Recently there have been many questions brought up about the legality of the Renaissance Zone Authority, a body put together by the City Commission to authorize various pet projects in the city… beautification and upgrades, that kind of thing. If you read this letter (PDF) sent to the Commission you’ll find that the way the City did it doesn’t necessarily meet state law. But that’s a separate matter from what I want to discuss.

Here’s my “average citizen” understanding of what I heard last night (if I’m in error, please correct me):

When the City determines an area needs to be “renewed” the law enables them to come up with a specific renewal plan. They are then allowed to use Tax Increment Financing (TIF) to fund the plan for its specified goal. They assess the taxes of properties in the specified area at their current value at the time of the plan (in this case, 1978 or so). As those properties periodically rise in value, the amount collected over and above the assessed amount goes to the renewal fund. Once the work is completed, the fund is to be closed, and the remainder distributed to local entities such as school districts and the like. That fact is very important. Here’s why…

If the urban renewal plan is “amended” along the way, the City is required to re-assess the baseline value of the properties taxed therein. Last night’s vote to amend the plan was referred to as the seventh time this has happened. The way I heard it last night, the properties in the downtown area, however, have not been adjusted in the TIF plan since their original value! That simple fact is the basis for this post. What does it mean to you or me?

Let’s say I had property downtown that was taxed at $100 a year at the start of the renewal plan. Year one of the plan I paid $105 in taxes, so $5 went to the Urban Renewal Fund. Fine and dandy…but fast forward 32 years, and maybe I’m paying $1000 in property taxes. now the county gets $100 again, and the urban renewal fund gets $900! That’s $900 that could go to roads, schools, and things other than beautifying someone else’s neighborhood.

If you paid attention to the last legislative session, you know that the state passed a boondoggle of a bill in the name of “property tax relief” because people are upset at the amount they need to pay for property taxes. At the same time, the City of Bismarck is using questionable math and, to my understanding, bending the law as it relates to urban renewal. All the while it’s padding its urban renewal coffers by neglecting to re-assess the properties in the TIF area!

Like I said, the TIF idea enables the cities to “skim off the top” a bit for urban renewal. BUT…it also requires the amount above which they can skim to be adjusted every time the plan is updated for new pet projects! Apparently, in the past 32 years that has NOT been done.

This, of course, also flies in the face of the fact that the urban renewal law intended for a specific plan to be made, executed, funded, and then ended. The City of Bismarck seems to think they can keep amending this plan ad infinitum, collecting all the money in excess of 32 year old property tax values, and then congratulates itself for having FIFTEEN MILLION DOLLARS of tax money available for said projects. This is dishonest, it’s a violation of policy, and might just be illegal.

My friend Brett over at the North Dakota Policy Council has been following this and put together a little video about this Tax Increment Financing. As a taxpayer I suggest you watch it:

I heard buzz that the reason they held the meeting last night addressing the Urban Renewal amendment was so the City Commission could vote on it themselves, since they realized they screwed up with the Renaissance Zone Authority. That’s all speculation. Even if it’s true, it highlighted one other fact, one that meetings won’t fix: the City has been dragging this Urban Renewal Plan along, with apparently little oversight from us, the citizens. It’s time that is changed. The Urban Renewal plan wasn’t intended to be turned into an open-ended pet project.

If they’re sitting on $15 million that was taxed improperly, then I suggest that Urban Renewal Plan projects be STOPPED until the TIF mess can be sorted out. Money that should not have been skimmed into the fund should be returned to the entities who need it, and the remainder made available for Urban Renewal as planned. The City should be required to outline a specific, finite plan for renewal and, according to the law, finish that plan and close out the fund. If they find another project that needs TIF financing, then write up a new plan for that project and go about it on its own merits. It’s time to get rid of the city’s perpetual Urban Renewal piggy bank!

This TIF money in the urban renewal fund is money that would otherwise go to schools, roads, or emergency services. Instead, it’s sitting in an account waiting to dress up someone else’s property. Is that how the people in the Cathedral District got a facelift for their neighborhoods? Citizens of Bismarck, we need to wake up and keep an eye on how our city government is collecting and spending our tax money!

Let’s say I’m wrong, and the property values have been adjusted along the way as this Urban Renewal plan morphs into an open-ended pet project. That makes much of my argument above irrelevant, except for one thing: Urban Renewal plans are NOT supposed to be perpetual. They are supposed to be designed with specific project goals and closed when those projects are completed. A new Urban Renewal project should have its own plan and funding. That prevents a mess like I’ve outlined above from dragging itself out over thirty years and tying up millions of dollars in taxpayers’ money.

(Here’s a Bismarck Tribune article on the meeting, but they don’t get into why there’s concern about the pool of money in the Urban Renewal fund, or how it got there.)

Again, this is my understanding of the program as a taxpaying citizen and property owner. I’m still getting up to speed. I’m also not implying malicious intent on the part of any city officials, just that the city’s Urban Renewal activities need to be scrutinized and brought into compliance with state law. If you spot anything in this post that’s inaccurate, let me know so I can correct it ASAP. For more information on how you relate to your government, check out the North Dakota Policy Council website frequently. It’s a great resource.