County grants Freeport Exemption

County grants Freeport Exemption

By Melissa Mixon Wednesday, 20 January 2010

WILLIAMSON COUNTY — Williamson County Commissioners voted to lift the Freeport tax Jan. 19 in an effort to bring tax relief to companies in the county and make the area more competitive when attracting new businesses.

“There have been several companies looking to relocate but they were waiting in the wings to see what the court did with this,” said Precinct 2 Commissioner Cynthia Long, who helped lead the effort to eliminate the tax.

In 1989, Texas voters approved an amendment to the Texas Constitution to allow the local taxing authorities—counties, cities and school districts—to exempt goods in transit (or Freeport goods) from ad valorem, or property, taxes. Freeport property is defined as goods, wares, merchandise and other tangible personal property acquired in Texas or brought into Texas and held here 175 days or fewer before being shipped out of the state. The property must be in the state for assembling, storing, manufacturing, repair, maintenance, processing, or fabricating purposes.

Some cities in Williamson County already have the Freeport Exemption, including Georgetown, Hutto, Taylor, Cedar Park, Leander and Round Rock.

Commissioners voted unanimously on Aug. 4, 2009, to eliminate the Freeport tax contingent upon obtaining agreements from existing companies that pay the tax to phase it out. The court appointed Long to lead the task of working with the existing companies. Since then, she and the team of economic development directors from the cities in the county have completed the negotiations with 20 companies. The Freeport tax will reduce by 20 percent per year for the companies who have signed the agreement, and in 2014, it will be totally eliminated.

—Additonal reporting by Suzanne Haberman.