Under Tax-Property Article, §§7-108, 7-109, and 7-225, Annotated Code of Maryland, counties and municipalities are authorized to exempt from local taxation personal property used in a manufacturing process. There are three general activities that encompass the overall manufacturing process, each of which qualifies for the exemption. Each activity may exist without the others being present. These activities are research, development, and manufacturing. In this chapter, the following terms have the meanings indicated. Terms Defined. Development. “Development” means the design, development, and governmentally required premarket testing of prototypes, products, and processes, which involves the translation of research findings or other knowledge into a plan or design for a new product, process, or technique for a business or for a significant improvement to an existing product, process, or technique whether intended for sale or use. “Development” includes: The conceptual formulation and design of product alternatives; Construction of prototypes; and Operation of pilot plants. “Development” does not include: Routine or periodic alterations to existing products, production lines, manufacturing, and other ongoing operations, even though those alterations may represent improvements; Routine product testing activities, except for governmentally required premarket testing; or Activities that are primarily a service, or development activities of a public utility. Manufacturing. “Manufacturing” means the process of substantially transforming, or a substantial step in the process of substantially transforming, tangible personal property into a new and different article of tangible personal property by use of labor or machinery, converting a tangible raw material into a tangible product. “Manufacturing” includes, pursuant to Tax-Property Article, §1-101(r), Annotated Code of Maryland: The operation of sawmills, grain mills, or feed mills; Mining; The identification, design, or genetic engineering of biological materials; and The design, development, or creation of computer software for sale, lease, or license. “Manufacturing” does not include, pursuant to Tax-Property Article, §1-101(r), Annotated Code of Maryland: Activities that are primarily a service; Activities that are intellectual, artistic, or clerical in nature; or Public utility services. Research. “Research” means basic and applied research in the sciences and engineering, involving a planned search or critical investigation aimed at discovery of new knowledge with the hope that this knowledge will be useful in developing a new product, process, or technique for the business or in bringing about a significant improvement to an existing product, process, or technique. “Research” does not include: Market research; Research of a public utility; or Research in the social sciences, psychology, or other nontechnical activities. When a manufacturing operation is performed by different businesses, the activity of any one business is considered manufacturing only if it represents a substantial step in the overall operation. When it is not clear whether a raw material has undergone a substantial transformation, the Department will consider secondary factors in determining whether manufacturing has occurred. Secondary factors include: The scale and character of the operation; The number of employees; and Whether the nature of the operation is consistent with the common understanding of the term “manufacturing”. A business shall file a completed exemption application before an exemption will be approved by the Department. Tax-Property Article, §§1-101(r), 2-201, 2-202, 7-108, 7-109, and 7-225, Annotated Code of Maryland Effective date: April 19, 1999 (26:8 Md. R. 619)