Land Lines July 2017
Revitalizing America’s Smaller Legacy Cities
For generations, the Midwest and Northeast's smaller hubs of industry were essential to building American middle-class prosperity. Yet as the national economy has transitioned away from manufacturing, many of these communities have struggled. Presaging a Policy Focus Report by Greater Ohio Policy Center, scheduled for publication in August 2017, this article shows why these places matter and identifies strategies to help them thrive in the 21st century.
GASB 77
The Government Accounting Standards Board Statement No. 77 requires an estimated 50,000 state and local governments to report the total amount of tax revenue forgone each year because of incentives intended to attract or retain businesses within their borders. The disclosures will offer a vast new collection of data to elected officials, policy makers, researchers, and journalists looking to analyze the costs of business tax incentives, following years of public skepticism about the purported economic benefits of these tax breaks.
This issue looks at strategies for revitalizing America’s smaller legacy cities, GASB 77 and the cost of property tax incentives for business, the future of U.S. public school revenue from the property tax, and Making Sense of Place, a Lincoln Institute initiative that will explore our human ties to land.