Today: Urge Support for Bill to Limit TIDD Financing

From New Mexico Voices for Children:

Time Frame: This morning!
Issue: Limiting state tax increment financing to new economic activity

Background: The state is poised to promise more than $1 billion in future tax revenue as a development incentive to just a handful of tax increment development districts (TIDDs) in Albuquerque and Las Cruces. This is tax revenue that normally would have gone into the state's general fund and benefited the whole state through programs like education, health care, and public safety. One of the main arguments for doing this is that the new developments will bring lots of new economic activity to the state. The counter argument is that most of the TIDDs' economic activity will actually come from other areas of the state – in essence, cannibalizing an existing source of tax revenue.

Sen. Steve Fischmann has introduced a bill that would remedy the situation. SB 576 would allow the TIDDs to only collect future state tax revenue that comes from new economic activity.

We realize that TIDDs are a complex issue, but explaining it in detail here would take more space than the typical action alert. You can read more about our stand on TIDDs on our FAQ sheet, which you can download here (pdf). You can also read Sen. Fischmann's bill here (pdf).

Action Needed: SB 576 is scheduled to be heard – along with a group of other TIDD-related bills – this afternoon in the Senate Finance Committee. We need you to contact senators in the SFC this morning and urge them to support SB 576.

What You Might Say: Please support Sen. Fischmann's bill to limit a TIDD's future tax revenue to only revenue from economic activity that is new to the state. SB 576 will safeguard our state general fund, ensuring it will be able to sustain the statewide programs that are critical to our children and working families.

Contact Info: You may call the Capitol switchboard at 505-986-4300 and ask to speak to one of the following senators: Sen. John Arthur Smith, Sen. Carlos Cisneros, Sen. Rod Adair, Sen. Pete Campos, Sen. Caroll Leavell, Sen. Howie Morales, Sen. Steven Neville, Sen. Gerald Ortiz y Pino, Sen. Mary Kay Papen, Sen. Nancy Rodriguez, or Sen. Sue Wilson Beffort.

You can also visit this link for direct contact info. To find out who represents you in the Senate, select 'Find Your Legislator' from the menu under 'Members' on the left-hand side of the home page.
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Note: Other TIDD bills scheduled to be heard this afternoon in the Senate Finance Committee include:

• SB 249 TAX INCREMENT DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS (LOPEZ): Bond authorization for SunCal ($408 million)
• SB 467 WINROCK TAX INCREMENT DEVELOPMENT PROJECT (ORTIZ y PINO)
• C/SB 19 LAS CRUCES DOWNTOWN TAX INCREMENT DEVELOPMENT (PAPEN): Bond authorization for the already-established Las Cruces TIDD ($8 million)
• TIDD reform bill: SB 201 TAX & REV TAX INCREMENT CHANGES (SANCHEZ B.)