City Council Approves Industrial Base Expansion

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JG Excerpt:
At least that's the opinion of Brad Cantrell, the city's community development director. And it appeared good enough for the city council, which voted unanimously to add 185 acres to TIF No. 26.

Just in case someone didn’t think that the GM industrial corridor in Janesville was unemployed enough at over 300 acres – and for good measure.

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A TIF DISTRICT PRIMER (Tax Increment Financing District)

Janesville TIF Policy Excerpt:
Thus, the TIF law provides that all property taxes levied on increased property value within a TIF district are retained by the community to finance the public expenditures made within the TIF district.

Instead of “retained by the community,” it should have read property taxes... “withheld from the community.” A large portion of the property taxes paid within the boundaries of the district do not all go to service the same community (schools, police, fire, public works, etc.) as property taxes paid by everyone else. As the property values in the district incrementally improve, so does the costs to service the area. While the properties in the TIF district enjoy all the amenities provided for by the "community" general fund, someone else is shouldering the cost. That someone else is you and I. This tax shift can go on for as long as 23 years.

Janesville TIF Policy Excerpt:
The base value (the assessed value of the property that existed at the time the TIF district is created), however, continues to provide the same level of revenues to other taxing jurisdictions.

Because most of the 185 acres is being farmed, the land probably meets Wisconsin’s land-use value provisions. This means while the private land is being improved under TIF provisions with new added value (streets, infrastructure etc.) the only taxes being paid into the general fund is the same amount the property was paying at the time the TIF district was created. In the case of working farmland, the taxes paid are very, very low. Usually pennies on the dollar compared to non-farm assessments. Generally, the lower the base value of TIF district properties - the greater the burden the district places on taxpayers outside of its boundaries.

Janesville TIF Policy Excerpt:
Once all of the public expenditures have been repaid, all taxing jurisdictions can collect taxes levied on the new property value.

Keep in mind the 23 year time frame. If the TIF is successful, its property taxes will provide a surplus revenue over the costs incurred to improve. New state TIF rules allow local jurisdictions to "port" or divert the incremental tax surplus away from the taxpayer general fund and use it for other private business ventures within the 1/2 mile radius of the TIF boundaries. When anyone implies money coming from TIF surplus revenues does not effect our taxes - they are wrong. The money is still being withheld from the general fund. Just because taxpayers aren't made aware that tax revenue is being withheld, doesn't mean no one has to make up the difference.

Janesville TIF Policy Excerpt:
Total TIF incremental revenues over the maximum 23-year life of TIF No.26 equal $6.62 million, compared to total TIF costs of $5.78 million.

The cost to incentivize the privately owned land with infrastructure improvements is projected to cost $5.78 million. Once the $5.78 million for the improvements has been repaid by taxes collected in the district (remember, most of the taxes collected do not go to the general fund), then and only then will the district begin paying into the general fund. BUT if it's paid before the TIF expires (in this case 23 years!), the local jurisdiction (city government) can continue to withhold the incremental monies or surplus from the general fund to instead pay for other capital improvements within the 1/2 mile radius until the TIF finally expires.

Janesville TIF Policy Excerpt:
Since TIF revenues are projected to exceed TIF costs by $0.84 million, the TIF district should be economically viable.

If, after 23 years have passed and all goes as planned, this TIF district is expected to generate $840,000 more or less in surplus tax revenue. Remember, this may or may not be diverted away from the general fund.

So how will taxpayers wind up losing? While we are allowing the property taxes being paid by the improved properties to be used to pay down the debt for all the infrastructure, pipes, streets, curbs, etc. - someone else is shouldering the incrementally higher added costs for schools, fire, police, library, public works, snowplowing, street sweeping, etc., the TIF district has shifted onto the community...for a span of up to 23 years. When you figure that Janesville has over 25 active TIF districts, the tax shift is substantial.

