Port Isabel Independent School District Rejects $160 Million Tax Break For Giant Gulf Coast LNG Project
The Point Isabel Independent School District on Monday rejected a multi-million dollar tax break for a proposed $5.7 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) project on the Texas Gulf Coast, finding the facility would not “align” with the community’s values or finances. Districts in Texas have typically granted such agreements, which are meant to incentivize investment with reduced property taxes in exchange for promises of economic development.
But the school district’s board of trustees in Port Isabel, with 5,200 people tucked between nature preserves at the mouth of the Rio Grande, have rejected three similar proposals from LNG developers planning to build large industrial complexes in the area, including a previous application from the 625-acre Texas LNG project. “We are at a loss at how school board leadership could have made such a decision,” said a spokesperson for Texas LNG project, Tim Fitzpatrick. “There is no economically rational benefit for this vote, which should be about how to benefit students.” He said the agreement “would have delivered an additional $15 million per year to the Point Isabel ISD.”
Ed. - Yes, because it's always about Thee Cheeldren, right?
In an announcement last month, Texas LNG developer Glenfare Group said it planned to finalize financing and begin construction this year on its tract of coastal wetlands along the Brownsville Ship Channel, adjacent to the 980-acre site of Rio Grande LNG, where crews began clearing land in 2023.
Point Isabel ISD, in a press release Monday evening, said “the agreement was not in the best interest of the district and its taxpayers at this time.”
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https://insideclimatenews.org/news/03032026/texas-school-district-rejects-lng-tax-deal/