Hardin County OKs five‑year tax abatement for AGR Enterprises after contract corrections

Hardin County Commissioners Court on Dec. 23 approved a tax abatement agreement with AGR Enterprises, based on corrections requested by the county attorney and a commitment to return corrected language for the county judge’s signature.

The agreement covers AGR Enterprises’ facility at the address noted in the record. County attorney Matthew Minnick and AGR representatives discussed the timing of the abatement: AGR said roughly $20,000,000 in capital expenditures will be installed in 2026, but both sides agreed the abatement should begin Jan. 1, 2027 so the county’s base value on Jan. 1, 2027 would capture the new assets. The applicant had originally requested a 10‑year abatement; commissioners confirmed that county policy supports a five‑year abatement and approved a five‑year term, with AGR able to apply again later for a phase‑2 or a subsequent abatement.

County staff also noted a series of typographical and numeric corrections in the draft (examples: inconsistent job counts in an example on page 4 that should read 40 rather than 60, and hourly full‑time definitions). Commissioners moved to approve the abatement "with the corrections as approved by the county attorney" and authorized the county judge to sign the final corrected agreement before year‑end.

Commissioners and a member of the public described the project as the county’s most significant job‑creation project during their time on the court and discussed local partnerships, including a voluntary supply of firefighting foam estimated at about $5,000 to be kept on site for emergency response. The court approved the abatement by voice vote.