Ocean breezes keep the area cooler in summer and warmer in winter. The Cheaspeake Bay and Atlantic Ocean help raise temperatures 10-15 degrees higher than in Baltimore and Philadelphia. This weather ensures that snow and ice do not usually accumulate on the Shore.

The county population has grown steadily during the past 15 years, from 31,000 to 40,000. Projections for the year 2000 are greater than 43,000. Less than one-half the population lives in four incorporated towns and population density is very low in the surrounding areas. But with tourism as the basis for our economy, the county population during the summer months reaches more than 300,000 on weekends, mostly concentrated in the resort town of Ocean City.

While Worcester County's economy is still driven primarily by tourism, a diverse manufacturing base is growing. Over the past five years, 250 jobs have been created in twelve companies. A few firms have found new markets overseas, and the county has been working toward increasing exports for all manufacturers. One of the newcomers to the county, an aquaculture facility in Pocomoke City, has great growth potential. In the future, we expect to see vertically-integrated operations similar to the poultry industry, the second largest sector of the county's economy.

A fully-developed 98-acre industrial park in Pocomoke City is part of an 180-acre state enterprise zone.

The fiscal year 1997 effective tax rate in unincorporated areas on real property is $0.756/$100; for business personal property it is $1.68/$100. In Pocomoke City (comparable to Berlin and Snow Hill) the tax rates are $1.47/$100 and $3.48/$100, respectively. The tax rates have been stable over the past decade. The County offers a 100% 7-year credit against the personal property tax on manufacturing equipment and a full exemption from this tax on R&D equipment. Manufacturing inventory is also exempt from taxation.