Chapter 380 of the Texas Local Government Code allows Lockhart to offer a range of incentives for economic development, including the ability to rebate some of the city's portion of the 1.0% sales and use tax collected from business entities located in the jurisdiction.

Texas communities tax business inventory at the same rate as land, buildings and equipment. However, some cities, like Lockhart, grant the Triple Freeport Exemption from all three taxing entities, the City of Lockhart, Caldwell County and the Lockhart Independent School District.

Tax increment financing (TIF) is a tool that local governments can use to publicly finance needed structural improvements and enhanced infrastructure within a reinvestment zone.

An appraised value limitation is an agreement in which a taxpayer agrees to build or install property and create jobs in exchange for an eight year limitation on the taxable property value for school district maintenance and operations tax (M&O) purposes.

Economic Development & Diversification In-State Tuition for Employees is a program that allows employees—and those employees’ family members—of a qualified business considering a relocation or expansion of its operations in the State of Texas to pay in-state tuition rates at public institutions of higher education in the state without first establishing residency.

The Product Development and Small Business Incubator Fund (PDSBI) is a revolving loan program financed through original bond issuances. The primary objective of the program is to aid in the development, production and commercialization of new or improved products and to foster and stimulate small business in the State of Texas.

Established by the 74th Legislature in 1995, The Skills Development Fund was designed to better utilize the public community and technical college system in Texas as well as other training organizations and have them partner with businesses throughout the state (with priority on small businesses) to train workers to meet the labor needs of employers and the regional labor market.

Supports rural business development, retention and expansion by providing funds for public infrastructure, real estate development, or the elimination of deteriorated conditions.

The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is a federal income tax benefit administered by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) for employers who hire individuals from specified target populations. WOTC reduces a business’s federal tax liability, serving as an incentive to select job candidates who may be disadvantaged in their efforts to find employment.

The Texas Enterprise Fund (TEF) awards “deal-closing” grants to companies considering a new project for which one Texas site is competing with other out-of-state sites. The fund serves as a financial incentive for those companies whose projects would contribute significant capital investment and new employment opportunities to the state’s economy.

The Texas Enterprise Zone Program (EZP) is a state sales and use tax refund program designed to encourage private investment and job creation in economically distressed areas of the state.

Foreign-Trade Zones (FTZ) are secure areas under U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) supervision that are generally considered outside CBP territory upon activation. Located in or near CBP ports of entry, they are the United States' version of what are known internationally as free-trade zones.

The LEDC will provide a fifty (50) percent matching grant to reimburse up to $20,000 of well-designed property improvements within the central commercial business district of Lockhart.