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Lawmakers press IEDC on leftover rural incentives and how ‘high‑wage’ jobs are defined
Summary
During presentations from the Indiana Economic Development Corporation, lawmakers clarified that rural counties have fewer than 50,000 residents, learned $17M–$19.5M remains reserved for rural incentives, and heard IEDC say it treats about $35/hour as a high‑wage job for incentive calculations.
Committee members questioned Indiana Economic Development Corporation officials about how rural-targeted incentives are defined and administered.
Brock Herr, presenting for the IEDC, told the State Budget Committee that roughly $17 million to $19.5 million remains reserved in the Deal Closing Fund for rural performance grants. Sen. Chris Garten asked whether the committee’s working definition of "rural" was counties with fewer than 50,000 residents; Herr confirmed that definition and said infrastructure scarcity in those counties makes it harder to attract projects and deploy those reserved funds.
Representative Gregory Porter asked how IEDC defines a "high-wage" job for incentive eligibility. Herr said the agency treats roughly $35 an hour as a high-wage job and uses county, state and national averages to calibrate incentives.
The exchange in the minutes is recorded as committee clarification during the IEDC presentations; no formal vote or award was recorded for the Deal Closing Fund amounts during this meeting.
