Raleigh, N.C. — Computer maker Apple Inc. plans to locate a $1 billion data center in North Carolina, Gov. Beverly Perdue said Wednesday.

The move came after Perdue signed Senate Bill 575, which modifies the method by which capital-intensive businesses calculate corporate income tax liability in North Carolina.

“North Carolina continues to be a prime location for growing and expanding global technology companies,” Perdue said in a statement. “During these tough economic times, it’s important to make the investments that create jobs in areas that need them the most."

Apple has been rumored to be looking at sites in the western part of the state for an East Coast hub, but Perdue's statement didn't specify a location for the center.

Under the new legislation, a capital-intensive industry must meet investment and wage standards and provide its employees with health insurance in order to use the modified formula for calculating the state corporate income tax. It also must locate in one of the state’s more economically distressed areas.

The Apple facility is expected to employ at least 50 people, and it is expected to contract locally for services like server maintenance and repair, building and ventilation system maintenance, landscaping and security. Officials said spending on those services could range from $5 million to $6 million annually and create up to 250 jobs.

The state Department of Commerce projects that a data center investment of $1 billion would create more than 3,000 jobs in the regional economy, including hundreds of jobs related to construction and others created as a result of economic growth.

“We are very pleased the General Assembly has recognized the role capital-intensive industries play in the state’s economy and their relationship to small businesses in our communities," Commerce Secretary Keith Crisco said in a statement. "Technology-driven projects like this may bring fewer overall jobs than traditional industry, but they have a tremendous economic impact through locally purchased goods and services."