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Missouri agriculture tax break benefited sponsorsJEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (AP)--They created it; then they used it. Some of the legislators who sponsored the 1999 law authorizing tax credits for farmers who invest in agricultural cooperatives were among the first to receive the tax breaks once the program kicked in. The lead sponsor of the legislation was Rep. Sam Leake (D-Center) who also was among the investors in Missouri's first ethanol plant. According to records from the Department of Agriculture, Leake received $3,651 in February 2000 for investing in Northeast Missouri Grain Processors, which began producing ethanol at a plant near Macon three months later. Leake, the House Agriculture Committee chairman, resigned from the House in May 2000 after being confirmed to an appointment on the State Tax Commission. He received additional tax credits for the plant in 2002. The legislation creating the tax credit had 82 co-sponsors besides Leake when it was introduced, enough to ensure its passage in the chamber if all the supporters stuck together. One of those sponsors was Rep. Gary Wiggins (D-New Cambria) who received an identical-sized tax credit as Leake in February 2000 for investing in Northeast Missouri Grain Processors. Wiggins died in July 2001. Other original co-sponsors of the tax credit who later took advantage of the program were Rep. Merrill Townley (R-Chamois) and Rep. Lanie Black (R-Charleston). Townley received a tax credit in 2003 for investing in a livestock cooperative, and Black received a tax credit in 2007 for investing in a biodiesel facility, according to the agriculture department records. 6/2/08 Date: 5/29/08
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