Porter County Councilman Dan Whitten, D-at large, said he believes the proposal to establish a tax increment finance district in the area of the new hospital is unfair to taxpayers and could lead to the need for a new local income tax.
The proposed TIF will capture revenue from the new hospital and nearby developments to be used in that area alone, thus denying the county and other local taxing units the relief they are depending on to make up for income lost to the property tax caps, he said.
The creation of the TIF also will take control of the revenue out of the hands of the County Council, which is charged with that responsibility as the local fiscal body, Whitten said.
"It's a money grab," he said.
Whitten sent a letter to his fellow council members late last week in hopes of rallying them in opposition to the TIF, which is being formed by the appointed Redevelopment Commission. The proposal will have to receive approval from that board and the county Plan Commission and Board of Commissioners before a public hearing is held and final consideration given by Board of Commissioners.
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A consultant for the Redevelopment Commission updated a report on the impact of the TIF at Polarek's request and is predicting the hospital alone would generate $26 million over the next 20 years and cost the Duneland School Corp.'s capital project fund an estimated $5 million.
Polarek believes the estimates could be be as much as twice these numbers, considering the report is based on an assessed value of $100 million for the hospital and he has heard estimates of closer to $200 million.
