Local governments could continue to create CRAs under bill amended in Senate committee

Local government officials who believe in the power of Community Redevelopment Agencies (CRAs) to revitalize blighted areas will be able to continue to create those special districts under an amended bill that passed in the Senate Rules Committee on Monday.

The measure (SB 1242) sponsored by North Central Florida Republican Stan McClain, originally would have prohibited creation of any new CRAs, but he said that after receiving input from both Republican and Democratic lawmakers he would agree to allow them.

“CRAs may continue to operate under their redevelopment plan but must sunset on the termination date outlined in those plans,” McClain said Monday in introducing the change. “No extensions will be permitted. The original intent was for CRAs to have lifespans of approximately 40 years, and this amendment aims to re-align with that original vision.”

Since 1969, Florida cities and countries have been empowered by state law to create CRAs in districts designated as “blighted areas.” They are funded by tax revenues collected in those specific districts through what is known as tax increment financing (TIF). TIF funds collected from a specific CRA are then invested back into that specific area.

There are more than 200 such CRAs in the state at the moment (Tampa has eight).

There has been a push by some lawmakers to kill CRAs because of reports that they have misappropriated funds. To answer those concerns, the bill prohibits CRAs from extending their boundaries or spending on events such as concerts, festivals, holiday events, parades, “focusing CRAs on tangible brick and mortar redevelopment efforts,” McClain said.

That language is important, said North Florida Republican Corey Simon.

“I think the warning should be for our CRAs to operate and do what they’re supposed to be doing,” he said. “Those dollars were for blighted areas, not to put on concerts and not to put on things that are not targeting those blighted areas. And so I think the warning shot needs to be that our CRAs need to be operating to improve these communities that have been set aside.”

The amended bill requires that either city council members or county commissioners must be the same representatives legislating over the CRA. It also says that all CRAs in existence as of Oct. 1, 2019, will end at the termination date  already listed in the respective CRA’s charter.

Speaking on behalf of keeping CRAs was Panama City Beach Mayor Stuart Tettemer, who noted that his city is one of the few in the state that doesn’t collect ad valorem taxes. “Our CRA keeps taxes local and efficient,” he said. “Keep our town affordable for visitors and our residents.”

McClain’s bill now heads to the full Senate for a vote. A companion bill (HB 991) in the House sponsored by Cape Coral Republican Mike Giallombardo still has a committee stop before reaching the floor of that chamber.

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