Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development

Governor Herbert Welcomes New Goldman Sachs Expansion

Published: 16th September, 2009
Source: Goldman Sachs
Author: Gia Morón

Salt Lake City, Utah – The Business Development Board of The Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) met today to expand an incentive offer made previously to Goldman Sachs. The increased incentive is based on the company’s decision to nearly double the number of jobs it is considering adding to an existing regional office based in Salt Lake City. The Modified incentive will be for a $47.3 million post-performance EDTIF, refundable tax credit, based on 30% of new state revenue collected over 20 years. The state is expected to collect $157 million in new state tax revenue from Goldman Sachs over the same period.

A little over a year ago, the Board authorized an incentive based on the addition of 375 new employees being added to the Salt Lake City operation. The amended agreement is now based on 315 additional full-time positions being added, bringing the total to 690 full-time positions. By the end of 2010, the firm expects to reach a headcount of up to 1,040 positions. Average salaries for these highly skilled employees will be in excess of 150% of the annual Salt Lake County average wage, including company contributed health benefits. The firm expects to pay $1.7 billion in new state wages over the 20 year life of the agreement.

The company is expected to invest up to $51 million in construction and technology costs to accommodate this expansion. It also anticipates hiring a significant percentage of Utah residents through the general labor market, as well as through the Utah public and private university systems.

“Utah’s business-friendly environment, highly skilled workforce and unparalleled higher education system provide a premier foundation for the success of a company such as Goldman Sachs,” Governor Gary R. Herbert said.

David Lang, Managing Director in the Salt Lake City office of Goldman Sachs agreed with the Governor: “Our growth in Utah is a validation of Utah’s strong talent pool, its robust business environment and infrastructure. This region is an important part of our business and we look forward to expanding and building out more opportunities here.”

Goldman Sachs began Utah operations in August 2000 with the opening of a regional office in Salt Lake City. In addition, Goldman Sachs Bank USA, which is headquartered in New York, operates a branch in Salt Lake City. At the end of 2008, the firm employed approximately 500 people in its office located in Research Park at the University of Utah.

This current project is a joint effort of the Utah Governor’s Office of Economic Development, Salt Lake City, EDCUtah and the Salt Lake Chamber.