Present day Hernando County covers approximately 477 sq. miles of area including the cities of Brooksville and Weeki Wachee. Unincorporated areas include Spring Hill, Ridge Manor, Ridge Manor West, Bayport, Aripeka, Lake Lindsey and Hernando Beach. The county stretches 37 miles from East to West and 18 miles from North to South. It is bounded on the west by the Gulf of Mexico and on the north by the Chassahowitzka Swamp and the Withlacoochee State Forrest.

Population

In the 1980's, Hernando County was the third fastest growing county in the nation. On average, the population growth of the 1980's was 5,665 per year. From April 1990 on, that average has dropped to 3,356 per year. In terms of the estimated new households by percentage growth rate, Hernando County ranked 8th of 67 counties within Florida for the period 1990-1994. The county population was just 17,004 in 1970, and has risen to already 130,802 in 2000, more than a seven fold increase in 30 years. More than 70 percent of the current residents of Hernando County were born in another state.

According to US Census records, the population is projected for 2010 to be 156,600.

Industry

The major industries are limestone mining & cement production, tourism, dairy products, cattle production, citrus products, forest resources, construction, some non-pollutant manufacturing and distribution.

Hernando County's growing manufacturing association base is centered in industrial parks around Hernando County's state of the art airport, one of the largest non-urban air fields in Florida, and in industrial areas around the I-75 and S.R. 50 interchange in east Hernando County.

Some of the important employers include WalMart, Oak Hill Hospital, Regional Healthcare, Spartan Electronics, Florida Crushed Stone, Sims Machine & Controls, Cemex, and Joni Industries.

Schools

There are four public high schools. (Central, Hernando, Springstead and Nature Coast Technical), four middle schools (Parrot, Powell, West Hernando and Fox Chapel) and ten elementary schools (Brooksville, Deltona, Eastside, J.D. Floyd, Moton, PineGrove, Suncoast, Spring Hill, Westside and Chocachatti).
The school Board is one of Hernando County's largest employers.
For the history of Hernando County Schools: http://www.hcsb.k12.fl.us/history.htm
The Board of Education (352) 797-7000

Hernando County Demographics

The demographics/marketing statistics that follow give good reasons why businesses should consider Hernando County as a most desirable site to locate or expand their operations.

Population ( April 30, 2004 est.)
County ......................................146,794

Wages (2001 Tax Year est.)
Per Capita...............................$24,362

Labor (Feb. 2004)
Labor Force............................... 52,424
Employment.............................. 49,725
Unemployment........................... 2,699

Price Level Index
(2003).......................95.39

Major Private Sector Employers:

Wal-Mart Distribution Center
Business Line: Distribution Center
Number of Employees.....................1,600

Oak Hill Hospital
Business Line: Healthcare
Number of Employees.................................... 850

Regional Healthcare
Business Line: Healthcare
Number of Employees.................................... 763

Sparton Electronics
Business Line: Manufacturer
Number of Employees.................................... 325

SunTrust Bank
Business Line: Banking
Number of Employees.................................... 308

Rinker Materials/FCS
Business Line: Mining & Cement
Number of Employees.................................... 300

Evergreen Woods, Inc.
Business Line: Residential Care
Number of Employees.................................... 160

Commercial Carrier Corporation
Business Line: Transportation
Number of Employees..................................... 145

Cemex, Inc.
Business Line: Cement Manufacturer
Number of Employees..................................... 126

Accuform, Inc.
Business Line: Manufacturer
Number of Employees..................................... 100

Public Sector Employees
Hernando County School Board - 2,400
Hernando County Government - 1,200
Southwest Florida
Water Management District - 735

A Florida High Tech Corridor County

Hernando County is a member of a 21 county consortium working towards the common goal of bringing high tech companies into central Florida. This group is spearheaded by the leadership of two area universities: University of South Florida and University of Central Florida.

Florida High Tech Corridor Matching Grant Program

• The Program will match funds which a corporation invests in research projects conducted with the University of South Florida or University of Central Florida.
  

Enterprise Zones

• The Enterprise Zone Program was established by the state in 1981 and is designed to target a specific area for economic revitalization. Financial incentives are offered to businesses and property owners encouraging private investment and creation of jobs for the residents in the zone. More Info...
  
