Allentown NIZ board may issue answer to audit accusation
The resolution passed Wednesday by the Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone Development Authority was short and to the point.
In a voice vote, the board authorized Solicitor Jerome Frank to send a letter to dispute an "alleged violation of the law." The resolution said ANIZDA "has been incorrectly accused of violating the law" and it "seeks to set the record straight."
Though it wasn't mentioned in the meeting, the resolution is likely ANIZDA's answer to the Oct. 22 questioning of state Revenue Secretary Pat Browne on the floor of the state Senate.
Sen. Jarrett Coleman, R-Lehigh, accused Browne and the authority of breaking the law after the secretary said no audit of finances has been performed since Allentown's unique tax zone was created in 2011.
The accusation came after Browne spent nearly two hours on the state Senate floor answering questions about the NIZ.
Browne was prompted to appear after the body voted 28-22 on Oct. 8 in favor of Senate Resolution 334, which was introduced by Coleman, who defeated Browne in the 2022 primary election. Coleman has been trying to bring to light specific sources of revenue in the NIZ, while Browne has repeatedly said he legally can't disclose that information because of changes made to the Fiscal Code of 2021.
That same information was requested in a subpoena issued by the Senate's Intergovernmental Operations committee.
If a letter is sent, it will first be reviewed by the ANIZDA board in an executive session. Such a session was held Wednesday for about a half hour.
'Audited each and every year'
ANIZDA Executive Director Steve Bamford provided a written comment to The Morning Call last week on the issue, denying the allegations the authority hadn't been subject to audits.
"The Allentown Neighborhood Improvement Zone Development Authority (ANIZDA) has been audited each and every year since it was formed in 2012 under the Economic Development Finance Law, a state law that requires the Authority to have an annual financial audit conducted by an independent auditor," Bamford wrote.
He said an independent auditor's report and audited financial statements are publicly available and presented at a public meeting annually. A report for the years ending Dec. 31, 2023 and 2022 was presented June 5, and can be reviewed at the NIZ's website .
"The Senate hearing focused on the 2016 amendment to the Neighborhood Improvement Zone Act that sought to have ANIZDA perform an audit of local taxing authorities intended, among other things, to verify that the correct amount of the eligible local tax was submitted to the local taxing authorities and the local tax authorities transferred the correct amount of eligible local tax to the State Treasurer," Bamford wrote.
"To be clear, these local taxes are reported by taxpayers to the local taxing bodies, not ANIZDA. The Authority has been unable to contract with an independent auditor for the performance of this additional audit because the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue determined that such an audit would breach the confidentiality section of the NIZ Act and therefore the state legislation would need to be changed to allow access to tax information for purposes of the audit."
Bamford said he expects legislators to recognize the NIZ as "an incredibly effective development finance tool for Allentown." He added that it has facilitated 4.3 million square feet of mixed-use development, $1.15 billion in investment and $5.4 million in new annual property tax revenue for the Allentown School District.
Also mentioned was a Lehigh Valley Planning Commission report that was released in May. It said violent crime in the NIZ was down 50% between 2011 and 2023, poverty was down 49% and median household income was up 58%.
"Over 4 million visitors and residents have attended sporting events, concerts, shows, and commencements at PPL Center and hundreds of thousands more are expected annually to visit the new Da Vinci Science Center and Archer Music Hall," Bamford wrote.
Morning Call reporter Evan Jones can be reached at
