- Nine of these cities are offering major economic incentives as part of their bids. Three have said they will not give Amazon any tax breaks.
- Out of all of these metros, Montgomery, Maryland is proposing the largest incentive package valued at $8.5 billion.
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Cities are throwing hundreds of millions at Amazon to land HQ2 — here’s how they stack up
Some of Amazon's top HQ2 metros and developers have publicly said they are offering huge incentives to lure the e-commerce giant.
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In January, Amazon named 20 North American cities as the top contenders for the future home of the company's second headquarters, dubbed HQ2. The company says HQ2 will bring 50,000 jobs, and late last year launched an open call for city proposals that explain why the e-commerce giant should invest $5 billion in building a campus there.
In addition to offering huge swaths of land, financial incentives have become key parts of bids from many of these metros. A few incentive packages offer tax breaks that total in the billions.
Amazon likely won't pick a city unless it is offering some kind of economic deal, since that was one requirement the company laid out in its request. accepted local subsidies.
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Here are the nine places that have made their HQ2 incentive packages public, in ascending order of monetary value.
9. Raleigh, North Carolina — over $50 million
For HQ2, North Carolina is amping up its main economic incentives program for businesses, known as
Amazon could be reimbursed for up to 100% of the withholding taxes from the new jobs it creates for up to 25 years, The News & Observer reports.
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The company would also receive up to $50 million for HQ2's infrastructure like water, sewer and rail access, with the money coming from a reserve account of $80 million in the state’s general fund.
In addition, another program called the One North Carolina Fund could award up to $5,000 per year, per job, for up to five years.
8. Denver, Colorado — $100 million or more
According to The Denver Post, Colorado's proposal named some possible incentives, including the job growth tax credit; job training grants of up to $1,200 per employee; enterprise zone program offering income-tax credits for companies locating in distressed areas; in-state tuition benefits for employees; and local city incentives that every community "under consideration has developed a custom incentive package … to support the build-out of Amazon HQ2."
In an interview with The Post, Sam Bailey, Metro Denver EDC’s vice president of economic development, said incentives could be "in excess of $100 million."
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7. Los Angeles, California — $300 million to $1 billion
California's governor's office will offer $300 million to Amazon in tax breaks if it picks a city in the state, Reuters reports. The company listed Los Angeles in the top 20.
But a bill introduced last year in California's state assembly could give the company even more — up to $1 billion in tax breaks over 10 years.
6. Atlanta, Georgia — $1 billion
In Georgia, economic
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5. Chicago, Illinois — At least $1.7 billion
As The Chicago Reader notes, Chicago is offering Amazon $1.32 billion
4. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — $2 billion to $3 billion
The state of Pennsylvania is reportedly offering Amazon " target="_blank"more than $1 billion" in tax breaks for its campus, according to The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Philadelphia submitted a separate bid, and is reportedly considering a tax exemption worth up to $2 billion over 10 years.
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3. Columbus, Ohio — nearly $2.3 billion
Columbus city leaders assembled an incentives package in which Amazon would receive a 15-year, 100% property-tax abatement at every site included in HQ2, according to local outlet WOSU Radio. That adds up to a savings of $456,750 per $1 million of investment in property for the life of the abatement.
In addition, Amazon would get a refund of 35% on income-tax withholdings from new full-time employees at its new headquarters. That’s as much as $50 million annually, or up to $400 million over 15 years.
WOSU calculated that these refunds and abatements would produce almost $2.3 billion in savings for Amazon over 15 years.
2. Newark, New Jersey — $7 billion
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New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and state legislative leaders said they wouldoffer Amazon tax breaks worth $7 billionover the next decade if the company decides to build in Newark, according to Bloomberg.
The plan would expand a subsidy program calledGrow NJ, and provide economic incentives for companies (like Amazon) that launch "transformative projects" (like HQ2).
The state also proposed a bill that would raise the cap on tax subsidies from $5,000 to $10,000 for every job Amazon creates.
1. Montgomery County, Maryland — $8.5 billion in tax and infrastructure incentives
On April 4, Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan approved
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