Put another way, while the taxes paid by the property owners inside the TIF boundaries are being spent on improvements that return higher property values and increased speculative prospects, those outside the district are shouldering the incrementally higher tax burden to service the district. It’s a circular motion of revenue made in the name of progress that has only one loser – the local taxpayers outside the TIF boundaries.

The TIF District tool can be a great boost for economic development when used to remove blight or lift economically depressed areas. But it is also easily abused. When its drawn around working farmland to increase the supply of industrial buildings in an area with a glut of vacant industrial buildings - there's something seriously wrong with our policies.

Obviously, there is no way I can cover all aspects of TIF District agreements and the consequences they bring in this blog posting. While those with the loudest megaphone tout the advantages of new amendments to Wisconsin TIF law and keep the general public off balance with loosely constructed rhetoric, probably the best way to think of TIF Districts is as nothing more than a good old fashioned tax shift.

Return To Roots In Health Care Battle

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"And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor."

– Declaration Of Independence

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Economic Directors Quietly Withdraw From Positions

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Over the past two weeks, two high profile officials from Rock County’s economic development governmental agencies have announced they will be withdrawing from their respective jobs.

JG Excerpt: (July 25, 2009)
JANESVILLE – The director of the Rock County Planning, Economic and Community Development Agency has resigned, County Administrator Craig Knutson announced late Friday. No reason was given for the resignation of Scott Heinig.

JG Excerpt: (July 14, 2009)
Doug Venable, the city's economic development director, plans to retire at the end of the year. Venable said Monday that he likely will leave his office for good in either November or December, depending upon how much vacation time he has to use by the end of the year.

Venable’s announcement came only weeks after a short series of complimentary articles were published by the Janesville Gazette and the Wisconsin State Journal.

Both of the decisions to leave however, came less than one month after GM makes it official, Janesville to stay closed.

Janesville Considers Expanding Industrial Base Into Farmland

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When it comes to city growth plans, this has to be the worst of the worst.

JG Excerpt:
The Janesville City Council on Monday will consider adding 185 acres of vacant land to TIF No. 26 for industrial development. The land is being farmed but is zoned for industrial and residential.

Is it farmland? Well....uh...its zoned for industrial and residential development. But it's being farmed. So....uh...it's vacant land. That's it...it's vacant land! Is the owner paying property taxes based on typical city lot vacant land or is the owner paying pennies on the dollar in property tax taking advantage of Wisconsin's land-use assessment by paving it with crops? Huh...what business is this of yours? Why does this matter to you? It does matter because this is farmland, and the Gazette went to great lengths to avoid the term and the relationship in today's article misleadingly titled, "TIF district expansion would include GM plant." (The actual TIF boundaries does not include GM) Instead, the newspaper ran with comments from pro-sprawl city administrators spinning the request into a positive for the nearby and vacant industrial complex.

Not only is the city willing to expand its industrial base (or residential) into farmland, they are eager to accomodate the farmland owner(s) by drawing a tax incentive TIF district around it.

But it gets even worse. This farmland/industrial expansion is within 1/2 mile from the sprawling GM plant. And instead of taking a step back and looking at the folly of their position, the proximity of the farmland to over 300 acres of a wide assortment of existing prime, classic and vacant industrial buildings and supporting structures, including the GM plant itself - they call the passage of this breach against all common sense as an "opportunity."

JG Excerpt:
"The proposed TIF No.26 boundary amendment will add additional industrial lands that can be improved with municipal utilities and services to attract continued industrial industrial development."

Well, hardee-har and har. And to make sure no one should question the outcome of this request, particularly any snarky bloggers, environmentalists, genuine farmers, concerned citizens or other activists......

JG Excerpt:
If the council approves the amendment, it will be forwarded to the Joint Review Board made up of representatives from the city, school district, county and vocational school district.

So there!

