Gallatin County approves local tax incentive for Nucor Tubular under Kentucky Business Investment program

The Gallatin County Fiscal Court voted June 13 to approve a resolution authorizing local participation in the Kentucky Business Investment (KBI) program for Nucor Tubular, a new industrial operation locating in the county.

The resolution, read aloud by the presiding official (Speaker 1), authorizes Gallatin County to participate by contributing 1 percent of its local occupational tax but specifies a pilot payment of $28,000 per year for 10 years in lieu of a full percentage-point waiver. The measure also requires Nucor to meet KBI program conditions including minimum full‑time-job targets, investments in wages and employee benefits; state participation will not exceed three times the local contribution, the court was told.

Why it matters: the county framed the incentive as a tool to attract and retain jobs and new investment. The presiding official said the original KBI application filed in 2021 contemplated up to 72 jobs, but current company figures showed 44 Kentucky-based jobs eligible for the incentive. The court was also told that out‑of‑state hires would not qualify for the local incentive; employees who do not reside in Kentucky would be subject to the full local occupational tax.

Details and vote: the resolution authorizes the judge/executive, magistrates and county employees to execute and deliver all documents necessary to implement the incentive agreement. The presiding official summarized statutory authority for the program as KRS 154.32 and related sections and read the resolution’s sections specifying the county’s commitments and the pilot payment structure. A motion to adopt the resolution was made and seconded; the fiscal court voted and the presiding official announced the motion passed.

What was not specified in the meeting: the resolution as presented did not list a full roster tying specific individual employees to the job targets, nor did it include a company-provided schedule of when the 44 jobs would be filled. The presentation included a wage range cited by the presiding official (“maybe $74,000 to $100,000”) that was presented as approximate.

Next steps: the resolution states it becomes effective upon passage and authorizes county officials to sign and file the necessary documents to receive the incentive and to verify the company satisfies statutory conditions. The court did not discuss a separate fiscal-impact analysis in detail during the public portion of the meeting.