The Hamilton County Commission will evaluate its PILOT (payment in lieu of taxes) program in a committee meeting Thursday.
However, to revise, update or reform the program — pick your verb — which has become increasingly less palatable to area residents may take longer than one meeting. As such, commissioners should take the time they need to study the problem before deciding whether or how to go forward.
Commissioner Joe Graham has suggested a moratorium on housing PILOTs after two already on the table are voted on, and that is a minimum of what commissioners should do unless they are able to wave a wand over the process Thursday and have it please everybody. Of course, it will never please everybody.
Most people understand the concept of PILOTs — awarding tax breaks in order to get something of tremendous value for a city or county (that might otherwise not be built or might be built elsewhere) — and know they can offer a needed stimulent for manufacturing or business or housing. But such programs can be seen to pick winners, often the most well-heeled, well-placed or, perhaps, loudest. That gives rise to the sense that they’re not always fair, and that’s probably true.
What commissioners should do is look at the local history of PILOTs, examine their results, who received them and who didn’t, and see if they’re as fair as they should be. This should be no time for a rubber stamp but a time of serious research and contemplation; this is not “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.”