Missouri needs TIF reform. House Bill 914 is an important step in that direction. The combination of a very large number of local governments and the inclusion of sales taxation in Missouri TIF law has been a dangerous mixture. By one measure, Missouri local governments use TIF more than all but two other states.1 Missouri’s many cities have readily engaged TIF in order to increase the sales taxes they collect, while leaving other taxing districts, such as school districts — who depend more on property taxation — holding the empty bag. Originally intended (perhaps farcically) as a treatment for “blight,” TIF has been aggressively used throughout Missouri’s wealthier areas. The constant quest by cities to give away more tax incentives in exchange for new sales tax dollars has had a dramatic impact on Missouri.
Tax Increment Financing Reform
Corporate Welfare
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About the Author
David Stokes
David Stokes is a St. Louis native and a graduate of Saint Louis University High School and Fairfield (Conn.) University. He spent six years as a political aide at the St. Louis County Council before joining the Show-Me Institute in 2007. Stokes was a policy analyst at the Show-Me Institute from 2007 to 2016. From 2016 through 2020 he was Executive Director of Great Rivers Habitat Alliance, where he led efforts to oppose harmful floodplain developments done with abusive tax subsidies. Stokes rejoined the Institute in early 2021 as the Director of Municipal Policy. He is a past president of the University City Library Board. He served on the St. Louis County 2010 Council Redistricting Commission and was the 2012 representative to the Electoral College from Missouri’s First Congressional District. He lives in University City with his wife and their three children.
