Iowa’s business climate has never been more favorable. Iowa has the lowest cost of doing

business in the nation, is perfectly positioned with its central location and has a diversified and

robust economy. Companies operating in Iowa benefit from a business-friendly state government,

business-minded tax incentives and a skilled and productive workforce within a right-to-work state.

Read more about the many business advantages companies enjoy in Iowa.

Companies doing business in Iowa enjoy one of the nation’s most business-friendly economic climates.

The proof is in the numbers.

• Iowa consistently has the lowest cost of doing business in the United States. (America’s Top States for Business, CNBC, 2011)

• Iowa’saverageindustrialelectricitycostperkWhis21percentbelowtheU.S.average.

(U.S. Energy Information Administration, 2011)

• Iowa’saverageleaseratesforindustrialspaceare13percentbelowtheU.S.average.(NAI Global, 2011)

• Iowa’sconstructioncostsforindustrialspaceare14percentbelowtheU.S.average.(RSMeans, 2010)

• Iowa’sworkers’compensationcostsareamongthenation’slowest.Theaveragecostofworkers’compensation

insuranceformanufacturersinIowais16percentlowerthanthenationalaverage.Iowalawprovidesfor

employer choice of doctor. (Actuarial and Technical Solutions, 2009)

• Iowa’sninelargestcommunitiesrankedasBestPlacesforBusiness. (Forbes Magazine, 2011)

Iowa’s central geographic location and abundance of transportation options make the state a quick and easy place

for businesses to distribute product.

• Threeinterstatehighways—I-35,I-80andI-29—passthroughIowaofferingcoast-to-coast,border-to-border

access in the U.S. transportation grid. The state‘s network of highways, intercontinental and short-line railroad

and barge routes combine to provide efficient and cost-effective transportation choices.

• Iowahasnearly4,000milesofrailfreighttrackoperatedby19railroadcompanies—fouraremajor,national

carriers. (Iowa Department of Transportation, 2008)

• Morethan175millionpoundsofcargoaretransportedthroughIowa’sairports.(Iowa Department of Transportation, 2011)

• Thereare60bargeterminalsthatshipandreceivetonnageinIowa—55ontheMississippiRiverandfiveonthe

Missouri River. (Iowa Department of Transportation, 2010)

Iowa has a diversified economic environment. Key industries in the state include: advanced manufacturing; renewable

energy and biorenewable chemicals; food processing; and insurance and financial services.

advanced manufacturing

• Iowa ranks second in the Midwest in terms of

value-added per manufacturing worker.

(U.S. Census Bureau, 2010)

• Iowa is ranked sixth nationally in terms of the

importance of manufacturing to the state’s

economy. (Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2011)

• Approximately4,100manufacturersemploy

about201,000Iowansandgeneratemorethan

$9.9billioninpayroll.

• Iowaexported$13.3billionworthofmanufac-

tured and value-added goods.

(Global Trade Information Service, 2011)

• Iowa’s manufactured exports have grown by

morethan37percentoverthelastfiveyears.

(Global Trade Information Service, 2011)

renewable energy and biorenewable chemicals

• Iowa is one of only a few states in the nation to

manufacture all of the main components of a

wind turbine — turbines, blades and towers.

• Iowa ranks second in the nation in wind

generation output. (AWEA, 2012)

• Hometomajormanufacturersand80industry

suppliers, Iowa is the leader for workers

employed in manufacturing for the wind industry

and second for construction and operations

and management. (Environmental Law & Policy Center, 2010 and

U.S. Wind Industry Annual Market Report - AWEA, 2010)

• Iowaleadsthenationinethanolproduction–40

ethanol refineries have a combined annual

capacityofalmost3.7billiongallons.

(Renewable Fuels Association, 2012)

• With11biodieselplantsinoperation,Iowa’s

biodieselproductionincreasedfrom50,000

gallonsin1999to304milliongallonsin2012.

(Iowa Renewable Fuels Association, 2012)

• Iowa is leading the way in developing and

expanding the market for value-added

biomass-based fuels and chemicals with a

concentration of raw materials and abundant

agricultural resources. According to the USDA,

fuelscreatedfrombiomasswillincreaseto10

percentby2020andto20percentby2030.

food processing

• Iowaishometo27ofthelargest100food

manufacturers/processors. (Food Processing Magazine, 2010)

• Iowa is home to the world’s largest cereal mill

(Quaker Oats) and caramel color plant

(Sethness) and is home to North America’s

largest spice plant (Tone’s).

