TIF Study Commission Wraps Up Its Work

With the 10th and final meeting, the TIF Study Commission wrapped up its work last night.  The vote was 5 to 2 to adopt proposed recommendations along with a very lengthy report that distilled the testimony presented.   To summarize this herculean effort effectively, I will cut this into three parts - the Commission itself, the ideas and facts collected, and the recommendations.

The 8 Commissioners were Councillors Steve Talley, Brian Mahern, Ryan Vaughn (and his replacement Jeff Cardwell), Auditor Billie Breaux (and her proxy Richard Hunt), State Representative Bill Crawford, MDC President Ed Mahern, City Controller Jeff Spaulding, and Bond Bank Director Deron Kintner.

All came to the table with their own perspectives, and the give and take was on the highest level - all to the gain of the public in this process.

The presentations were mostly in plain English, yet had an academic rigor to them. 

All of the meetings can be found archived on the WCTY webpage (click here and scroll down to the last category, "Special Events").  The 10 meetings are listed there.  I added up the time for all of the meetings and it came to 24 hours.  You can find all of the documents that formed the presentations on the TIF Study Commission webpage, organized by date.

Needless to say, all of the information from this 24 hours makes a thick document - even when distilled.  The draft of the Executive Summary has been posted online.  I'll put up a link to the final document when it is posted, as well.  The final document without the appendices comes to 86 pages.

I cannot finish this roundup of the Commission without paying respects to two members of the Council Staff.  First, Leslie Williams took copious minutes, which can be found on the TIF Study Commission webpage.  I think the amount of work involved in taking the minutes of a meeting, especially long ones, is often undervalued.  I know that is a job I studiously try to avoid doing in organizations because of the number of hours actually required. 

Second, Hope Tribble, the Council's CFO.  I cannot begin to guess at how many hours Tribble put into this Commission - along with doing her regular job.  It appeared to me that she invited the guests, set the agendas, provided presentation and agenda materials to all through email, got super quick responses to questions fielded through email, and wrote (and likely re-wrote numerous times) the report that is being issued by the Commission. She most assuredly was the secret weapon for this Commission and a key reason why it functioned at the high level it did.

From the last two meetings it was clear that there were two camps assembled on the Commission.  All seemed to agree to more transparency and more documentation for why a TIF District should be set up.  The camps were apparent when the discussion turned to recommendations that would put limits or more oversight on the use of TIF funds or would place time limits on the life of an existing TIF District.  The majority wanted to rein in the use of TIF dollars, provide more oversight, and limit the lifetime of existing TIFs so that more of these property tax dollars could flow to the various units of government to provide the services that have been strained due to the property tax caps that were implemented a few years ago.  The minority wanted to retain the 'flexibility' that the Ballard Administration now has in determining on what to expend any excess TIF funds and maximize the options for future Mayors to reactivate dormant TIFs - all with an eye to being nimble enough to remain competitive with other municipalities that compete for the same businesses.

The work of this Commission is the finest example of good government that I have witnessed in my years of closely watching Indianapolis' government.  Everyone who attended had to have learned something new, if not a lot of stuff that they did not realize before.  The meetings are archived on WTCY for review and the report is being finalized for release.  The recommendations of the Commission will need to be reviewed and acted upon by the Council, the Mayor, the MDC, and the State Legislature.  So, this is not the last you'll hear of the TIF Study Commission's work.  Like a rock thrown into a lake, the ripples will be around for some time to come.

Excellent job.  Well done all.

TIF Study Commission Off To Rollicking Good Start

You simply must wonder what wrong turn your life took when you find yourself energized by the geeky, wonky, TIF-er-ific lecture/discussion that happened at last night's opening TIF Study Commission meeting.  That is the situation I find myself in this morning.

WCTY, our government channel was present, capturing it all for your viewing pleasure.  As of this moment, it has not been posted, but I'll post a link as soon as I see it go up. [Edited to add link to the March 27 meeting - click here]

The TIF Study Commission falls out of City-County Council Prop 70, which set its composition and broad agenda.  On the panel are Councillor Ryan Vaughn, Controller Jeff Spaulding, Councillors Steve Talley and Brian Mahern, Auditor Billie Breaux, Bond Bank Executive Director Deron Kintner, MDC President Ed Mahern, and State Senator Bill Crawford.  Kintner was absent last night and sent a 'proxy', but I am afraid I did not get her name.

Missing last night was the taxpayer perspective, which left me squirming in my seat and my head flooded with my own internal comments.

