Oakland County’s Policy for Review of Tax Capture Proposals

About the Program

Category: Community and Economic Development (Best in Category)

Year: 2018

Determining whether to allow other taxing Authorities to capture your municipal tax revenue is a complex decision. Oakland County’s Policy for Review and Potential Participation in Downtown Development Authorities, Corridor Improvement Authorities and Local Development Financing Authorities and Limitation on Tax Capture by all TIF Authorities (“Policy”) provides objective guidelines for making such a decision. The Policy provides criteria to determine if participating in the use of tax increment financing (“TIF”) is a wise investment. It facilitates effective policy making, promotes intergovernmental cooperation and coordination in addressing the shared problem of economically distressed areas. Municipalities are informed what the County requires before it will consent to the capture of its tax revenue. The Policy encourages early discussions between governments to develop strong economic revitalization plans. Although each type of proposal will be evaluated similarly and subject to the same requirements, there is flexibility in the Policy for unique proposals. The County’s finances are protected because a municipality must commit to end its capture once a set dollar amount or set number of years is reached, whichever occurs first. Because of the Policy, municipalities are working with the County on their TIF plans before they conduct public hearings on their adoption.