Sen. Carroll Stops "TIF" For Ag. - Gov. Ritters signs bill today

Lawmakers Work to Protect Farmland and Save Millions

http://coloradosenate.org/home/press/sen-carroll-stops-tif-for-ag-gov-ritters-signs-bill-today

DENVER - Senator Morgan Carroll (D-Aurora) and Representative Randy Fisher (D-Larimer) have passed bi-partisan legislation that will prevent productive farmland from being converted into urban sprawl and close a loophole that was costing Colorado citizens over $50 million every year. HB 1107 clarifies current state statute to stop developers from classifying farmland as "urban blight" in order to finance development projects with tax payer dollars.

"It's not hard to see that farmland is not urban blight! This bill will save Colorado millions of dollars and provide more transparency, accountability, and equity. We shouldn't be using other people's tax dollars to subsidize new development," stated Senator Carroll.

Under current law companies that develop downtown area slums or former industrial sites, Urban Renewal Areas (URA), receive a substantial tax subsidy known as Tax Increment Financing (TIF) for rehabilitating blighted areas. This subsidy was originally created to encourage the renewal of struggling or defunct urban areas.  Unfortunately municipalities have complete control over what areas are considered URAs and are designating fruitful agricultural land as "blighted land". Companies can then develop this farmland into strip malls or subdivisions all while receiving tax payer funding.

Often the tax dollars that fund this subsidy are going straight into the hands of private developers, and out of the pockets of local school districts.  This then also adds to the state budget woes as local school district revenue lost through TIF is required to back filled.  Colorado has already had to cut over $2 billion from the state budget, and can't afford to lose money to corporate interests at the expense of education.  If this practice continues unchecked it is estimated that the state would have to back fill more than $200 million to school districts by 2020.

"I am extremely proud to be part of this effort to help end the abuse of "blighting" pristine farm land for development, which results in millions in tax payer subsidies to private developers and has the absurd result of promoting urban sprawl and actually increasing true urban blight," said Senator Carroll.

HB 1107 has received the support of local city and county governments, and is also backed by environmentalists, local planners, fiscal policy experts, and the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union.  The measure passed by overwhelming bipartisan vote through both the senate and the house, and was signed in to law by Governor Ritter today.

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