City of Newton

Economic Development

DEMOGRAPHICS	MAP
EDUCATION	TAX ABATEMENT
HEALTH	TAXES
LABOR MARKET	TRANSPORTATION
LOCATION	UTILITIES

LOCATION

Newton is located on Texas Highway 87 and U.S. 190. The City is 20 miles south of Toledo Bend Reservoir on the Louisiana border, halfway between Houston and Shreveport and halfway between Dallas and New Orleans.

Distance from:

Beaumont	70 mi.
Houston	150 mi.
Austin	280 mi.
Lufkin	75 mi.
Dallas	245 mi.
Baton Rouge	180 mi.
New Orleans	260 mi.
Shreveport	150 mi.
Lake Charles	75 mi.

TRANSPORTATION

Air Transportation:

The municipal airport has 4,000 feet of hard surface, lighted runway. The nearest commercial airport is Jefferson County 80 miles away. Airlines serving Jefferson County are American Eagle, Delta ASA, Continental Express, and US Air.

Water Transportation:

The nearest navigable waterway, the Port of Orange, is 60 miles to the south with a depth of 30 feet. The nearest barge and deepwater port (35 to 40 feet) is the Port of Beaumont, 70 miles away.

Rail Service:

Santa Fe Railways; 10 miles south.

Motor Freight Carriers:

Red Ball Motor Freight, Central Freight - Tex Pack

Bus Service:

Greyhound Bus Lines (15 miles west)

Parcel Service:

UPS, US Postal Service, Federal Express

TAXES

Sales Tax:

State: 6 1/4% - City 2%

Property Tax/Tax Rate:

100% assessment ratio per $100

State	6.25%	School	1.38
City	1.0%	County	.6295
County	0.0%	City	.18
Economic Development	1.0%

City of Newton Tax Abatement Policy

The local tax abatement policy is one of the most generous in the State of Texas because it not only abates the increased value of real property for a qualifying business, but includes the increased value of personal property as well. The policy is based on the amount of investment by the company and the number of full time permanent jobs at the facility. Take a look at our policy and let us know what you think…

Capital Cost of Project

Jobs Created

Percentages of Abatement

$100,000-1,000,000	2 - 5	Year 1	75%
	-	Year 2	50%
	-	Year 3	25%
	6 - 24	Year 1-2	75%
	-	Year 3-4	50%
	-	Year 5	25%
	25 plus	Year 1-2	75%
	-	Year 3-5	50%
$1,000,001-5,000,000	2 - 5	Year 1-2	75%
	-	Year 3	50%
	-	Year 4-5	25%
	6 - 24	Year 1-3	75%
	-	Year 4	50%
	-	Year 5	25%
	25 plus	Year 1-4	75%
	-	Year 5	50%
$5,000,001-10,000,000	2 - 10	Year 1-3	75%
	-	Year 4	50%
	-	Year 5	25%
	11 - 99	Year 1-4	80%
	-	Year 5-6	75%
	-	Year 7	50%
	-	Year 8	40%
	-	Year 9	30%
	-	Year 10	20%
	100 plus	Year 1-5	90%
	-	Year 6-8	80%
	-	Year 9-10	50%
$10,000,001 plus	-	Year 1-4	80%
	5 - 10	Year 5	75%
	-	Year 6	50%
	-	Year 7	40%
	-	Year 8	30%
	-	Year 9	20%
	-	Year 10	10%
	11 - 99	Year 1-5	90%
	-	Year 6-8	75%
	-	Year 9	60%
	-	Year 10	50%
	100 plus	Year 1-5	90%
	-	Year 6-10	75%

DEMOGRAPHICS

Population:
Year	City	County
1970	1,615	10,372
1980	2,012	12,012
1990	1,885	13,569
1996	2,015	14,546
2000		14,939

1990 Population by Race: (City)

Race: Population
1990 Population by Age: (City)

Age Population

White 1,330 1-13 492

Black 532 14-21 223

Hispanic 8 22-34 340

Native Am. 12 35-49 342

Asian 3 50-64 226

over 65 262

EDUCATION

Elementary

Junior High

High School

Schools	2	Schools	1	Schools	1
Teachers	35	Teachers	35	Teachers	37
Pupils	640	Pupils	565	Pupils	417
Grades	1-3	Grades	4-8	Grades	9-12

One Private

Christian elementary school.

Vo-Tech.

Angelina Jr. College: distance 15 miles Jasper campus, 70 miles Lufkin Main Campus
Beaumont: 70 miles
Nacogdoches: 85 miles

Colleges:

Lamar University, Orange (60 miles), Beaumont (70 miles)
Stephen F. Austin, Nacogdoches (85 miles)

Library:

One local library with 16,000 volumes

LABOR MARKET

The area labor market consists of Newton, Jasper, and Sabine Counties and some parishes within the state of Louisiana with a labor pool of approximately 31,000. Average numbers for Newton County in 1996 were:

Civilian Labor Force 5,433
Employed	4,885
Unemployed	548
Rate	8.4%

Median Family Income for Newton in 1990: $22,045

Per Capita Income for Newton in 1990: $ 8,266

Average Starting Hourly Wage Rates - September 1, 1997
Occupation or Job Title	Entry	High	Average
Machinist	$6.00	$15.50	$9.21
Auto Mechanics	5.15	14.00	8.17
Drill/Punch/Lathe Operators	5.15	7.46	6.00
Welder	6.00	16.50	11.77
Electrician (Maintenance)	5.15	20.00	10.95
Sewing Machine Operator	5.15	5.15	5.15
Production Assembler	5.15	6.00	5.15
Forklift Operator	6.00	7.50	6.50
Truck Driver (light)	5.15	11.24	6.68
Common Laborer	5.15	10.00	7.19
Shipping Clerk	5.15	10.00	6.97
Secretary	5.15	14.59	7.07
Bookkeeper	5.15	11.54	6.79

Average number of paid holidays usually granted by employers: 5 - 8 per year.

Major Employers
Louisiana Pacific Plywood Plant	400
Newton ISD Schools	287
Fillyaw Correctional Facility Prison Facility	164
Government Employment State/County/City	110
Brookshire Bros. Retail Grocer	63
Shady Acres Nursing Home	53

UTILITIES

All utilities within the city are furnished by the City of Newton with the following capacities:

Water:

Source: Wells

Plant Capacity 1,152,000 gpd

Ave. Consumption 250,000 gpd

Sewer:

Plant Type: Oxidation

Plant Capacity 980,000 gpd

Ave. Load 350,000 gpd

Electricity Provided by:

City of Newton; Jasper/Newton Electric Coop.

Natural Gas:

City of Newton

Telephone Company - Valor

Digital: yes Analog: yes Fiber Optics: yes

Switched 56KBPS: yes ISDN: yes High Capacity T-1: yes

Make/Model/Software level: DCO - 19.0

Numerous Long Distance Companies

HEALTH FACILITIES

The nearest hospital facilities with emergency medical treatment is 15 miles. The city does have 3 health clinics available which have a total of four full time Md., two full time Physician Assistants, and one Dentist. The city has one full time ambulance staffed with a Paramedic and one EMT. We also have a group of volunteer First Responders that trained to the level of EMT or better, and are on call 24hrs/day. Also within the city is one Nursing Home facility that handles all levels of dependent care including high level Alzheimer's patients.

White	1,330	1-13	492
Black	532	14-21	223
Hispanic	8	22-34	340
Native Am.	12	35-49	342
Asian	3	50-64	226
		over 65	262