• The food industry is a major component of

Iowa’s overall economy contributing over six

billiontothestate’sGrossDomesticProduct

(GDP),representingapproximately24percentof

Iowa’smanufacturingGDPandemployingmore

than51,000Iowans. (U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2010

and Iowa Workforce Development, 2012)

• Iowa creates a natural home to global food

processing and ingredient companies as the

number one producer in corn, soybeans, eggs

and pork.

insurance and financial services

• Iowa’s insurance industry output as a percent of

gross domestic product ranks third among the

50states.

(U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, 2009)

• In recent years, Iowa has lowered its insurance

premium tax by half to just one percent — one

of the lowest rates in the nation.

• Iowa has seen a solid financial services industry

expansion.Thereare39,600insuranceindustry

professionals currently employed in Iowa.

(Iowa Workforce Development, 2012)

“Diamond V ® has earned a global reputation of trust and reliability within the animal feed industry. One of the newest additions to

the industrial corridor of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, is our $25 million state-of-the-art manufacturing facility which will enhance our

ability to better service customers and keep pace with the growing demand both in the U.S. and around the world.

Why Iowa? We’ve been able to capitalize on Iowa’s superior business climate, central geographic location and excellent

transportation infrastructure. Since 1943, we’re proud to call Iowa home.”

JohnBloomhall

President&CEO,DiamondV®

corporate income tax

Iowa’s corporate income tax policies offer significant advantages for business:

• Single-factor,non-unitarytax—Iowa’staxisbasedonlyonthepercentageoftotalsalesincomewithinthestate.

• 50percentdeductibilityoffederaltaxesfromIowacorporateincome.

• Iowacorporateincometaxmaybereducedoreliminatedbystatetaxcreditprograms.

property and sales or use taxes

• Nopersonalpropertytaxforcorporateinventoriesofgoods-in-process,rawmaterialsorsalablegoods.

• Nopropertytaxonindustrialmachinery,equipmentorcomputers.

• Nosalesorusetaxonpurchasesofindustrialmachinery,equipmentandcomputersusedformanufacturingor

to process data by insurance companies, financial institutions or certain commercial enterprises.

• Nosalestaxonmaterialsusedinthemanufacturingprocessorpurchasesofelectricityornaturalgasused

directly in the manufacturing process.

refundable research and development tax credit

Iowa is one of only a few states in the nation to consistently offer a refundable research activities credit—even while

federal research credits have fluctuated with intermittent expiration dates and reinstatement periods. Iowa’s

refundablecreditforincreasingresearchactivitiesisupto6.5percentofthecompany’squalifyingresearch

expendituresinIowa.CompaniesapprovedforexpansioninanEnterpriseZoneorundertheHighQualityJobs

program may be eligible for a supplemental tax credit for qualifying research and development activities.

workforce

The success of a company depends heavily on the strength of its workforce. Iowa has all of the key elements to

provide a smart, productive workforce necessary to foster business growth. The combination of Midwest work ethic

and a leading education system results in one of the most productive workforces anywhere.

• Iowans consistently rank number one in the United States for SAT college entrance exam scores.

• Iowa is a right-to-work state.

• Iowanstendtostayinonejobanaverage12+years.(Iowa Workforce Development, 2010)

• Iowahasthe9thhighestnumberofbachelor’sdegreesinnaturalscienceandengineeringconferredper1,000

individuals18-24yearsold.(National Science Foundation, Science and Engineering Indicators, 2012)

• Iowa has the seventh highest percentage of population that are high school graduates or higher.

(U.S. Census, 2010)

TheIowaEconomicDevelopmentAuthority(IEDA)workswithbusinessesandcommunitiestobolsterIowa’s

economyandpositionthestateforgrowth.IEDAcanassistyourcompanybyprovidingthefollowingtypesof

assistance:

• Directfinancialassistance,taxcreditsandjobtrainingfunds.

• ConfidentiallocationreviewsandsitelocationassistancetobusinessesconsideringIowa.

• TechnicalassistanceforIowabusinessesconsideringexpansion,newcompaniestoIowaandforeign

direct investment.

• Freesearchabledatabaseofinformationonexistingbuildings,availablesitesandIowacommunities.

• RegulatoryprocessassistanceprovidedtoIowacompanies.

• TrainingandsupportavailabletoallcompaniesexpandinginIowa.Iowaworksinpartnershipwithpublic/private

service providers and other state agencies to actively promote new employee training, incumbent worker

preparation, lifelong learning and development and expansion of the state’s labor pool.

contact us

Pleasevisitiowaeconomicdevelopment.com for more information on how Iowa can assist you, to learn more about

Iowa’s business climate, assistance and expansion programs, available buildings, sites and more. Contact us any-

timeat1.800.245.4692or+1.515.725.3100(international).Allinquiriesarehandledconfidentially.

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