$15M In Property Tax Breaks For Manufacturers Stalled

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — About $15 million in property tax breaks for manufacturing facilities have been stalled by a board that reviews them, after Gov. John Bel Edwards says he wants the tax breaks tied to jobs.

Once seen as a rubber stamp on the tax breaks, the Board of Commerce and Industry on Monday deferred action on more than two dozen requests.

In some instances, companies can submit additional information to try to persuade the board. In others, the board is awaiting guidance from Edwards on how far he wants the new rules to go.

In June, Edwards announced he was changing Louisiana's approach to the Industrial Tax Exemption Program. He issued an order saying he will link the tax breaks to job creation and retention and involve local government agencies in decisions.

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