Evangeline Parish Sheriff Charles Guillory has denied Cabot’s request for an industrial tax exemption.
The following is a statement from Sheriff Guillory regarding his decision.
“Cabot has been in existence for 138 years and is a worldwide corporation spanning the globe in six countries with over 4,500 employees. Its liquid assets are valued at $1.5 billion, and it has an annual cash flow of $377 million.”
“This industrial tax exemption request by Cabot, who has been here for 80 years, has been one of the most difficult decisions I ever had to make. I have friends who work there at present, and I have friends who worked there in the past.”
“The vast majority of the exemption was on the shoulders of the police jury and the school board. The sheriff’s office’s contribution in this decision is very small indeed. The reason I say this is that the sheriff’s portion of the tax exemption equals approximately $500 thousand in 10-year period. This would amount to approximately $50 thousand per year and $4,100 per month that would be lost by the sheriff’s office.”
“Just to let everyone know how the application process works. Cabot applies with LED (Louisiana Economic Development), and then the application is forwarded to the Board of Commerce and Industry. It is the board that decides qualifications of the tax exemption.”
“It is unfortunate that this exemption was brought up at the same time of the sheriff’s sales tax. This request by Cabot could have been brought up at any time before the construction phase and even after. The construction period is January 2021 through June 2023.”
“With that said, I am always in favor of giving tax exemptions to a new company wanting to set up roots in Evangeline Parish. I’m even in agreement with an existing company, such as Cabot, requesting an exemption if it was an expansion project when completed employing an additional number of employees such as 100 or more.”
“Finally, as sheriff of this parish, I could not see myself approving a tax exemption on one hand throwing away money and then, on the other hand, asking the residents of this parish to approve a sales tax.”
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