PARRIS N. GLENDENING, Governor                             Ch. 120

(2)     Be submitted on behalf of the political subdivision by its chief elected
officer, or, if none, by the governing body of the political subdivision;

(3)     State whether the political subdivision has examined the feasibility of
creating educational or training opportunities for employers and employees of business
entities located or to be located in the proposed enterprise zone; and

(4)     Set forth the standards with which a business entity must comply as a
precondition to its receiving the incentives and initiatives set forth in this subtitle.

(e)     Within 60 days following any submission date, the Secretary may designate
one or more enterprise zones from among the applications submitted to the Secretary on
or before that submission date, provided, however, that the Secretary may not designate
more than 6 enterprise zones in any 12 month period and no county may receive more
than 1 area designated as an enterprise zone in any calendar year. The determination of
the Secretary as to the areas designated enterprise zones shall be final, except that, for
any area not designated an enterprise zone, a political subdivision may reapply at any
time to the Secretary for designation of that area as an enterprise zone.

(f)     Any area that is designated an enterprise zone OR AN EMPOWERMENT ZONE
under federal law shall automatically and without any additional action by the political
subdivision or the Secretary be designated an enterprise zone under this section without
regard to any limitation on the number of enterprise zones that may be designated by the
Secretary. However, the incentives and initiatives provided for in this subtitle shall not be
available to business entities located in an enterprise zone designated under federal law
unless the Secretary and the Board of Public Works shall consent to the designation.

(g)     An application by a political subdivision and the designation by the Secretary
of an area as an enterprise zone shall constitute the State approval that may be required
for designation as an enterprise zone under federal law.

(h) Before designating an enterprise zone, the Secretary shall consult with and ask
the advice of the appropriate individuals and advisors.

[5-303.3 5-403.

(a) The Secretary may not designate any area an enterprise zone unless that area
satisfies at least one of the following requirements:

(1)     The average rate of unemployment in the area, or within a reasonable
proximity within that county to that area, for the most recent 18-month period for which
data are available must be at least 150 percent of the average rate of unemployment in
either the State of Maryland or the United States, whichever average rate is greater,
during that same period;

(2)     The population in the area or within a reasonable proximity within that
county to that area is a low-income poverty area on the basis of the most recent census;

(3)     At least 70 percent of the families living in the area or within a
reasonable proximity within that county to that area have incomes that are less than an
amount equal to 80 percent of the median family income within the political subdivision
in which the area is located; or

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