A. The Executive Director of the Oklahoma Department of Commerce shall establish standards for the making of applications for inducements to eligible companies and their tourism attraction projects by the promulgation of rules in accordance with the Administrative Procedures Act.
B. With respect to each eligible company making an application to the Executive Director for inducements, and with respect to the tourism attraction described in the application, the Executive Director shall make inquiries and request materials of the applicant that shall include, but shall not be limited to:
1. Marketing plans for the project that target individuals who are not residents of this state;
2. A description and location of the project including a description and boundary of the area encompassing the Entertainment District, if applicable;
3. Capital and other anticipated expenditures for the project that indicate that the total cost of the project shall exceed the minimum amount set forth in subsection C of this section and the anticipated sources of funding therefor, which for an Entertainment District that is anticipated to be completed in multiple phases may include capital and other anticipated expenditures for all phases of the project;
4. The anticipated employment and wages to be paid at the project, which may include employment and wages to be paid by the eligible company and any tenants of the tourism attraction project;
5. Business plans which indicate the average number of days in a year in which the project or any component thereof will be in operation and open to the public, if applicable; and
6. The anticipated revenues and expenses generated by the project, which for an Entertainment District may include the anticipated revenues and expenses generated by each of the different phases or components of the Entertainment District.
Based upon a review of these materials, if the Executive Director determines that the eligible company and the tourism attraction may reasonably be expected to satisfy the criteria for final approval in subsection C of this section, then the Executive Director may consider granting a preliminary approval of the eligible company and the tourism attraction project pursuant to subsection B of Section 2395 of this title.
C. Except as provided for in subsection D of this section, for a tourism attraction project, after granting a preliminary approval, the Executive Director shall require the eligible company to hire a competent consulting firm which shall submit to the Executive Director a report analyzing the data made available by the eligible company and which shall collect and analyze additional information necessary to determine that, in the independent judgment of the consultant, the tourism attraction project will:
1. Attract at least twenty-five percent (25%) of its visitors from among persons who are not residents of this state;
2. Have costs in excess of Five Hundred Thousand Dollars ($500,000.00);
3. Have a significant and positive economic impact on this state considering, among other factors, the extent to which the tourism attraction project will compete directly with existing tourism attractions in this state, and the extent to which the tourism attraction project will be revenue-neutral to the State of Oklahoma, meaning the amount by which increased tax revenues from the tourism attraction project will exceed the inducements allowed pursuant to Section 2397 of this title;
4. Produce sufficient revenues and public demand to be operating and open to the public on a regular and persistent basis; and
5. Not adversely affect existing employment in this state.
D. At the request of the eligible company, the Executive Director may allow the eligible company to hire the Oklahoma Department of Commerce to prepare the report required in subsection C of this section.
E. For a tourism attraction project that is an Entertainment District and is anticipated to be completed in multiple phases, the required report may include the data and information for the entire Entertainment District including any and all components or phases of the Entertainment District and a separate report for each component or phase of the Entertainment District shall not be required.
F. The eligible company shall pay for the cost of the required report and shall cooperate with the entity preparing the report and provide all of the data that the preparing entity deems necessary to make a determination pursuant to this section. The cost for preparation of this report by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce shall be set forth by administrative rules promulgated by the Department, but in any event shall be a nonrefundable fee of no less than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00) per report. Payment for preparation of this report by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce shall be made by the eligible company to the Department upon approval of the request, and funds received shall be deposited into the Oklahoma Department of Commerce Revolving Fund created in Section 5012 of Title 74 of the Oklahoma Statutes.
Added by Laws 2017, c. 196, § 4, eff. Nov. 1, 2017. Amended by Laws 2019, c. 443, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2019; Laws 2021, c. 140, § 2, eff. Nov. 1, 2021.