(The Associated Press circulated the following article on October 14.)
KANSAS CITY — Kansas City Southern Industries Inc. said Thursday that it would send property tax payments early to areas of Texas and Louisiana to help them rebound from Hurricane Rita.
The company said its Kansas City Southern Railway Co. subsidiary would prepay $645,550 in taxes to the Louisiana parishes of Beauregard and Calcasieu and the Texas counties of Jefferson, Newton and Orange. The region received significant damage when Rita, a Category 3 storm, came ashore Sept. 24 near Port Arthur, Texas.
Michael Haverty, the company’s chairman, said Hurricane Rita caused only minor damage to the railroad’s property. He said the company wanted to pay the taxes now, rather than early next year, because governments in the hurricane-ravaged areas were dealing with damaged or destroyed tax bases and could have trouble raising revenue for rebuilding.
Last month, Kansas City Southern said it would prepay $655,000 to 11 parishes in Louisiana and three counties in Mississippi that were affected by Hurricane Katrina.