The Gazette article also stated no public hearing is scheduled, and it's just as well. It probably wouldn't make any difference. In the past some guy (or gal) from Forward Janesville, the Fourth Ward neighborhood or the city's far NE side would step up and Kumbaya the same line, "I support our city leaders and visionaries who refuse to stand by and watch our city deteriorate. This TIF district and expansion over farm vacant land is just what we need to bring in jobs and increase our tax base."

It never fails.

"It's consistent with the city's Comprehensive Growth plan."

The TIF proposal on the city's agenda rambles on for 46 pages and builds a case for it by jumbling Wisconsin TIF laws in with various numbers showing the expected effects of the expanded tax base.

Well, that's good enough for me.

Agenda Excerpt:
City staff is proposing a third amendment to TIF No. 26 to add
approximately 185 acres of vacant farmland planned for industrial development.

City Staff is proposing? Did the landowner request the TIF inclusion? Or does the city just haphazardly draw TIF districts around working farmland without any regard to the owner? Or the farmers? Why isn't the landowner making the presentation requesting the amendment? Why aren't the landowners names, along with their preliminary plans, goals, intentions and interactions with the city documented in the proposal? Instead we get state statutes, historical charts and projections?Boundaries not exact - for demonstration only.

The irony: Had the owner(s) of the farmland approached the city or county requesting to change the residential and commercial zoning back to AG, the city administration would have vehemently protested stating something like, "That's a non-compliant request because its inconsistent with the city's comprehensive growth plan."

Note: This posting is not a position or attack against the farmland owners or their plans. They obviously have the right (within the law) to do as they please with their land.

Will GM-less Janesville Usher In Government Reforms?

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For the past two years, the Janesville city councils have been shifting gears in various attempts to pacify a growing vocal minority of residents who want change.

There have been rumors of nepotism along with suspicions of a city government run by a clique of bureaucrats and insiders. The city is experiencing a greater economic divide and despite the Internet, a general disconnect and a lack of cohesiveness among neighbors and neighborhoods persists among the battered silent majority. To usurp any dissent and squelch their voices, the city council created more citizen run committees and new rules while pushing for more transparency.

But things continue to evolve. The GM plant will not be turning on the lights any time soon. Tempers are starting to rise. More people are feeling left out. The at-large city council is beginning to exert as much power as they can within their bounds. Instead of representing the will of the people, they created a set of guidelines (goals) to help form a "will" among themselves. Put another way, there would be no need to surround the wagons if there is no threat. Janesville officials are operating in a leaderless vacuum.

This type of at-large council/manager form of government has roots coinciding with the inception of the GM plant during the 1920's. It made sense back then so the city would not be influenced by the huge labor pool, the factory paychecks or the political affiliations they cater to... the power players gambled and dropped district representation and the mayor.

In a city the size of Janesville, the mayor most likely would have been either the shop foreman or the union president or their brother. The alderman with the GM plant would have wielded the most clout. Now, GM is practically gone. The plant is still there, but the perceived threat from a single giant employer and all the power, money and clout they brought has disappeared. The local economy is sputtering and sparking unrest. Unemployment is at 13% and rising. The Janesville Gazette has expanded their grip on the struggling community and is publishing special interest articles and political activism now more than ever.

With a serious loss of economic stability, some people are beginning to feel more comfortable to do something different, especially now that a weighted demographic has dispersed. Economically, there is less to lose and more to gain. After 90 years under false choices in Janesville government, a window is finally beginning to open for reformers. But does anyone have the will to take advantage of it?

$100-or-less Donors A New Experience For Ryan?

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Last week, Rep. Paul Ryan's campaign news release boasted that 82 percent of his donors since the beginning of this year gave $100 or less. This latest revelation he felt, proves how average Wisconsinites are supporting his "efforts to stop across-the-board tax increases, runaway government spending and unsustainable borrowing."

