Lowndes to grant tax exemption to Aurora

Lowndes County, Miss., has granted Aurora Flight Sciences a 10-year ad valorem tax exemption beginning next year for its investment in the third expansion of its plant adjacent to the Golden Triangle Regional Airport at Columbus. Without the exemption, the unmanned aircraft manufacturer would have paid $9 million in taxes through the next decade to the county or equal to what Aurora invested in building the 30,000-square-foot addition and for new equipment. Aurora missed the deadline for filing for the ad valorem tax exemption which means the firm will pay its accrued taxes – which was not disclosed - this year. Aurora received 10-year agreements from Lowndes for each of the other expansion projects since 2007 after moving from temporary spaces at Mississippi State University property. Aurora employees about 250 workers. Source: Columbus Dispatch, Dec. 31, 2013.