Branson TIF commissioners receive statutory training; Cody Fenton, Greg Baker elected chair and vice chair

The Branson Tax Increment Financing Commission spent its meeting on a statutory overview of tax increment financing and elected Cody Fenton chair and Greg Baker vice chair.

Lindsay Kolish, an attorney with Laubra Municipal Law serving as special economic development counsel to the city of Branson, told the commission that "it is literally financing that is done by the increment of taxes," and outlined how TIF captures increases in property and sales taxes to reimburse developers for redevelopment costs.

Kolish emphasized statutory timing and mechanics: a TIF plan must be approved by the Board of Aldermen, redevelopment project areas must be activated within 10 years of plan approval, and each activated project area may collect incremental revenue for 23 years. She also described that property tax payments in lieu of taxes (PILOTs) are captured 100% to the special allocation fund and that 50% of the incremental economic-activity taxes (typically sales tax) are diverted to that fund.

Joe Lauber, also…