Analysis: Tax Increment Financing In Wisconsin

Tax increment financing, or TIF, has built an incredible reputation in Wisconsin when it comes to local economic development. Sen. Rick Gudex summed it up in a 2015 memo, “TIF is the only tool that Cities, Villages, and Townships have for economic development across the state on a local level.”

TIF certainly is popular. In 2018, there were 1,261 active TIF districts in Wisconsin worth a combined $20.9 billion, up from 1,151 in 2014 worth $16.2 billion. That’s a 29 percent increase in value just over four years. However, that alone doesn’t prove Gudex’s statement that local governments needed TIF in order to facilitate that growth....

See Also:

A resource from the League of Wisconsin Municipalities

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Notes: I agree with the premise that development would happen without TIF, but strongly disagree that TIF may not be an important element of local development. TIF brings the community to the table! TIF can be used to create infrastructure that might not otherwise be developed or improved. TIF can encourage the development a community wants.

We need to restructure our TIF laws moving forward, allowing support for individual projects, requiring a development agreement, and controlling the effect on the local property tax rates. This is a baby bath water issue - We can learn from the successes and problems of the past. I do have some real concerns with the legislative trend in the past to legislate stopgap tweaks rather than improve the program...

This article is both very biased and with that in mind somewhat informative. I would love to see an article covering the same issues using successful projects and creative uses as the examples (See Link Above). Finally I see many communities that do not fully understand the tool and its uses.