Payments-in-Lieu-of-Taxes: A Revenue-Generating Strategy for Central Cities

Many urban governments are in fiscal crisis, and the options for generating new revenue are limited. Facing the results of suburbanization, de­ industrialization, advances in technology, capital flight, and a growing ur­ ban underclass, urban governments must walk a tight balance between generating sufficient revenue through fees and taxes and creating structures that might act as a disincentive to economic growth and expansion. Policy choices are difficult and often conflicting (see Hanson 1983, Kantor 1988, Mollenkopf 1983).