Mis-information here, it is not exemptions under the H.C.A. that are due to expire, those exemptions already did!
These renewed exemptions that are about to expire were under the Freeport By-Laws act, enacted post 1993.
The exemptions were re-instated as part of a deal in which the Port Authority agreed to fund certain capital improvements within the Freeport area.
An important distinction.

Baltron Bethel...emmmm....Mr."I Don't Recall" Bethel? Let's leave him out. We don't need him involved.

"Business license fee breaks": what breaks are we talking about here? There have been no breaks since St George died back in 2004. I believe the Vice President of the Port at that time made great strides in raising the fees on everyone at that time, including essential services where the license fees were very significantly raised. The business license fees go up every few years and the government still has additional license fees to add on top of those so, you see what I'm saying? Of interest, Grand Bahama sends a great deal of tax dollars to the public treasury every year, about 150-200 million dollars per annum, yet very little is returned and they badly need it. Why is that, Mr. Christie? Why is there a new ten percent man in town where potential investors complain about it sir? This country is not your and your crew's personal and private possession, though it seems that that is exactly how it is treated. Also, can we have an accounting for how the money delegated to the Ministry of Grand Bahama is spent? Seems to a lot of people that only a select few are benefitting. None can see how 30+ million dollars each year for the past two years have been spent. Additionally, before any further consideration is taken, ask the port owners whether they would stop pouring all their profits into the Cayman Islands and instead invest it to improve the city of Freeport. Can't be all gravy for them and nothing for the people who live there.

Islandgirl makes a good point about the Cayman Islands. Note that when the Hutchison companies were broken up recently, they set up their new headquarters in Cayman and not in The Bahamas where they have a large investment.

Perhaps Cayman is considered a better/safer place to put your earnings. If that is the case we need to ask them, and ourselves, why?

Government needs to be careful that they don't kill Freeport, "the goose that lays the golden egg," for the Public Treasury. They need to let Freeport reach its full potential and stop trying to kill it.

And yes, there are certain things that are not happening without some "greasing of the wheels" and that is very dangerous.The larger companies are publically traded and they are not allowed to "grease wheels" because of laws like the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. By playing the grease the wheel game we are not getting much of the foreign investment that we could and some that we get are opportunists. After all, what type of person plays the grease the wheel game? We don't want that type of investor as it scares away the good ones.

I wonder how much these foreign consultants cost and how much the kickback is. He says that they have invested heavily in this firm, the question is who is getting paid in the Bahamas by this firm? Nothing to see here business as usual. We know how it goes. We hire you, you hire us, right! This is why the politicians almost puke when Freedom of Information is brought up. Crooked shysters!

asiseeit, you are on the money (yes, pun intended).

With a Freedom of Information Act there would be no need for certain people to be too sick to attend a Commission of Inquiry. Documents are much better than "I don't recall".

Consultants, the findings from which are ignored and have been since 1968.
The appearances of doing something while doing nothing tangible (save pocketing the funds) is a perfected art in the Bahamas!
While Port licensees pay no Government license fee, nor property taxes (soon to expire under an extended Statute law when the original exemptions expired under the H.C.A.) the Port License fees and Maintenance fees on property are not insignificant, and no accounting is given to anyone, nor from the Government incedentally.
It is time to revisit the H.C.A. but not until we revisit the Governance of the whole country, lest idiots continue to make idiotic decisions.
And Yes, it appears the current ownership has separated the assets from the Port Authority proper, making the Port Authority a pure liability with no assets.
Both Political parties in all elected incarnations have colluded with Port Authority executives and owners over the decades for their own benefit, to the expense and detriment of the potential for the country.( Port Authority shares, political contributions, Homes built, political ownerships in Port licensed companies, political appointees, etc etc)
A National legacy of shame that deserves a forensic audit.