B. It has received a certificate as a qualified business pursuant to section 5250-O.

18. Qualified Pine Tree Development Zone employees. "Qualified Pine Tree Development Zone employees" means new, full- time employees hired in this State by a qualified Pine Tree Development Zone business for work directly in one or more qualified business activities for whom a retirement program subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 United States Code, Sections 101 to 1461 (2003), as amended, and group health insurance are provided and whose wages income derived from employment within the Pine Tree Development Zone are, calculated on a calendar year basis, is greater than the average most recent annual per capita wages personal income in the local labor market area in the county in which the qualified employee is employed. "Qualified Pine Tree Development Zone employees must be residents of this State " does not include employees shifted to a qualified business activity from a nonqualified activity of the qualified Pine Tree Development Zone business or an affiliated business. The commissioner shall determine whether a shifting of employees has occurred.

Sec. 5. 30-A MRSA §5250-J, sub-§3, as enacted by PL 2003, c. 688, Pt. D, §2, is amended to read:

3. Limitations. The designation of Pine Tree Development Zones is subject to the following limitations:

A. The total area of a zone, including all noncontiguous parcels, may not exceed 5,000 acres, which need not be contiguous.__In calculating the 5,000-acre limit, only developable acres may be counted;

B. A zone located in Aroostook County as described in subsection 1, paragraph A may include property that is also included within the Aroostook County Empowerment Zone as designated by the federal Community Renewal Tax Relief Act of 2000, Public Law 106-554;

C. Pine Tree Development Zone benefits may not be used to encourage or facilitate the transfer of existing positions or property of a qualified business or affiliated businesses