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Liberty County approves $613,759 Chapter 381 rebate to solar project for 2025
Summary
The Liberty County Commissioners Court voted March 10 to issue a $613,759.15 Chapter 381 rebate to Liberty County Solar Project LLC for 2025 personal property taxes after outside counsel confirmed the payment met the agreementterms; counsel warned the county must issue payment by March 20.
The Liberty County Commissioners Court on March 10 approved issuing a $613,759.15 rebate to Liberty County Solar Project LLC under a five-year Chapter 381 agreement, after county counsel confirmed the company paid the assessed project personal property taxes for 2025.
Outside counsel Charles "Chuck" Kimbro told the court the rebate amount matches the agreement's first-year requirement: "the 613,759.15 is the exact amount of money that the company was supposed to pay in personal property taxes for their project for 2025," and that the tax assessor's collector's office had confirmed the amount was assessed, collected and paid. Kimbro said the agreement requires a 100% refund of personal property taxes in the first grant period and described the declining rebate schedule for later years under the five-year deal.
The judge and commissioners discussed timing and logistics for sending the payment. Kimbro advised the deadline for county payment was close of business on Friday, March 20. The court voted to approve the payment; the motion carried.
Why it matters: The rebate represents a sizeable one-time cash outflow from county funds tied to a prior economic-development agreement. Counsel explained the arrangement is a contractually binding grant of previously paid project taxes rather than a statutory tax abatement under Section 312, and that the schedule steps the rebate percentage down from 100% in 2025 to 60% in the final year.
What the court said: Commissioners who questioned the item asked staff to confirm the documentation and the schedule. County staff and outside counsel told the court they had verified the deliverables that triggered the rebate (operational status, required megawatts, and job/delivery metrics) and that the tax assessor had recorded payment before January 31, 2025.
Next steps: County administrative staff and the auditor's office were directed to process the payment in time to meet the March 20 deadline and to document the transaction for the public record.
