Nortex Times

The controversy over tax abatements for wind energy company Lasso Wind LLC continues after the matter was stalled in mid-July. 

After one Jack County commissioner took a stand to postpone the vote to allow for more debate, one business owner spoke to Nortex Times about his opposition to the wind turbine project.

Jack County commissioners were to determine if tax abatements should be given to French-owned Lasso Wind, which would have designed a segment of the county as a "reinvestment zone" at the July meeting But commissioner Gary Oliver postponed the vote to ensure further debate on the subject, according to the Jacksboro Herald-Gazette.

"I am not going to be a pawn in this action," Oliver said in a prepared statement. "Voters are speaking loud enough on this issue....I'm leaving, so there will not be a quorum." 

The tax abatements have been highly controversial in Jack County over several months.

A recent survey of Jack County voters conducted by Anderson Williams Research found 58% of residents oppose building any new wind farms, with 29% supporting construction. Opposition rose to 76% when those surveyed were informed the parent company of Lasso Wind is a foreign-owned entity. 

One of those residents opposing the wind farm is Roby Christie, founder of the Hotter N Hell 100 mile bike race in Wichita Falls, and owner of Guarantee Title. 

"I do not support tax breaks for wind or solar industrial complexes in Jack County," he said. "Landowners who have already signed leases have a right to lease their property but their property rights should not unnecessarily interfere with their neighbors enjoyment and use of their property."

"Proper setbacks of 1,500 meters from their nonparticipating property owner/neighbor would significantly lessen the negative impact on neighbor rights and property values," he added. "In the city limits these kinds of issues are solved by city ordinance. In the county, proper attention to everyone’s rights could have been negotiated through smart, compassionate and ethical tax abatement guidelines." 

Christie said it is "important to me that Jack County voters have the opportunity to make informed decisions about their properties, and issues that may only be resolved in a ballot box."

Whether more wind farms will be placed in rural communities will be determined by residents, Christie said.

"The future of  rural communities will be guided by residents that recognize the value of their properties and appreciate the economic impact that tourism and new residents can have on area economies," he said. "Future success of rural communities will fair better without wholesale industrial development.  

"Travelers and new residents from outside rural counties can have a positive impact on the economies of hospitable small Texas towns," he added. "Those tourists or new citizens looking to connect with the values of rural America are looking for what they don’t find in their crowded big cities. They are looking for the beauty and heritage of places like Jack County. Jack County is often referred to as the Hill Country of North Texas."

The mid-July hearing that made Oliver stand up was recounted by eyewitness, George Clay. He said, “the judge let two hours of testimony be heard and put his own people in to talk, who took another hour and then said it's time to vote, and that's when commissioner Gary Oliver stood up and said he's not going to hang around and allow a vote for something with the potential for a long standing effect on Jack County, with an unelected commissioner.” Clay added, “He walked out to a standing ovation” and that “The judge… got red-faced mad.”

Elected officials who support the tax breaks could be up for replacement. A recent survey by Anderson Williams Research of Jack County voters found 41% of respondents said they would vote to replace them if they supported wind farm tax abatements. An additional 32% said they would consider other candidates.

Keep the Country reports that if Lasso Wind receives tax breaks and their business proposal is approved, it would result in $4.5 million in lost revenue each year for 30 years and require a 45% tax increase for Jack County residents to cover the costs. They also found landowners who support wind farm tax abatements only comprise of .5% of annual taxes to the county and only 2.2% of the county's land value.

Texas Land Rights Organization has reported that property values have decreased by 25 to 40% or more where views of wind or solar farms have been placed. In addition, real estate brokers report that clients in the last six months have declined to buy land due to the potential of wind turbines on nearby properties. Several brokers in Brown County and Comanche and Mills Counties have stated eight of 10 buyers will not look a a property if wind turbines are viewable, according to TLOW.

The North Texas Heritage Association, a local Jack County group, is concerned wind turbines will cause harm to the delicate ecosystems in the area, as reported by Texas Business Daily.  

"There are other issues that we believe both APEX and EDF have overlooked, or have decided to ignore, that deeply concern us," NTHA said in announcement. "One of the major concerns is the danger a wind farm could pose to our environment. We have known for some time that the migratory route of the highly endangered whooping crane flies through the land that APEX and EDF have leased for their turbines."  

The NTHA does not approve of the tax breaks, Christie said, explaining, "a critic of the following reply needs to recognize that tax abatements are historically used to help provide a start up company with enough capital to actually create a profitable local business that will add significant value and jobs to the local economy."

He pointed out the wind complex that is under consideration in the county is expected to create three permanent jobs and that is not a "suitable exchange for millions of county tax revenue dollars." He said in the first year alone the county will lose approximately $800,000 in tax revenue.

"The tax abatement will serve to make things worse and possible force the county to raise taxes," Christie said. "Not giving a tax break to well finance foreign wind energy company doesn't mean losing tax revenue it means getting the tax revenue now and getting all of it." 

Christie pointed out a recent poll in registered voters in Jack County showed 58.4% do not approve of new wind farms, 68.2% do not approve of tax abatements, and 58.3% strongly oppose abatements. 

There are numerous other reasons NTHA has opposed the tax breaks including high noise levels, no protection for infrasound damage to water wells, no guidelines for protecting the environment, no protection for county historic sites. In addition, Christie said "property values are show to decline on properties adjacent to wind industrial complexes. When that happens, county tax revenues could decline was well."