It has never been shown whether the multi-family tax exemption program (MFTE) leads to more housing being constructed than would have been constructed without it. The state (JLARC) attempted to answer this question a few years ago, but could not, as I understand it because the participating cities and the responsible state agency have not enforced the reporting requirements in the law. Hmmm. So our state and local officials, hell-bent on shoveling out benefits to wealthy developers, have made sure that we can't uncover the scam -- no data.
There is good reason to believe that the MFTE program does NOT produce more housing. It lies in the valuation of land in the development process. I have never seen any public officials examine that phenomenon, though it is central to this issue.
Meantime, state and local officials are engaging in the Big Lie -- stating over and over that the MFTE program is effective.
What we do know is that ordinary taxpayers are subsidizing wealthy developers and their wealthy investors.
And we should certainly be skeptical at the assertion that developers won't develop without government bribes.
Bob Jacobs
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