TIF fixes make it across the finish line

Tax Increment Financing (TIF) may only be a couple years old, but some critical fixes passed the legislature during the final days of session.

As a reminder, TIF is a public financing program that allows local governments to use the increased property tax revenue generated by a development project to finance the costs of that project. Local jurisdictions that utilize TIF benefit from improved public infrastructure, increased economic development, and local job growth. For a recent example of a city using TIF, check out this story from Wenatchee.

 As passed by the legislature, HB 1527 makes several changes to the local tax increment financing program, including:

• Clarifying the definition of real property to ensure that private investments made on state and local government-owned land are included in the increment value.
• Ensuring that the relocation and construction of a government-owned facility is included as an eligible project.
• Providing clarification to definitions of increment value and tax allocation base value for consistency with current law.
• Clarifying notice requirements for the creation of a tax increment area.
• Creating consistency with current law for add-on levies codified in RCW 84.55.010.

The bill was delivered to the Governor for signature on April 19.