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Committee recommends board consider waiving penalty for Gulf Island LLC industrial tax exemption
Summary
Terrebonne Parish finance committee voted to forward a recommendation that the full school board accept a resolution allowing Gulf Island LLC’s industrial tax exemption contract 20200178-ITE to be honored without penalty after the company missed job/payroll targets in 2021–2022; staff and company representatives cited COVID, Hurricane Ida and later recovery.
The Terrebonne Parish School Board finance committee on an advisory vote on Oct. 10 moved to forward a resolution asking the full board to honor Gulf Island LLC’s industrial tax exemption contract 20200178-ITE without imposing penalties.
Cohen Guidry, speaking for Gulf Island, said the company applied for an ITEP for about $3,200,000 in 2021 and failed to meet an additional two-job and $80,000 payroll requirement in reporting years 2021–2022 after disruptions from COVID-19 and Hurricane Ida. Guidry told the committee the company filed reports with LED and later increased headcount and payroll in 2024 and year-to-date 2025, and that state commerce and industry staff indicated local non‑penalty decisions would be respected. “They far exceeded their requirements in ’24 and year to date ’25,” Guidry said.
Board members pressed for context. Board member Mr. Ford said three people he knew were laid off the day after Gulf Island sought an exemption in August 2020, noting the local social cost of earlier layoffs. Guidry responded that the 2020–2021 period was “a really tough time” and attributed layoffs to global pandemic impacts and hurricanes, not to a deliberate targeting of employees. Guidry also noted a corporate change: a Houston firm, IES, had purchased Gulf Island for about $192 million and intends to expand fabrication capacity locally, which Guidry said should bring more jobs.
Members asked what would happen if the committee denied the waiver. Guidry said LED could pursue penalties or take prior years off the exemption; he estimated the exemption yields roughly $15,000 per year in local tax relief for the company and said the parish also received sales‑tax revenue on the underlying $3.2 million purchase (he cited $82,560 as the parish share). Guidry pointed out that a governor’s rule change on Feb. 24, 2024 removed the additional‑jobs requirement for new applications but could not be applied retroactively to earlier filings.
The committee recorded no objections and moved the recommendation forward to the full board for final action. The committee did not take a final penalty decision; the full board will vote at a subsequent meeting.
Next steps: the full board will consider the resolution as presented; staff and company representatives said they are available for follow-up questions.
