Bill > SB2846

This bill authorizes municipalities in Mississippi to enter into voluntary "taxpayer agreements" with property owners or developers as an optional way to finance redevelopment projects, which are areas targeted for improvement due to blight or other detrimental conditions. These agreements can be used to guarantee repayment of bonds issued for the project, provide alternative payments instead of or in addition to tax increment revenues (the increase in property taxes generated by a redevelopment project), or secure other payment obligations. Importantly, these agreements are considered binding contractual obligations of the property owner or developer, but they are not taxes, public debt, or pledges of government credit, and they do not count towards debt limits. The bill also allows these agreements to be secured by a lien on the property that has priority over most other liens, and this lien can be enforced like delinquent property taxes. Municipalities can also use these agreements to secure bonds issued by a "conduit issuer," meaning the municipality issues bonds on behalf of the developer or project, with the bonds being repaid solely by the project's revenue and the taxpayer agreement, not by the municipality's general funds. The bill also clarifies the definition of a "redevelopment project" to include the acquisition, construction, and equipping of public or private improvements, such as buildings, when undertaken by a developer under these new provisions.