BATH – The first in a series of ‘conversations’ between the Bath City Council and BIW as they request additional tax breaks to become more competitive in an increasingly diverse shipbuilding industry.

John Fitzgerald of Bath Iron Works made a small presentation to the Council after the close of the regular council meeting, which had run quite late.

Fitzgerald laid out the case for asking Bath for additional tax relief, pointing out that new players are getting into the naval contract business, in states like Wisconsin and Alabama, and many of these states and communities offer a great deal of tax support.  He also pointed out that Naval contracts are becoming far more difficult to obtain, and that the government is no longer willing to pay a premium price for quality work, such as is done at BIW.

BIW has already had three Tax Increment Financing, or TIF, districts.  A TIF is a public subsidy for some large ticket cost, such as new infrastructure or redevelopment, for a private company.  Often, the company has major ties to the community in some way, and its loss would be catastrophic.  Future tax revenues would finance the new development.  For a TIF to be successful for both the public and private partner, the redevelopment or the new infrastructure must lead to increased income.

Although BIW has had three TIF districts, only two of them return funds to BIW.  The first TIF district went to update the older part of the shipyard, and the second paid for the dry dock and the Ultra Hall, the large building near the south end of the shipyard. The third was used to fund municipal improvements, and the Wing Farm infrastructure.

Fitzgerald said that a new TIF district would be used to build another building near the south end of the shipyard.  It would be called an Outfitting Hall, and would contain two new cranes.

The next competition for Navy ships is 2017, enough time, Fitzgerald said, to get everything ready to go.  There are other jobs in the meantime, including a Coast Guard order, and some after-market work, mostly repairs and replacements. 

A second workshop was scheduled for September 4.

Bruce Gagnon and Mary Beth Sullivan, peace activists of Bath, spoke out against the TIF for BIW.  “This ongoing transfer of public funds to private corporations is corporate welfare that Bath, our state, and our country cannot afford,” he said during the public comment part of the City Council meeting.

“I am concerned that we will modernize infrastructure at BIW to build warships,” said Mary Beth Sullivan.  “If we continue to make warship, we’ll continue to make war.”