A new Illinois appellate court case gives ordinary citizen taxpayers the right to sue to stop abusive TIF practices by a municipality.
In Malec v. City of Belleville, the City of Belleville passed an ordinance to enter into a TIF agreement to develop vacant property that it said was "blighted." Steven Malec, a citizen and taxpayer, sued to declare the city's TIF ordinance invalid because the area was not in fact "blighted" as required by the TIF law.
The city moved to dismiss Malec's claim, trotting out the familiar but untrue argument that TIF does not raise taxes because TIF funds would not exist but for the creation of the TIF. Thus, according the the city, the general funds of the city were not impacted, taxpayers were not affected, and Malec had no standing to sue. The local trial court agreed with the city and dismissed Malec's suit.
The appellate court reversed the trial court and reinstated Malec's lawsuit. The appellate court rejected the city's argument, finding that TIF does impact taxes and general revenues. Accordingly, taxpayers are permitted to sue to stop cities from violating the TIF law, even if they don't live in the TIF district.
Finally, a court sees through the patently false (but often repeated) assertion that TIF does not raise taxes.
