Tax breaks on the construction of its $126 million ethanol plant and other facility upgrades by Bunge-Ergon Vicksburg Inc., approved by the Warren County Board of Supervisors last week, were OK’d by the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen Monday.

Bunge-Ergon President Les Lampton presented the board with an overview of the company’s investments and spending in Vicksburg and Warren County before the board’s approval of ad valorem and free port tax exemptions, as well as a fee-in-lieu of tax break.

“Ergon is always spending money, I assure you,” said Lampton. “We put more money in Vicksburg and Warren County than we’ve ever taken out. We’re a very quiet company, and we don’t say much… but we want to arm you with some of the facts to see that we are good corporate citizens.”

With eight integrated segments of business — from trucking and barge line operations to a refinery and the ethanol plant — Lampton said Bunge-Ergon has about 852 employees and an annual average payroll of $46.2 million. He estimated the local economic impact at $5.2 million.

Annually filed by businesses that have upgraded physical plants or added equipment, the ad valorem exemptions apply to real and/or personal property taxes on the improvements. The board also approved an ad valorem exemption to Cooper Lighting on Monday, which was also in line with county board actions last week.

Less often approved is the free port tax exemption, which allows a company to forgo paying taxes on inventory that is transported out of Mississippi. The county board approved one for Bunge-Ergon last week, and the city board followed suit Monday, meaning the company will not have to pay taxes on $3,683,702 worth of inventory bound beyond state lines. Beyond that, the board OK’d a tax exemption on 58 percent of the company’s total inventory of $6,351,210.

With the ad valorem exemptions approved, the city will forgo $19,825.67, while the county — which collects taxes for the school district — will forgo $47,923.14, Warren County Tax Assessor Ricky Holland has said.

Bunge-Ergon’s ethanol plant at the Port of Vicksburg went into operation last fall without public incentives. It has an estimated output of 54 million gallons of ethanol per year. Lampton told the board the plant turned a profit for the first time last month. Lampton said the company purchased more than $16 million worth of corn from farmers in Warren, Hinds, Issaquena, Sharkey, Claiborne and Yazoo counties for use in ethanol sold outside the state last year.

“Those people all have truck drivers who come in and they spend money…they’re going to leave some in Vicksburg and Warren County before they leave. It should be the same this year as last year,” he said of the company’s corn purchases.

The mayor and aldermen also approved an agreement Monday to accept a fee-in-lieu of taxes from Bunge-Ergon when an estimated $240 million expansion of its refinery is completed. Fee-in-lieu of taxes is accepted on investments of more than $100 million. The refinery improvements are ongoing, and are expected to be added to the tax rolls on Jan. 1.

*

On the agenda

On Monday, the Vicksburg Board of Mayor and Aldermen:

• Approved June 25 meeting minutes.

• Tabled approving a request for $500 from organizers of the Pearl Street Back to School Bash.

• Tabled re-appointing Derek Adams, Gwen Edris, Skipper Guizerix and Tom Pharr to the Vicksburg Convention Center advisory board. Mayor Paul Winfield said he wants to meet with those up for reappointment before voting on the matter.

• Authorized advertising for sealed bids for construction of the fire station at the Vicksburg Municipal Airport.

• Authorized preparing and submitting a grant application to the Mississippi Department of Public Safety, Division of Public Safety Planning, for funding under the fiscal year 2009 Enforcing Underage Drinking Laws Grant Program. The grant would provide $6,000 for enforcement and education, with no local match required.

• Canceled a deed of trust with Sandra Smith.

• Approved a request from Building and Inspections Director Victor Gray-Lewis for a petty cash refund of $50.

• Authorized Gray-Lewis to proceed to cut, clean and/or demolish buildings at the following properties: 1824 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., 2631 Hannah Ave., 1200 Harrison St. and 1320 Grammar St. A 90-day extension was granted for 2110 Baker St., and a hearing on property at 1500 East Ave. was tentatively set for Friday.

• Approved a request for a $150 advertisement from Vicksburg High School.

In executive session, the board:

• Approved an employment action form in the legal department.

• Approved a transfer in administration.

• Approved pay adjustments in the fire (5), city clerk (2), legal (2) and court services (1) departments.

• Discussed personnel matters in the fire and police departments.

• Accepted resignations in the human services (2) and police (1) departments.

• Approved terminations in administration (1) and the police department (2).

*

Contact Steve Sanoski at ssanoski@vicksburgpost.com