Shreveport City Council grants tax break to Shreveport manufacturer

The Shreveport City Council on Tuesday gave a Shreveport machining company an industrial tax exemption on which other government entities have been divided.

The council voted 6-1 to award the exemption to the Inferno Mfg. Corp. Councilwoman Stephanie Lynch cast the dissenting vote.

The exemption would equate to $2,423 in city taxes annually or $12,114 over five years, according to the resolution fact sheet.

OPINION: 'Tax exemptions promote economic development and job creation'

Councilman Willie Bradford, whose district includes Inferno, said his support of the exemption stemmed from the fact that the company followed the rules.

"When a citizen or a company comes before this body — a public body — they deserve to be treated fair," said Bradford prior to the vote. "If they follow the rules and they're adhering to what they applied, they should not be penalized."

Inferno sought the exemption from paying property taxes on a metal working tool it purchased and installed in 2016 at a cost of $480,000.

Last week, Caddo Commissioners approved the exemption. Caddo Sheriff Steve Prator denied it in December. The Caddo Parish School Board pulled the exemption from its Feb. 13 agenda but later restored an amended version for consideration during a special meeting March 5.

OPINION: 'Caddo commissioners should reject Inferno tax exemption'

Louisiana has permitted such exemptions since the 1930s, but Inferno's was the first sought in Caddo Parish since Gov. John Bel Edwards changed the process under which they are approved.

Edwards, by executive order in 2016, gave local governments that receive property tax revenue the opportunity to recommend whether to approve industrial tax exemption applications. Previously, exemptions were approved solely by the Louisiana Board of industry and Commerce.

Allen Organick, president of Inferno, said the benefit to the city is the subsequent $15,341 his company would pay in city taxes over the next 20 years following the exemption.

"More importantly, this project comes with new jobs and the purchasing power of those new jobs is significant," he said.

Opponents, led mainly by the faith-based Together Louisiana and an affiliated group, Northern and Central Louisiana Interfaith, had argued that tax exemptions like that sought by Inferno often do not yield the promised economic development benefits.

Susan Caldwell, a representative of the group at Tuesday's meeting, said Interfaith is not anti-business or opposed to the industrial tax exemptions.

"What we're asking for is some accountability," she told the council.

The city council’s action Tuesday includes a cooperative endeavor agreement that ensures Inferno maintains the qualifications of the program on an annual basis.

Councilman Jeff Everson said the infrastructure committee, which met Tuesday, recommended creating a committee to review these types of applications going forward. A resolution to create the committee will be presented at a future council meeting.