It's hardly a bulletin, but a U.S. Supreme Court ruling yesterday will put a damper on lawsuits by residents of states and muncipalities who seek to overturn project-specific tax breaks for economic development. Without ruling on the merits of the case, the court did find that mere status as a taxpayer does not constitute standing to challenge economic incentives granted by governments.
Read the article here: Court sides with Ohio on tax breaks.
I'm not sure how I feel about this ruling but it was unanimous so...back to the drawing board. I feel pretty strongely that we've given away millions in tax abatements here, largely to businesses and individuals that this was not intended to benefit. I will post a full description of the state and local programs for this on my blog. This is one of the biggest leaks in the fiscal dike folks and I'd like to see a healthy discussion of the cost/benefits of last years 30 million in tax abatements.
ReplyDeleteGood for you!
ReplyDeleteSeriously. I'm looking forward to reading your posting on the tax abatement issue as this is the real BIG hole in the bottom of the City's pocketbook.
Every abatement should be reviewed and questioned as to its reasoning and efficacy pertaining to the best interest of the City.
http://letterfromnewalbany.blogspot.com/
ReplyDeleteI've started a post about tax abatements! Whoopee!!