Oregon actively seeks balanced economic growth in order to diversify its industrial base, reduce its dependence on the wood products industry, and provide jobs for a steadily growing labor force. The Economic Development Department offers a variety of financial assistance and incentives to companies which create jobs, particularly for low-income residents. It extends loans and issues industrial development bonds for manufacturing, processing and tourism-related facilities in Oregon. The bonds are exempt from federal taxes. The Department enables banks to make loans to projects that carry higher than conventional risk by creating reserve accounts which function as insurance for the banks. To promote new technologies, the Oregon Resource and Technology Development Corporation invests in applied research. Enterprise zones offer incentives for new businesses. The state offers tax credits to encourage businesses to use pollution control facilities, to invest in energy conservation and to employ renewable energy resources. In 2003, the Department developed a Guidebook and Readiness Assessment Tool to help communities assess their economic development potentials.