NEFL: A Powerhouse in Business

The First Coast is home to five Fortune 1000 and three Fortune 500 companies.

NEFL:

A Powerhouse in Business

Photo courtesy of City of Jacksonville

The First Coast is drawing many different types of businesses. Many verticals from technology, health care, trade and more are flocking to the area as it is one of the quickest growing areas for business in the country. The First Coast is a very affordable area for companies as there are no inventories on foreign income or corporate franchise taxes.

With the many business opportunities the First Coast has available, it is easy to see why more than 80 companies, five Fortune 1000 and three Fortune 500 companies have divisional or national headquarters in Northeast Florida. The city continues to rank as one of the best places for both careers and business, even cited by Wallethub as one of the best large cities to live. Besides being listed as the No. 1 city of talent attraction according to JAXUSA and Emsi, Jacksonville was also newly named the No. 2 best city for young professionals by Forbes.

Florida has more than 130 public-use airports and 20 commercial airports as well as 15 deep-water seaports that support trade between numerous world regions. Each year the seaports provide more than $117 billion to the economy and 900,000 jobs throughout the state.

Jacksonville has emerged as a financial powerhouse known for its banks, investment services and insurance firms. The First Coast has more than 20 companies on the Forbes’ Global 500 list. The area has also had considerable growth as a financial focal point partially due to a lower cost of living compared to traditional markets.

The First Coast tech industry has experienced strong job growth including an increase of careers in the Information Technology field. According to the Jacksonville Business Journal, the local tech job posting rate was around 17 percent in the third quarter of 2020. This placed Jacksonville in a tie with Tempe, Arizona for the No. 3 spot of growth in the tech industry.

Photo by Stephanie Marty Photo by Ashkan Fourouzani, courtesy of Unsplash

Florida offers Sales and Use Tax Exemptions on:

Florida does not have:

• Aircraft parts, modification, maintenance and repair, sale or lease of qualified aircraft • Certain boiler fuels (including natural gas) used in the manufacturing process • Commercial space activity—launch vehicles, payloads and fuel, machinery and equipment for production of items used exclusively at Spaceport Florida • Electricity used in the manufacturing process • Labor component of research and development expenditures • Labor, parts and materials used in repair of and incorporated into machinery and equipment • Machinery and equipment used by a new or expanding Florida business to manufacture, produce or process tangible personal property for sale • Machinery and equipment used predominantly in research and development • Production companies engaged in Florida in the production of motion pictures, made for television motion pictures, television series, commercial music videos or sound recordings • Semiconductor, defense and space technology-based industry transactions involving manufacturing equipment.

• Corporate franchise tax on capital stock • Corporate income tax on limited partnerships • Corporate income tax on subchapter

S-corporations • Property tax on business inventories • Property tax on goods-in-transit for up to 180 days • Sales and use tax on goods manufactured or produced in Florida for export outside the state • Sales tax on purchases of raw materials incorporated in a final product for resale, including non-reusable containers or packaging • Sales/use tax on co-generation of electricity • State personal income tax guaranteed by constitutional provision • State-level property tax assessed