The property tax totals for 2023 have brought another record year for Iberville Parish.
The final tally will likely amount to $124.5 million, Assessor Randy Sexton said. The total is $9.5 million more than last year’s sum, which was a record amount.
Shintech was the largest taxpaying entity in the parish, with a total tax amount of $24 million.
Last year’s parish property tax total is a far cry from the $42 million intake when Sexton took office in 2009.
“I was surprised because we had such a large increase from last year,” he said. “We did go through a reassessment year, which did not change our values a whole lot… this is all new.
“Shintech is the biggest driving force, without a doubt. Shintech is a very big player in this game — the largest, by far, and the amount they’re spending on these plants is unbelievable.”
Sexton attributes Iberville’s stable, business friendly government for the ability to attract large industrial entities that yield millions more in revenue for the parish.
One other factor figures into the equation.
“Other parishes are running out of land,” he said. “It all involves deepwater access along the Mississippi River, south of Baton Rouge.
“These companies need deepwater access and land availability, and what we have here is what they end up with. Whether a plant owns it or is neighbor to it that is saving it in case they need to expand, I don’t blame them at all.”
The Industrial Tax Exemption has been a “blessing” for Iberville Parish, he said.
Even after Gov. John Bel Edwards dropped ITEP from 100 percent to 75percent in 2018, the revenue remains solid for Iberville Parish, Sexton said.
“We shouldn’t have to go to the state to beg for money — Iberville certainly won’t, for sure,” he said.
