Christians are encouraged to tithe. Some do. Shouldn’t these industrial behemoths that have targeted our pristine Magic Valley be forced to pay something from their huge profits for the pollution, uglification and disruption of where we live?
Instead, they pressure our representatives for tax abatements that place an additional burden on existing taxpayers by increasing the costs they bear for public services, like driving up water and electricity prices as they create greater demand.
I understand all too well how weary we all are of being a high-poverty area and the brain-drain that occurs when our brightest youngsters have to move away to find suitable jobs.
But the LNG plant owners are not local, their liquified gas won’t even be sold in the U.S., and their profits certainly won’t be spent locally. They take a lot and give very little.
It’s no wonder that thoughtful locals have protested tax abatements — as I did in Port Isabel — many of whom see that the permanent degradation of our special ecology is not worth the relatively few permanent local jobs created by LNG.
This applies equally to the refinery coming to the Port of Brownsville, the data center to Harlingen and the Amazon warehouse in Brownsville.
I have read for years that Elon Musk is going to give back for stealing Boca Chica Beach and damaging our homes, businesses and ecology with his exploding mega-rockets by funding development of a “River Walk” in downtown Brownsville, with a hotel, grocery store, restaurants, bars and retail stores. Now that he’s the world’s first trillionaire, when will that happen? Or was that just an ephemeral “Trump promise” like Confederacy money?
Jordana Barton-Garcia recently explained that there are enforceable public benefit agreements in which residents can protect themselves and balance the benefits and costs of these multibillion-dollar investments by setting out who pays for needed increases in utilities, infrastructure, roads and amelioration of noise, emissions and negative environmental impacts, with placement of responsibility on the highest level of investors.
I would add tithing. OK, 10% of the profits may be unreasonable. But how about 1% or 0.5%? Not just free T-shirts and sponsorship of the local chili cookoff!
That could be a lot of money to ease our tax burdens and enhance our communities.
We have a special place. Let’s cut a better deal.
Barry Benton
Brownsville
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