Label maker should receive tax break

Resource Label Group, the Tennessee-based company that opened a new printing plant near Whitefish earlier this year, has requested and almost received a property tax break that rewards companies for making capital investments.

Resource Label Group, the Tennessee-based company that opened a new printing plant near Whitefish earlier this year, has requested and almost received a property tax break that rewards companies for making capital investments.

Flathead County commissioners approved the application after a brief public hearing Monday morning, but couldn't give the final OK because an official resolution wasn't ready.

The incentive would tax the company's building and equipment at 50 percent of its taxable value for five years. The rate would then increase by 10 percent a year until it reached 100 percent.

Resource Label has invested $4.5 million in a 14,000-square-foot building and state-of-the-art printing presses, according to a letter of support from Jobs Now, an economic development group that helped recruit the company.

The plant currently employs 12 people and has plans to expand its work force to about 30 people, all at salaries significantly above the county's median wage.

Don Bennett, a banker who is on the Jobs Now board, said companies such as Resource Label add to the tax base and expand area payrolls while not demanding much in county services.

"It's bringing dollars into Flathead County that otherwise wouldn't be here," Bennett said. "This is exactly the type of company we want to bring to the valley."

Resource Label designs and prints custom adhesive labels - such as those found on condiment jars, cleaning products and other consumer goods - for clients around the country.

Reporter Alan Choate may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at achoate@dailyinterlake.com