A county reinvestment zone may not include territory within a municipality, so the data center site must remain outside municipal jurisdiction to receive this county-based incentive. County reinvestment zones may not include municipal taxing jurisdiction.

Creating the reinvestment zone and approving the tax-abatement agreement requires governmental procedures, including adopted eligibility guidelines, a public hearing, advance newspaper and taxing-unit notice, and approval by an affirmative majority vote at a regularly scheduled meeting. An agreement must be approved by an affirmative majority vote.

The agreement limits the project to a maximum of 10 buildings and requires the company to continuously operate each completed building consistently with its intended purpose for the agreement term.

Real-property phases must meet filing and construction deadlines: Phase 1 requires a phase certificate within 23 months and construction commencement within 24 months after December 30, 2024; other phases must meet the agreement's certification deadlines, and construction of any phase may not last more than five years.

A real-property phase is eligible for abatement only if its construction commencement certificate is delivered by the tenth anniversary of the agreement; personal-property phases likewise must be documented by the tenth anniversary.

Phase 1 requires at least $900 million of cumulative investment in real and personal property; each later real-property phase requires at least $300 million of improvements and personal-property investment to qualify for abatement.

The project must create and maintain at least 40 full-time-equivalent jobs in the county, with compensation meeting the agreement's minimum-salary requirement; the salary threshold is 120% of the county average weekly wage beginning in the specified fifth year and is adjusted annually by the CPI-W.

The company must comply with all applicable federal, state, county, and local laws and regulations, including all applicable City of Lytle ordinances for each completed building.

The company and permitted occupants must submit annual compliance certificates to the county by April 30 throughout the agreement term and must annually file the required property-tax exemption application with the appraisal district by April 30 for each year an abatement is claimed.

County representatives may inspect the property during normal business hours, generally with at least five business days' advance notice, to verify compliance with the agreement.

Construction equipment is generally restricted to Monday through Saturday from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., with no ordinary Sunday construction-equipment use. Limited extensions are allowed for no more than 60 aggregate days per phase, subject to the agreement's time limits and notice requirements.

Before construction of each phase, the developer must submit a traffic and transportation assessment, noise study, visual-impact analysis, boundary setbacks, a site plan with at least a 250-foot building setback, logistics and safety plans, dust-control and erosion/sediment-control plans, and a tree-preservation survey.

Before submitting a construction-commencement certificate, Rowan must complete specified community-engagement activities, including stakeholder meetings, a project website with public contact and FAQ functions, and a public open house of at least three hours with notice to nearby properties within one mile.

The project must work with the county to incorporate a public-access road into the site plan in accordance with Medina County road, street, bridge, and drainage standards.

For each construction phase, the developer must conduct pre- and post-phase road-condition surveys, pay the reasonable cost of repairing construction damage to county roads, and provide security of up to $75,000 through a surety bond, letter of credit, cash collateral, or another acceptable form.

The company and permitted occupants must timely pay all taxes and project costs that are not abated; delinquent taxes, failure to complete required improvements or investments, violation of Article III covenants, or failure to maintain the job requirement can result in termination, loss of future abatements, and recapture of previously abated taxes.

The company may not seek additional financial incentives from another local political subdivision during the agreement term without the county's written consent, except that incentives may be negotiated with the City of Lytle if the property is annexed.

Medina County may designate a county reinvestment zone for property outside a municipality and enter into a tax-abatement agreement for qualifying development. The zone must support primary employment or major investment, benefit the property, and contribute to county economic development; designation generally lasts five years and may be renewed for additional periods of up to five years. Sections 312.401(b)-(d)

A county may abate all or part of the value of taxable real property, tangible personal property, leasehold interests, fixtures, and improvements in a reinvestment zone. The applicable agreement terms are governed by the municipal-abatement rules, including a maximum 10-year period. Section 312.402(a)-(a-3)

The Rowan agreement provides an 80% abatement of Medina County’s qualifying maintenance-and-operations property taxes for each real-property phase and each personal-property phase, generally for 10 years. The abatement begins after the required construction-completion certificate or personal-property phase certificate is submitted and eligibility requirements are met. Sections 4.02-4.07 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The agreement supports phased data-center expansion: it allows up to five real-property phases and four personal-property phases, with up to 10 buildings in total. Phases 2 through 5 may qualify for abatements if each receives at least $300 million in improvements and personal-property investment. Sections 1.02, 3.04, and 3.05 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The agreement allows tenant companies and on-site operators to receive an allocable share of the abatements by signing a joinder agreement and accepting the agreement’s obligations. Rights and obligations may also be assigned to company affiliates with advance written notice. Sections 4.14 and V of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The abatement commencement date may be deferred until after the agreement is signed, while each abatement period remains limited to 10 years. The agreement also permits qualifying phase certificates to be submitted through the 10th anniversary of the agreement’s effective date. Section 312.007(b)

The tax abatement is calculated only on value added above the January 1, 2024 base value, and the agreement states that no improvements or personal property were present on the property on that date. Section 4.09 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

If the property is later annexed by a municipality, the agreement allows the company and permitted occupants to seek tax incentives from the city. Separately, state law can preserve a county agreement’s tax-abatement terms after annexation if the municipality formally expresses the required intent before annexation. Section 4.13 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The agreement treats each phase independently, so a default involving one phase does not automatically affect the abatement or obligations for other phases, except for the shared jobs requirement and phase-specific abatement percentages. Section 4.11 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The agreement provides a 30-day opportunity to cure most defaults, allows continued future abatements after a cured compliance failure, and permits only a tax-year suspension rather than automatic permanent loss of all abatements. Tax-payment defaults and bankruptcy events are exceptions that can trigger immediate default. Section 6.02 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

Force majeure events can extend the time for performing agreement obligations for the duration of the delay, provided the affected party did not cause the event and uses commercially reasonable efforts to minimize its effects. Section 9.11 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The county’s road-use agreement requires pre- and post-construction road surveys, establishes a process for identifying and paying for construction-related road damage, and permits a surety bond, letter of credit, cash collateral, or other security capped at $75,000 to secure the developer’s obligations. Sections 3-8 of the Road Use Agreement

The construction-management agreement establishes permitted construction hours of Monday through Saturday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., with limited temporary extensions and exceptions for emergencies, health and safety, public-utility service, and protection of equipment or materials. Section 3 of the Construction Management Agreement

The construction-management agreement creates a coordinated review process for site plans, traffic and transportation studies, noise studies, visual-impact analyses, setbacks, logistics, dust control, erosion and sediment control, and tree-preservation plans. The developer must submit the plans before construction, and the county must meet with the developer to review and address comments. Sections 4-5 of the Construction Management Agreement

The Chapter 312 agreement requires the county to provide access for inspections during normal business hours, with at least five business days’ advance notice and procedures intended to avoid unreasonable interference with construction or data-center operations. Section 4.16 of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The agreement requires the company to work with the county to incorporate a public-access road into the project site plan under Medina County road, street, bridge, and drainage standards. Section 3.03(e) of the Chapter 312 Agreement

The statute allows tax-abatement agreements to cover expansion or modernization of existing facilities, not only new facilities and structures, if the taxing unit’s adopted guidelines provide for both categories. Section 312.002(a)

An existing tax-abatement agreement remains effective even when the reinvestment-zone designation expires. Section 312.203

Taxing units other than the municipality or county may enter separate abatements for property covered by a municipal or county agreement, although school districts generally may not enter Chapter 312 agreements for agreements executed on or after September 1, 2001. Sections 312.002(f)-(g)