NATCHEZ – In their Monday meeting, Adams County supervisors approved 10-year tax exemptions for International Paper and Johns Manville.

IP was granted an exemption on $3,737,086 worth of additions to the Natchez mill, and Johns Manville was granted an exemption for $1,007,894 worth of additions.

The exemptions will cost the county a total of about $35,893 in school taxes, according to the Tax Assessor’s Office. The actual amount may be slightly less because Monday’s figures do not include depreciation and industrial multiplier figures.

Earlier in the meeting, the board gave Carole Seale of the county’s Adolescent Offender Program permission to apply for a grant to fund programs for youth ages 13 through 17 who are arrested on charges related to drugs.

The federal grant would give the program $500,000 a year for three years with an option to apply for $300,000 a year for the next two years, Seale said.

The grant amount includes a 25 percent match, but money is already in place to fund the match, she said. The board gave Chancery Clerk Tommy O’Beirne the authority to sign the grant application, which must be submitted by Jan. 4.

The board also agreed to pay travel expenses for board President Sammy Cauthen to travel to Washington on Feb. 20-23 with Mayor F.L. &uot;Hank&uot; Smith and City Attorney Walter Brown to meet with the area’s congressional delegation.

Among other things, they will discuss with U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran the possibility of getting up to $750,000 in federal funds to help renovate Memorial Hall for use as a federal courthouse, Cauthen said.

Also in Monday’s meeting:

— Cauthen signed an application for a $375,000 grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation for railroad improvements at the Natchez-Adams County Port.

The grant amount includes a 20 percent match from local funds, said port Director Pat Murphy.