From State Rep. Jeff Keicher:
TIF District Reform – HB 1142 / HB 1222
Illinois is long overdue when it comes to the need to provide relief to property taxpayers by reforming Tax Increment Financing (TIF) districts.
TIFs are supposed to be used to redevelop blighted areas and then expire, but every year we vote on legislation that would extend several TIFs well beyond their intended sunset dates, subsequently increasing property taxes.
I support growth and redevelopment in our area, but too often the use of TIFs is abused.
For example, extending a TIF to 35 or 47 years is ridiculous (Jimmy Carter was President 47 years ago!!), green space being deemed “blighted” is a bastardization of the term, and Chicago holding billions in TIF funds each year denies other units of government funding they need and deserve.
My concerns do not mean I am “anti-TIF”.
I am actually very pro-TIF when TIF is used appropriately to the long-term benefit of residents and taxpayers. A great example of what a TIF should do is the downtown St. Charles corridor. It was blighted and needed a bit of help and now it is a bountiful success.
While TIF is a local decision, we do get requests to extend TIFs and I have consistently voted NO on TIF extension requests beyond their 23-year lifetime (extensions make them 35 and then 47 years).
I have re-filed two bills this year, with bipartisan support from a colleague [Maura Hirschauer D- West Chicago] across the aisle in the House Democratic Caucus.
One bill that would require voter approval through local referendum to create a TIF district, and the other to limit the lifespan of a TIF district by removing the 47-year extension.
We need to enact these reforms to better protect local property tax payers.
