Press release from Land of Sky Regional Council:
The Land of Sky Foreign-Trade Zone (FTZ #301) was approved by US Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on June 12, 2023 under Board Order #2144. FTZ #301 will initially serve Henderson County and parts of Buncombe County, Haywood County, Jackson County, and Transylvania County with oversight from US Customs and Border Protection officers from the Port of Greenville-Spartanburg (South Carolina). We sincerely appreciate US Customs and Border Protection Port Director Henson for his willingness to share his officers to serve businesses located in FTZ #301.
Businesses approved for FTZ status can use special Customs procedures to help save on duties, taxes, and fees on imported merchandise, along with other benefits. The FTZ program aims to promote U.S. competitiveness and activity by removing some of the disadvantages of manufacturing in the U.S. The Land of Sky Foreign-Trade Zone will aid businesses in this region become more globally competitive and will help place them on a level playing field with their foreign competitors.
The Economic Development Partnership of NC projected a Foreign-Trade Zone serving just Buncombe, Henderson, Madison, and Transylvania Counties would add at least 300 jobs and a minimum of $100 million investment.
North Carolina is currently home to four Foreign Trade Zone programs serving most of the state’s counties; unfortunately, none of those programs can include the twenty unserved Western North Carolina counties. Land of Sky Regional Council is working in partnership with the Asheville Regional Airport (AVL) to establish a US Customs Port of Entry at AVL. Establishing this Port of Entry will allow FTZ #301 to expand its service area to include all unserved counties in Western North Carolina as well as allow AVL to clear flights originating in a foreign nation.
Foreign-Trade Zones are an integral part of North Carolina’s economy. More than 10,000 North Carolina jobs are supported by current FTZ users with exports of over $75 million. Western North Carolina is home to over 1,000 manufacturing firms representing around 40,000 good-paying jobs. Industry leaders such as Altec, Baxter Healthcare, BorgWarner Turbo Systems, GE Aviation, Cummins Meritor, UPM Raflatac, and Snap-On Tools contribute to job creation and retention in WNC. Foreign-Trade Zone #301 will provide WNC companies another opportunity to expand their business while giving our economic developers another tool to help existing firms expand and new businesses locate in the region.
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