized to a company’s unique operations, equipment, standards, and culture. All program services are provided at no cost to qualified new and expanding companies as an incentive for job creation.

The VEC serves businesses and employers through its Business Resource Unit. The organization provides a Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) to employers that hire individuals who consistently experience high rates of unemployment due to a variety of employment barriers.