Much information was thrown out there.  Bruce Donaldson, Attorney with Barnes & Thornburg, gave a overview of what the law allows TIF to be set up for and how TIF funds can be spent as well as the process whereby a TIF district is legally established.  Deputy Mayor Michael Huber was up next, going through the TIF philosophy of the Ballard administration.  Jeff Spaulding joined in for more of the administration's perspective on why use a TIF over other means of economic development.  Taking up the rear and pretty much rushed due to the late hour, was the Director of the Department of Metropolitan Development, Maury Plambeck.  Plambeck went through examples of the variety of TIF districts we have in Indy.

More detail is assured for future meetings.  So, let your geek flag fly !

Here are some of my observations from the cheap seats.

Billie Breaux brought up one of the great points last night - since you can create TIF districts to help spark redevelopment or for general economic development - why do we seem to be doing mostly the latter?  This really struck me as pertinent.  There is evidence that using TIF for economic development only moves economic development from where it would occur organically, to a location of the government's choosing and profits a developer of the government's choosing.  It does not accomplish much more.  But, trying to turn around a truly blighted area, is a different matter.  We can identify and prioritize, if you will, the areas most in need of a catalyst to improve a blighted area.  For the rest, we all want development in our neighborhoods, and prioritizing is more open to political interpretation.

I mentioned it earlier and it bears repeating, missing was the taxpayer perspective.  A number of platitudes were uttered last night that we have all heard before.  They are the 'promises' of TIF districts that do not necessarily come to fruition and for which TIFs are not necessarily the best approach. 

Spaulding mentioned "a rising tide lifts all boats" - that is true up to a point.  The never ending TIF district, however, has built around it an imaginary retaining wall - so the 'tide' cannot escape to outside areas to lift the 'boats' found there.  Huber opined that expanding the consolidated downtown TIF to nearby neighborhoods is way to share the wealth within that district.  I say, pay off the bonds, dissolve that TIF and let us all partake in the wealth.

On the same topic, Huber said that the development in a TIF would not have happened without the TIF, so it benefits all taxpayers.  While that is debatable on its face, by ending a TIF you would definitely help all taxpayers.  It might be a few dollars per taxpayer, but the aggregate it stunning.  The TIF districts in  Marion County take in over $100 million a year in property tax revenue.  If those TIF districts were retired, it would set off some critical dominoes.  First, the tax rates throughout the County would drop.  This makes Indy more attractive to homeowners and business owners alike.  It also means that fewer people hit the property tax caps.  When fewer people hit the tax caps, more money flows to the taxing units like the schools, the library, IndyGo, and the City.  When more money flows to the taxing units, more services or higher quality services can be provided.  This increases the quality of life in Indy, again improving the attraction of our city for people to live and work.  And, lets not overlook the impact on the taxpayers for those property tax savings.  For some, it means a better chance to keep their homes or business, and for others it is disposable money left in their pockets that can be spent on restaurants or new equipment or new cars, etc, etc, etc.  Retiring TIF districts can fulfill one of the promises made when the TIF was created - that it will benefit everyone.  When you do not retire the TIF, it only benefits those within the district, since the rest of us are footing the bill for the necessary public services that they still enjoy but do not pay for.

Mentioned by Donaldson was the idea that the tax revenue coming from a TIF district before day 1 of the district, will continue to flow to the schools and library, etc, after the TIF is formed.  This is called the 'base'.  He noted one readjustment as the tax caps were initiated that allowed a new calculation for the 'base' of our TIF districts, so that the new laws would not impede the City's ability to pay off existing bonds.  He did not mention that this readjustment is done annually.  I have blogged on the base and the annual calculations that the Auditor must submit before (see "TIF Districts - Who Knew The Base Could Drop?") .  From 2010 to 2011, these re-calculations caused $43 million in property value to be moved from the base, into the TIF revenue.  That was likely due to the drop in property values caused by the bursting housing bubble and recession.  But, if you look at the forms, there is no way that the value will be returned to the base once the recession is over.  The forms leave you with a choice - either stick with the same base as last year, or let it drop to recover more money to pay the bonds of the TIF district.

So, dear reader, if you've gotten this far, I thank you for your perseverance.  Its geeky, nerdy, wonkish stuff to be sure.  But, TIFs can be a promise for a better future, or a drain on the rest of us, or a slush fund, or all simultaneously.  As taxpayers, as citizens of a City we all want the best for, we owe it to ourselves to get at least ankle deep in the topic and lend our guidance to our elected officials as they try to navigate the best course for TIFs in Indianapolis.