Gainesville EDC urges Cooke County to adopt Freeport exemption; commissioners table decision

County Judge and the Cooke County commissioners on Thursday heard a presentation from the Gainesville Economic Development Corporation on adopting a county-level Freeport exemption to reduce inventory taxes for qualifying businesses, then voted to table the request for two weeks.

The presentation, delivered by William Myers, executive director of the Gainesville Economic Development Corporation, and Will Preston, vice president of the EDC, described the Freeport exemption as a tool used by neighboring counties to lower the tax burden on inventory that is held in county facilities for less than 175 days and then shipped out of state. Myers said some site selectors and prospective companies consider a jurisdiction’s Freeport status a “checkbox” in early site searches and that not having county participation can exclude Cooke County from consideration. “They’ll always ask, ‘do you have triple Freeport?’” Myers said.

Preston presented a spreadsheet of current local filings and several revenue-effect scenarios. Preston said one set of assumptions produced a county revenue loss in the low six-figure range — “the net benefit about $60,000” — while an earlier, more conservative estimate had produced a larger loss figure. He and Myers emphasized the numbers depend on which local firms submit exemption claims and the percentage of each firm’s inventory that qualifies.

Why it matters: Commissioners described the issue as a trade-off between short-term revenue and long-term competitiveness. Presenters said the exemption can make Cooke County more competitive with adjacent counties such as Grayson, Wise and Denton, which already offer county-level Freeport participation. Commissioners asked for more precise figures and additional county-level analysis before acting.

Key details from the presentation: - Freeport eligibility described by EDC: inventory must be held at the business site in Cooke County for 175 days or less and then shipped out of state to qualify; “goods in transit would be 3rd party,” Myers said. - Current local participation: speakers said the city of Gainesville and two local hospital districts participate, while the county, local independent school districts and North Central Texas College do not. - Financial estimates: presenters discussed a range of potential county revenue impacts: an initial calculation near $387,000 (if all eligible firms claimed full exemption) and a lower, more likely estimate of roughly $60,000 net in lost collections under current assumptions. Appraisal-district review and firm-level reporting will determine actual claims. - Process and timing: presenters said companies must file exemption claims with the appraisal district by April 1 for the 2025 tax year; the appraisal district approves or denies those claims.

Commissioners’ questions focused on the size of the revenue impact, how quickly a loss would be recouped if new firms locate in the county, and whether nearby counties’ participation made Cooke County less competitive for new industry. Several commissioners said they favored economic development but wanted clearer fiscal modeling and independent confirmation of the EDC’s numbers.

Action: Commissioner Snuggs moved to table the item for two weeks so staff could gather additional data; Commissioner Hollowell seconded. The court voted unanimously to table the request and asked EDC staff to return with further analysis and comparisons to neighboring counties.

The EDC representatives said they would provide updated figures and meet with appraisal-district staff before the court’s next meeting.