AP State News - Two of North Carolina's economic incentives tools would stay in effect for at least two more years in a bill headed to Gov. Mike Easley's desk following final legislative approval Wednesday.

The House agreed by a vote of 79-34 in favor of extending the William S. Lee Act and the Job Development Investment Grant program. The bill cleared the Senate and one of two required House votes Tuesday.

A key element of the bill would allow a four-year extension for two kind of projects in Lee Act development zones, an insert designed to attract big investments to Rocky Mount and Gaston County.

Legislators and other officials have confirmed that Dole Food Co. is considering Gaston for a potential processing operation that could ultimately generate 3,000 jobs. Dole Food owner David Murdock was slated to meet with legislative leaders and Gov. Mike Easley this week.

With the bill's passage, Murdock "will now that he is eligible for some of those incentives," said House Speaker Jim Black, D-Mecklenburg.

The Lee Act provides tax credits for companies in certain industries that create jobs, install plant machinery or perform research and development.

Both the Lee Act and JDIG, which gives back to companies cash grants equal to a portion of state withholding taxes generated by jobs they have created, were set to expire at the end of the year.

The Lee Act has received mixed reviews since it was first enacted in 1996. Opponents argue that the credits don't help the poorest counties enough and that new companies would have come to North Carolina without the incentives.

Efforts this year to replace the Lee Act stalled. Bill proponents argued the extension was needed to keep North Carolina in the incentives game with other states.

Rep. Paul Luebke, a Lee Act critic, urged colleagues to reject the bill so that a new compromise could be created to reduce the extensions to only a year. That would give the impetus to lawmakers to make changes in 2006, he argued.

Under the development zones, a company building in Rocky Mount could receive $5,000 per new job created. In Gaston County, the amount is $7,000 per job.

The Cheesecake Factory, which wants to hire 500 people for a proposed bakery in Rocky Mount, also could benefit from the development zones extension.

Read the original story at The Dispatch website.