1. An owner of a business or a person who intends to locate or expand a business in this State may apply to the Office of Economic Development pursuant to this section for a partial abatement of one or more of:

(a) The personal property taxes imposed on an aircraft and the personal property used to own, operate, manufacture, service, maintain, test, repair, overhaul or assemble an aircraft or any component of an aircraft; and

(b) The local sales and use taxes imposed on the purchase of tangible personal property used to operate, manufacture, service, maintain, test, repair, overhaul or assemble an aircraft or any component of an aircraft.

2. Notwithstanding the provisions of any law to the contrary and except as otherwise provided in subsections 3 and 4, the Office of Economic Development shall approve an application for a partial abatement if the Office makes the following determinations:

(a) The applicant has executed an agreement with the Office which:

(1) Complies with the requirements of NRS 360.755;

(2) States the date on which the abatement becomes effective, as agreed to by the applicant and the Office, which must not be earlier than the date on which the Office received the application;

(3) States that the business will, after the date on which a certificate of eligibility for the partial abatement is issued pursuant to subsection 5, continue in operation in this State for a period specified by the Office, which must be not less than 5 years, and will continue to meet the eligibility requirements set forth in this subsection; and

(4) Binds any successor in interest of the applicant for the specified period;

(b) The business is registered pursuant to the laws of this State or the applicant commits to obtaining a valid business license and all other permits required by the county, city or town in which the business operates;

(c) The business owns, operates, manufactures, services, maintains, tests, repairs, overhauls or assembles an aircraft or any component of an aircraft;

(d) The average hourly wage that will be paid by the business to its employees in this State during the period of partial abatement is not less than 100 percent of the average statewide hourly wage as established by the Employment Security Division of the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation on July 1 of each fiscal year;

(e) The business will, by the eighth calendar quarter following the calendar quarter in which the abatement becomes effective, offer a health insurance plan for all employees that includes an option for health insurance coverage for dependents of the employees, and the health care benefits the business offers to its employees in this State will meet the minimum requirements for health care benefits established by the Office;

(f) If the business is:

(1) A new business, that it will have five or more full-time employees on the payroll of the business within 1 year after receiving its certificate of eligibility for a partial abatement; or

(2) An existing business, that it will increase its number of full-time employees on the payroll of the business in this State by 3 percent or three employees, whichever is greater, within 1 year after receiving its certificate of eligibility for a partial abatement;

(g) The business meets at least one of the following requirements:

(1) The business will make a new capital investment of at least $250,000 in this State within 1 year after receiving its certificate of eligibility for a partial abatement;

(2) The business will maintain and possess in this State tangible personal property having a value of not less than $5,000,000 during the period of partial abatement;

(3) The business develops, refines or owns a patent or other intellectual property, or has been issued a type certificate by the Federal Aviation Administration pursuant to 14 C.F.R. Part 21; and

(h) If the application is for the partial abatement of the taxes imposed by the Local School Support Tax Law, the application has been approved by a vote of at least two-thirds of the members of the Board of Economic Development created by NRS 231.033.

3. The Office of Economic Development:

(a) Shall approve or deny an application submitted pursuant to this section and notify the applicant of its decision not later than 45 days after receiving the application.

(b) Must not:

(1) Consider an application for a partial abatement unless the Office has requested a letter of acknowledgment of the request for the partial abatement from any affected county, school district, city or town and has complied with the requirements of NRS 360.757; or

(2) Approve a partial abatement for any applicant for a period of more than 10 years.

4. The Office of Economic Development must not approve a partial abatement of personal property taxes for a business whose physical property is collectively valued and centrally assessed pursuant to NRS 361.320 and 361.3205.

5. If the Office of Economic Development approves an application for a partial abatement pursuant to this section, the Office shall immediately forward a certificate of eligibility for the partial abatement to:

(a) The Department;

(b) The Nevada Tax Commission; and

(c) If the partial abatement is from personal property taxes, the appropriate county treasurer.

6. An applicant for a partial abatement pursuant to this section or an existing business whose partial abatement is in effect shall, upon the request of the Executive Director of the Office of Economic Development, furnish the Executive Director with copies of all records necessary to verify that the applicant meets the requirements of subsection 2.

7. If a business whose partial abatement has been approved pursuant to this section and whose partial abatement is in effect ceases:

(a) To meet the requirements set forth in subsection 2; or

(b) Operation before the time specified in the agreement described in paragraph (a) of subsection 2,

the business shall repay to the Department or, if the partial abatement was from personal property taxes, to the appropriate county treasurer, the amount of the partial abatement that was allowed pursuant to this section before the failure of the business to comply unless the Nevada Tax Commission determines that the business has substantially complied with the requirements of this section. Except as otherwise provided in NRS 360.232 and 360.320, the business shall, in addition to the amount of the partial abatement required to be repaid pursuant to this subsection, pay interest on the amount due at the rate most recently established pursuant to NRS 99.040 for each month, or portion thereof, from the last day of the month following the period for which the payment would have been made had the partial abatement not been approved until the date of payment of the tax.

8. The Office of Economic Development may adopt such regulations as the Office determines to be necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.

9. The Nevada Tax Commission may adopt such regulations as the Commission determines are necessary to carry out the provisions of this section.

10. An applicant for a partial abatement who is aggrieved by a final decision of the Office of Economic Development may petition a court of competent jurisdiction to review the decision in the manner provided in chapter 233B of NRS.

11. If the Office of Economic Development approves an application for a partial abatement of local sales and use taxes pursuant to this section, the Department shall issue to the business a document certifying the partial abatement which can be presented to retailers and customers of the business at the time of sale. The document must clearly state that the purchaser is only required to pay sales and use taxes imposed in this State at the rate of 2 percent.

12. As used in this section:

(a) “Aircraft” means any fixed-wing, rotary-wing or unmanned aerial vehicle.

(b) “Component of an aircraft” means any:

(1) Element that makes up the physical structure of an aircraft, or is affixed thereto;

(2) Mechanical, electrical or other system of an aircraft, including, without limitation, any component thereof; and

(3) Raw material or processed material, part, machinery, tool, chemical, gas or equipment used to operate, manufacture, service, maintain, test, repair, overhaul or assemble an aircraft or component of an aircraft.

(c) “Full-time employee” means a person who is in a permanent position of employment and works an average of 30 hours per week during the applicable period set forth in subparagraph (3) of paragraph (a) of subsection 2.

(d) “Local sales and use taxes” means any taxes imposed on the gross receipts of any retailer from the sale of tangible personal property sold at retail, or stored, used or otherwise consumed, in any political subdivision of this State, except the taxes imposed by the Sales and Use Tax Act.

(e) “Personal property taxes” means any taxes levied on personal property by the State or a local government pursuant to chapter 361 of NRS.

(Added to NRS by 2015, 2328; A 2017, 3787; 2019, 2246)