Legal Seminar Preview #3

This is our last preview of what's available at the 2015 IAAO Legal Seminar. If you've already signed up, you're ahead of the game. If not, sign up soon. You won't want to miss it. Hope to see you there!

When Is Tax Increment Financing Useful?

This presentation will be drawn from a Policy Focus Report about tax increment financing (TIF) being prepared for the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy. Policy Focus Reports present comprehensive and balanced summaries of differing viewpoints on timely policy issues.

The report will explain the mechanics of TIF and rationale for its use and will discuss where and how TIF has been used with emphasis on differences across regions. The impact of the Great Recession and California's decision to end TIF in 2011 will be covered.

Since TIF funds are sequestered in off-budget accounts, they may get less scrutiny than other expenditures. The report discusses this lack of transparency and attempts to remedy it.

Academic literature about TIF and economic development will be reviewed with attention to the impact of TIF on property values and employment. A separate section will review evidence about the alleged negative effects of TIF, including TIF's potential to:

1. encourage a race to the bottom among competing government,
2. divert revenues from overlying governments,
3. displace low-income residents, and
4. tilt the playing field in favor of large businesses.

Case studies of TIF districts in several areas of the country will illustrate salient points.

The 36th Annual IAAO Legal Seminar is scheduled for December 10-11 at the Hyatt Regency Boston. The IAAO Legal Seminar offers the unique perspective of members who are primarily involved in legal issues. The seminar presents substantive and procedural developments in law that affect assessments and valuation.