Obviously, a claim stating 82% of your donors gave $100-or-less is a highly desirable self-edict for any politician to offer during this time of rampant special interest influence and dubious fund raising tactics. Of course Ryan was only counting heads while conveniently leaving out the dollar amount and it's relationship to the total amount of contributions.

After reading this blog posting at One Wisconsin doubting Ryan's claims that he got all but 10 percent of his campaign cash from inside the Badger State, I decided to take a second look at those $100 donors and to see how many were from Ryan's district.

Ryan reported a total of $374,884 in contributions for this period. $146,905 or 39% came from PAC's. The rest, $227,911 came from individuals and entities other than PAC's. Approximately $167,975 of the non-PAC money was categorized as itemized contributions. That is where a good cross section of those $100 contributions were reported.

Since Ryan is a representative of a district with borders, it's only fair to count only those $100 donations coming from inside his district to get a clear perspective of constituent support. After flipping through the report and checking a map, it turns out approximately $4,625 or 2.7% of the $167,975 were $100 donations from within his district - and that figure included $100 donors from the city of Milwaukee. 97.3% were donations of either more than $100 or from outside his district. Why target $100-or-less donors? You'd have to ask Rep. Paul Ryan, he's the one who brought them up.

Sure, an argument could be made for the locations of the hundred dollar donors of the nearly $60,000 in non-itemized non-PAC contributions, but more than likely, the itemized category offers a reasonably accurate profile for all non-PAC contributors.

The final point is these recent figures are apparently different enough from past contributions for Ryan now to boast how they represent Wisconsinites support for his efforts. If these percentages are an improvement, exactly who and from where have been supporting his campaign for the past ten years?

Racine Health Care Community Invites Ryan To Forum

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During a listening session in Racine six months ago, a Community for Change member described a non‐partisan health care event being planned for Racine in the summer and asked Rep. Paul Ryan if he would attend. The response from Ryan was a form letter stating prior commitments and eventually it turned out there were no convenient times in July or early August for the congressman to attend. In disappointment, the group posted an open letter to Ryan at the Racine Post.

Racine Post Excerpt: (July 15, 2009)
Our pursuit of your presence stems from your appearances on national media discussing the Independent Health Record Trust Act, however, virtually no time in Wisconsin to talk locally about these issues. There is no better opportunity for you to learn and listen to the people in your district than by attending our forum on July 26, 2009 from 1 to 4pm at the Racine Masonic Center, 1012 Main Street.

Two weeks ago, Wisconsin health care advocate Paulette Garin held two informational events here in the congressional district's western front. About the closest Janesville ever came to having the honor of Ryan's presence in a health care discussion was when his local surrogate, the Janesville Gazette, injected Ryan's personal health care talking points into an announcement article for Garin's public engagements. That's about the extent of the debate!

How Paul Ryan can occupy our district's house chair and ignore the health care positions of his constituents is something only he can explain.

The best advice I can offer to the folks in Racine holding the health care forum is this: Have a cushioned chair, a jug of bottled water and a large table placard ready with Rep. Paul Ryan's name on it. You never know when he might show up - keep the cameras rolling.

Ryan Well Compensated By Big Money

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Today's Janesville Gazette contains an article titled,”Ryan’s war chest is practically bursting.” Here are two excerpts.

JG Excerpt:
The campaign reports that 2,620 Wisconsin residents have donated to Ryan’s campaign since Jan.1.

A few paragraphs down…

JG Excerpt:
Ryan’s press release boasts that Wisconsin residents account for 95 percent of his contributors over the past year and that 82 percent of his donors since the beginning of this year gave $100 or less.

Okay. Let’s assume they gave exactly $100 each. 82 percent of 2,620 comes out to 2,148 contributors donating $214,800. Subtract that from $1.28 million and that leaves 472 that gave slightly over $1 million. Only 17% of the $1.28m came from regular folks ($100 or less). Who do you think Ryan works for? Click here to find out.

Detailed financial report here.

Article not available on Web at posting time.