Thursday, December 4, 2008

Sepracor causes tax incentive stir in Marlborough

By Marc Songini

Members of the Marlborough City Council have approved multi-million tax incentives for drug maker Sepracor Inc., despite individual councilors’ concerns over the package.

This past Monday, the City Council gave the thumbs-up to a $3.8 million municipal tax break for Sepracor (Nasdaq: SEPR), according to the MetroWest Daily News. The company is building a new facility in Marlborough, where it is headquartered, and has plans for a third project. The tax break is being granted on condition that Sepracor create 250 new jobs.

However, the City Council held differing opinions about the tax break. According to Ward 2 Councilor Paul Ferro, the tax break has problems. Previously, he submitted a differing tax incentive proposal for future building, but that failed to pass the Marlborough Finance Committee, according to the report.

During a discussion on the merits of the proposal, Ferro also noted Sepracor hasn’t answered several questions, including just how many employees the company actually has, the MetroWest Daily News article reports. Any discrepancies in reported numbers may mean there is a shortfall on the promised number of new jobs. He concluded this was a bad plan for the city. Ferro also suggested there should be back and forth dialogue on tax incentives, just as there are with special permit applications.

Although Ferro and two other councilors were opposed to the tax incentive plan, it passed anyway, according to the story.

Sepracor reported a 2007 profit of $58 million on revenue of $1.2 billion. The company employs about 2,800 workers.