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Lawyer, board representative say Mount Vernon IDA pilot deals shift school tax burden to local taxpayers
Summary
Mount Vernon legal counsel Tom Scapoli and board representative Chris told trustees that Industrial Development Agency pilot agreements — especially for residential projects — are producing large foregone school tax revenue, leaving the district to educate additional students while receiving far smaller PILOT payments than regular property taxes.
Mount Vernon legal counsel Tom Scapoli and a nonvoting school board representative on the Mount Vernon Industrial Development Agency (IDA) told the school board on March 18 that the IDA’s use of PILOT (payment‑in‑lieu‑of‑tax) agreements for housing projects has created a significant "tax gap" that shifts school funding burdens to other local taxpayers.
Scapoli explained the IDA’s statutory purpose and the mechanics of PILOTs and said the Mount Vernon IDA grants developers exemptions from property, sales and mortgage recording taxes and may negotiate PILOT payments instead. "Pilot is an acronym for a payment in lieu of taxes," he told trustees, and the district has limited legal power to block exemption of school taxes under current state law.
Chris, the school district’s nonvoting…
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