• Credit applies only for new employees that reside in the Enterprise Zone. 5% of the first $1,500 of monthly wages ($900 per year) per employee earning in excess of $1,500 per month.10% of wages paid to a new employee earning less than $1,500 per month. If 20% or more of the permanent employees of the business are residents of the enterprise zone, the tax credit is 15% of wages paid to an employee earning less than $1,500 per month. If the enterprise zone resident is also in the welfare reform program (WAGES) 15% of the first $1,500 of monthly wages ($2,700 per year) per employee can be applied as a credit.
  

Small Business Administration 504 Loan Program

• Construction loans equal to 90% of the approved project costs can be obtained through the SBA 504 Program.
  
• Favorable interest rates are also available to qualifying projects.
  

Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program

• The Qualified Target Industry Tax Refund Program provides for a tax refund of up to $3,000 per new job created in Florida through the expansion of existing businesses or the location of new businesses.
  

Sales Tax Exemption for New And Expanding Businesses

Manufacturers Electricity Sales Tax Exemption

Capital Investment Tax Credit

• Provides annual corporate income tax credits to eligible high-impact sector businesses equal to 5 percent of the eligible capital costs of a new or expanding Florida facility.
  

(Enterprise Bonds EB)

• The primary goal of Enterprise Bond financing is to enable small manufacturers to access attractive interest rate
  
• financing - rates most often tapped only by the "Fortune 100" companies. Financing for individual borrowers are grouped together into a larger pooled bond issue. The pooling of loans helps spread the costs of issuance over many smaller borrowers that may otherwise find it uneconomical to seek tax-exempt financing under traditional IRB criteria.
  

Industrial Revenue Bonds

• Industrial Revenue Bonds offer a unique opportunity for Florida businesses to get the same attractive financing as Fortune 500 companies. Florida Development Finance Corporation has developed the Enterprise Bond Program that offers credit-enhanced financing for smaller manufacturing and non-profit projects with affordable issuance costs. Through the program, creditworthy manufacturers and select non-profit organizations may qualify for long-term, below market rate loans for the acquisition of fixed assets
  
• To qualify for tax-exempt financing, your company must meet the eligibility requirement outlines in the Federal Internal Revenue Code. Financing must be used for the purchase of land, buildings and machinery such as production equipment, as well as to construct or renovate buildings. The minimum project bond is $500,000. Most Enterprise Bond amounts fall between $500,000 and $3,000,000.The maximum is $10,000,000.
  

City of Brooksville Incentives (Brooksville - City Wide)

Program: Ad Valorem Tax Abatement for New and Expanding Businesses

Description: This program offers an exemption from ad valorem taxation for up to ten years of the assessed value of all improvements to real property and of all tangible personal property made by or for the use of a new or expanding business. Terms: A new business shall meet one of the following criteria:

• A manufacturer which establishes ten or more full-time jobs.
  
• A business with more than 50% of its sales outside the State of Florida which establishes 25 or more jobs.
  
• Office space of a new Florida corporation housing 50 or more full-time employees of the corporation business (applicable if the business is on a site clearly separate from any other facility owned by the same company).
  
• Any new business to be located in the Enterprise Zone, which is clearly separate from any other commercial or industrial operation owned by the applicant.
  

Criteria to be met for eligibility of an expansion of an existing business:

• A manufacturer that adds a minimum of ten new employees and increases employment by 10% or increases productive output by a minimum of 10%.
  
• A business with more than 50% of its sales outside the State that adds a minimum of 25 new employees and increases employment by 10% or increases productive output by a minimum of 10%. The expansion must be on the same or a co-located site of the business' current operation.
  
• Any business located in an enterprise zone that increases operations on a site co-located with a commercial or industrial operation owned by the same business.
  

A business cannot receive exemption from the following:

• School taxes
  
• County taxes
  
• Bond issues
  
• Water Management District taxes
  
• Special tax levies
  
• The land on which the new or expanding business is located.
  

For more information, contact the City's Community Development Department at (352) 544-5430.

Quick Response Training Program

The Quick Response Training Program provides quick, effective training that is specially tailored and designed to meet the needs of business and industry.

• Incumbent Worker Training Program (contacts for details)
  
• Other Florida Business Incentives
  
• No personal income tax
  
• No state-level ad valorem taxes
  
• No tax on inventories, goods-in-process or goods-in-transit
  
• $5,000 corporate income tax exemption
  
• $25,000 homestead tax exemption
  
• Tax exemption on pollution control equipment
  
• Sales tax exemption on new machinery and equipment
  
• Sales tax exemption on raw materials used in manufacturing
  
• Corporate and Private Incentives (contact us for details)
  

Information used here was obtained from the Hernando County Office of Business Development. and The Hernando County Tourist Development

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