Shocker: South Bend Terminates TIF District 20 Years Ahead Of Schedule

This is something you rarely see done and something that never occurs in the City of Indianapolis where more than 10% of the tax base is consumed by tax increment finance districts. South Bend officials are actually terminating a TIF district for Erskine Village twenty years ahead of schedule because the TIF area has already collected enough to pay off the outstanding debt owed by the district. The move will return about $1.2 million in property tax revenues to local governments who rely on the property tax for funding. South Bend officials previously released $2.6 million in excess funds held by the TIF district. "That's the philosophy of TIF," Redevelopment Commissioner Marcia Jones said Thursday, "Get in, get out and return those taxes to the general fund." In Indianapolis, city officials extend the life of TIF districts in perpetuity, continuing to find new ways to spend the funds used as a slush fund by the mayor. It's refreshing to see that there are elected officials in the state capable of following the intent of the law.