THE city of Taylor, Texas, one of two locations in the United States under consideration by Samsung Electronics for a US$17 billion chip plant, plans to offer extensive property tax breaks if it is chosen by the South Korean tech giant. Taylor is competing with Austin, Texas to land the plant which is expected to create about 1,800 new jobs. Samsung has also said it is looking at other potential sites in Arizona and New York. Other potential sites have yet to disclose planned tax breaks. A proposed resolution posted on the city’s website shows that for the land Samsung will use, it is set to be offered a grant equivalent to 92.5 percent of assessed property tax for 10 years, 90 percent for the following 10 years and then 85 percent in the 10 years after that. Other measures include a 92.5 percent tax waiver on new property built on the site for 10 years and the repayment of development review costs. The proposed resolution will be considered Wednesday by the Taylor City Council and Williamson County Commissioners. The Taylor site is located about 40 kilometers from Austin. It is about 1,187.5 acres (4.81 square kilometers)in size, much bigger than the Austin site. Samsung last year purchased more than 250 acres in Austin, which is in addition to 350 acres it owns that includes its sole U.S. chip factory. If Samsung decides on Taylor, it plans to break ground by the first quarter of next year with production due to start by end-2024, a document previously filed with Texas state officials has said. (SD-Agencies) | 