Legislature OKs downtown investment bill
Georgia's revenue from various taxes went up only 1.1 percent in March, as sale tax revenue was down for the first time in months.
- Dave Williams[1]
- Staff Writer- Atlanta Business Chronicle
The General Assembly gave final passage Tuesday to scaled-back legislation encouraging private investment in downtown redevelopment projects across Georgia.
The state Senate voted 46-6 to create a revolving, low-interest loan fund to be distributed by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs to local governments or development authorities to help finance downtown improvement projects.
Introduced last year in the Georgia House of Representatives by Rep. Allen Peake[2], R-Macon, the bill called for offering $30 million a year in tax credits to developers and property owners for new construction and renovation of existing buildings within designated downtown districts.
But when the bill failed to make headway, supporters came back this year with a proposal to limit the fund to $5 million a year for up to four years, not to exceed $20 million.
The House passed the bill 160-15 earlier this month. It now goes to Gov. Nathan Deal[3] for his signature.
Dave Williams covers Government
References
- ^ Dave Williams (feeds.bizjournals.com)
- ^ Allen Peake (feeds.bizjournals.com)
- ^ Nathan Deal (feeds.bizjournals.com)