A bill to shorten the time frame from three years to 18 months for owners of adjudicated properties to pay unpaid taxes has advanced in the house.
Mark Goodson with the East Baton Rouge Redevelopment Authority told the House Civil Law and Procedure Committee that when local governments take over blighted or abandoned properties, they also incur that property’s costs during the three-year holding period.
"A reduced redemption period on a blighted property would speed up the property for clearing title to an adjudicated property so that it may be available for productive use," said Goodson.
Right now only New Orleans has an 18 month redemption period for owners of adjudicated properties to pay unpaid taxes. The amendment would expand that window state-wide.
The bill met little opposition save for some concern about the removal of a uniform definition for “blighted property”. But Goodson and Rep. Patrick Williams, the bill’s author, promised to work with lawmakers to find a solution for the matter before the amendment hits the full house for debate.
If passed, the amendment would go to voters in 2014.