Louisiana Constitution Amendment Would Free Oil & Gas Industries From Property Taxes, Forever

[hatrack]

A new Louisiana State Constitutional Amendment could ensure that the oil and gas industry doesn’t have to pay property taxes ever again. The good news is that this is a state matter residents have control over — Louisiana voters can vote against it.

Amendment 5 is also being described as a corporate welfare amendment and was created for a specific oil and gas company, Cameron LNG, which is an export facility. It is actually a foreign conglomeration with domestic partners. It’s mostly owned by Japanese corporations. I spoke on the phone with Broderick Bagert of Together Louisiana, a coalition of church and community activists which is taking a stand against Amendment 5. Below is more of what I learned about this amendment.

Link to tweet

Bagert explained to me a bit of the background behind this amendment to the state’s constitution. Ten years ago, Cameron LNG was given tax exemption on a property worth $12–13 billion. Some reports say $12 billion while others say $13 billion. This ten-year tax exemption is expiring, and for the past few years, Cameron LNG has been trying to get this amendment to the state’s constitution onto voters’ ballot.

Right now, for Cameron LNG to be forever tax exempt would be against Louisiana’s state law. Of further note, the land that Cameron LNG uses is “the most valuable piece of property in the state of Louisiana,” Bagert told me. However, in 2019, Cameron LNG paid just $38,000 worth of taxes. Bagert pointed out that the property is 99.98% tax exempt, and if Cameron LNG was paying its full taxes, the amount it would be paying is $220 million. Instead, those who own property in Cameron are having to pay higher taxes to make up the difference. And services and public infrastructure are not what they could be.

EDIT

Cameron LNG has invested a few million dollars into a lobbying campaign to change Louisiana’s constitution to allow the company to keep its property tax exemption indefinitely. A few million is clearly less than $220 million. Bagert explained that Cameron Parish — yes, the same parish where Hurricane Laura made landfall and wiped towns off the map — has a pretty high property tax rate. Every single person — man, woman, and child — is paying for Cameron LNG’s tax exemption.

EDIT

https://cleantechnica.com/2020/09/11/louisianas-amendment-5-wants-to-exempt-big-oil-from-paying-property-taxes-forever-while-making-taxpayers-foot-the-bill/

[FBaggins]

1. Something of a stretch

The amendment merely gives local governments the power to make similar deals. It doesn't "free oil companies from taxes forever".

Presumably, the municipality in each case feels that the deal is in their best interests... and it's certainly something that (if the citizens disagree) can cost them their position in the next election.

We can disagree with a given deal from afar, but that's different from saying that other localities shouldn't be empowered to make them.

[jimfields33]

2. I've notice in Florida that most Amendments are passed

I think most just put yes to all of them. Hopefully it’s different in Louisiana at least for this question.