OP-Ed on T.I.F.’s

By Contributing Writer on December 2, 2025

December 2, 2025

Op-Ed: As Ohio Groups move to constitutionally eliminate Ohio’s Property tax, leadership matters now more than ever; Ohio must eliminate TIF’s and Abatements for Residential Development

By Les Carrier, Hilliard City Councilman

Ohio stands at a crossroads. As our communities grow, so do the challenges of funding public services, controlling property taxes, and ensuring equitable development. When I started serving Hilliard’s residents on City Council, I immediately recognized the large impact diverting tax revenue on residential development was having on local property owners. Tax Increment Financing (TIF) has been used to spur residential development by diverting property tax revenue to fund infrastructure. I led a group of elected officials in a charter amendment process limiting the use of Residential TIF’s. While TIFs can promise progress, they often come at a steep cost to our schools, libraries, township’s and neighborhoods. It’s time for Ohio to prohibit TIFs for residential development. It is time to tell the development community they must finance the infrastructure for their development!

TIFs work by redirecting the increased property tax revenue from new developments to pay for infrastructure like roads and utilities. In practice, TIF’s siphon funds away from essential public services. In Ohio, with approximately 1,850 active TIF districts, billions in potential tax revenue are diverted, leaving schools underfunded and local governments scrambling. For example, I recently helped a local group in Marysville also prohibit TIF’s on residential development. A charter amendment, like Hilliard’s, passed with over 70% support. Marysville schools were headed into financial disaster.

TIFs for residential development often fuel gentrification, pricing out long-time residents. As developers use TIFs to build high-end housing, property values soar, pushing out those who can least afford it, our seniors. By banning TIFs for residential projects, we can protect vulnerable communities and ensure development doesn’t come at the expense of affordability.

Prohibiting TIFs also promotes fairness. Too often, TIFs are granted to projects in already prosperous areas, benefiting developers while neglecting blighted neighborhoods. In Dublin, Ohio, where 42 TIF districts exist, only two are residential, yet the broader trend shows TIFs skewing toward projects that don’t serve the public good. By eliminating TIFs for residential development, Ohio can redirect resources to areas that truly need investment, ensuring public funds benefit all, not just a privileged few developers.

Critics will argue that TIFs are essential for funding infrastructure and spurring housing growth. I laugh at those critics, and simply point to my hometown, Hilliard Ohio. Hilliard has run continuous budget surpluses over the past decade, built up an 8-million-dollar reserve fund, balanced residential with commercial growth, and has had two school levies in the past 15 years. Don’t rob our schools, our townships, or displace our seniors, ban or limit residential TIFs and abatements.

Ohio has a chance to lead the way. By prohibiting TIFs for residential development, we can protect our public services, curb gentrification, and ensure tax dollars serve the common good. This isn’t about halting growth; it’s about growing responsibly. Let’s demand a future where our communities are strong, our taxes are fair, and every Ohioan has a place to call home. The time to act is now—ban TIFs and abatements for residential development and put Ohio’s people first.

Respectfully,

Les Carrier
Hilliard City Councilman

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Editorial Comments by Brian Massie, A Watchman on the Wall

Abolish all property taxes and we will not have to worry about the T.I.F’s.

The State needs to stop their “give-a-ways” to sports teams, AI data centers, etc.