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Commissioners warn Port of Woodland tax‑increment plan could cut county and fire district revenues
Summary
Cowlitz County commissioners spent an extended portion of the March 4 meeting criticizing a Port of Woodland plan to form a 5,000‑acre tax increment area under Washington House Bill 1189 (2021), saying it would freeze taxing values and divert future tax growth to the port for 25 years and could cost county and local districts millions.
Cowlitz County commissioners used much of their March 4 meeting to warn residents and other local governments about a Port of Woodland plan to form a 5,000‑acre tax increment area under Washington state House Bill 1189 (2021).
Commissioners and several public commenters said the port’s proposal would “freeze” the taxable base for affected entities — the county, the City of Woodland and Clark‑Cowlitz Fire & Rescue — and divert future tax revenue growth from those governments to the port for an estimated 25‑year period. A commissioner described the mechanism as “a backdoor tax” and said, “It just looks like theft to me. It’s money grabbing and theft.”
Nut graf: commissioners said the port’s numbers show a substantial…
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