Officials of the Governor's Office of Economic Development board, formerly the Board of Business and Economic Development, refused to identify the companies or provide much detail about their operations.

The companies are leery of making too much information public before they make a decision about where they are expanding their operations, state officials said.

The GOED board approved tax rebates of up to $2.5 million over 10 years to an Eastern U.S.-based "global sporting goods company."

If the unnamed firm accepts the incentive, it would establish its headquarters in Utah and bring in 100 jobs, including top executives, designers and engineers, said board member Mark Howell. The firm has 7,000 employees and $2 billion in revenues, Howell said.

Colorado is competing with Utah for the company, he said.

A second firm, which already has medical manufacturing operations in Utah, is being enticed with an incentive worth up to $1 million over 10 years if it agrees to expand its operations in Utah. That would mean building a 50,000 square foot manufacturing operation that would employ 250 people. The jobs would pay about 125 percent of Salt Lake County's median wage, Howell said.

Nevada is competing with Utah for the medical manufacturer's expansion, he said.

Under the Economic Development Tax Increment Incentives program, approved by the Legislature last year, the companies would get a percentage of the state taxes they pay rebated annually over a 10-year period.

They would have to agree to stay in Utah for the 10 years.