Arkansas Competes on Global Scale with Pro-Business Climate

Arkansas is boasting one economic development win after another this year. JW Aluminum Company is expanding in Russellville. Whisper Creek Log Homes located in Mountain Home. HYD MECH Group opened a new manufacturing facility in Conway…and the list goes on.

Arizona’s revival was clear when the state began wooing major Japanese automotive suppliers like Hino Motors, Denso Corp. and Eakas Corp last year. While Arkansas has staked its claim in the Southern Auto Corridor, the state is also proving that it is just as attractive to a diverse range of manufacturers, from food processors to aeronautics to technology, with a slew of relocation and expansion announcements – and more to come.

“Arkansas is getting more aggressive on the national and international scale,” says Mitch Chandler, communications director for the Arkansas Department of Economic Development. “We can not only compete with other states but also with other countries, including India. We are proud that Arkansas is home to five Fortune 500 companies that were born and raised here, including the largest company in the world – Wal-Mart.”

What is Arkansas’ secret? Raw materials come in cheaply and finished products ship out quickly. That’s because the state is bordered by the country’s largest and busiest inland waterway – the Mississippi River. Halfway between Canada and Mexico, the Carolinas and California, Arkansas is only a tank of gas away from one-third of the nation’s population.

Arkansas boasts one of the busiest east-west interstate highways in the country, Interstate 40 and Interstate 5, and the state recently completed a billion-dollar program to improve 380 miles of highways. Just across the river in Memphis sits the largest airfreight facility in the world. Meanwhile, the largest railroad lines in the country – the Union Pacific and Burlington Northern – also serve the region.

Arkansas is also getting more aggressive with pro-business legislation. In 2004, the General Assembly left a mark on the future of economic development in the state with five new measures. Of note is the Super Project Funding Amendment. It allows the state to issue general obligation bonds to support the location of “super projects” that will result in the creation of 500 jobs and a minimum investment of $500 million.

The Consolidated Incentives Law is sweeping reform that provides for saleable tax credits to targeted business, expands R&D tax credits, and allows for more flexibility in combining incentives. And recently passed tort reform caps punitive damages at the greater of $250,000 or three times the amount of compensatory damages awarded, not to exceed $1 million and changes the current system of joint and several liability, so that defendants are responsible only for their portion of damages.

Workforce development is a priority of the state’s 23 technical and community colleges and 10 technical institutes, which work with local business and industry to meet existing and new workforce needs. Arkansas has a civilian labor force totaling more than 1.2 million and employers give favorable ratings to the state’s workers for their work ethic, skills, productivity, and low turnover rates.

In terms of quality of life, Allied Van Lines’ ranking of Arkansas as among the nation’s top “magnet” states says it all. The average cost of living is consistently below the national average. And hundreds of lakes, streams and rivers make the state a paradise for nature lovers.

For more information about Arkansas, contact Mitch Chandler at the Arkansas Department of Economic Development (800) ARKANSAS, or e-mail at mchandler@1800arkansas.com, or visit www.1800arkansas.com.