Fri, Jun 12, 2009
Duncan Aviation May Get Legislative Assistance
A Michigan State Legislature finance
committee voted Wednesday in favor of a bill designed to attract
aircraft customization work to Battle Creek. That legislation would
eliminate a tax that new airplane owners have to pay on the entire
value of the aircraft, even though the sale happened somewhere
else.
The move could help save as many as 100 jobs at Duncan
Aviation's Battle Creek facility, and potentially steer a million
man-hours of work to the company over the next 7 years. Duncan is
based in Lincoln, Nebraska, but employs 580 people at it Michigan
operation.
Duncan Aviation admits that they don't have many nearby
competitors, but when potential customers look at the amount of tax
they'll pay if they bring planes into Battle Creek for
customization, even distant competitors might as well be right next
door. "It's easier for them to steer left a little and land in
Nebraska or New York," said Bill Prochaszka Exec. VP of Duncan
Aviation.
Representative Kate Segal of Battle Creek agreed. "This
misapplied tax literally makes business fly away from Michigan at
Mach speed," she said.
According to a report on WWMT-TV, it wasn't until early this
year that Duncan, which has been very successful in Battle Creek,
had to lay off 122 employees ... the first layoffs ever for the
facility.
Business aviation got an undeserved black eye when a few
corporate executives flew to Washington, DC in private jets to ask
for government bailouts. Prochaszka says part of the current
downturn is driven by rhetoric out of Washington. But the company
says that after weathering those turbulent times at the beginning
of the year, it's starting to see a shift in attitudes toward
corporate aircraft. Still, Prochaszka says this legislation is
critical. "We have between 50 and 100 jobs working key contracts
that would be at risk long term if this doesn't get passed," he
said.
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