2003 Senate Bill 849 ↩

House Roll Call 736: Passed

To revise the definition of "initial assessed value" used to establish the "captured taxable value" in a brownfield redevelopment authority’s tax increment finance plan. The new definition would accommodate the expansion of a brownfield district to include a parcel which still has substantial taxable value. Specifically, a Holland, Michigan Lifesavers candy plant that closed recently (in part due to U.S. sugar tariffs) was declared a "brownfield" while it still contained machinery with taxable value. Tax increment financing allows a brownfield authority to capture the increment of increased local property tax revenue that results from the economic growth which is supposed to occur due to the new public facilities funded by the authority, and due to the relaxed environmental cleanup standards and other advantages conveyed by the brownfield law.