MAHONING COUNTY No voters go to tax hearing

There will be another public hearing next week.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mahoning County commissioners aren't surprised that no one showed up Thursday for a public hearing about a 0.5-percent sales tax.
"The fact of the matter is that this issue, in one form or another, has been presented to the voters five times in the last six years," said county Administrator Gary Kubic. "I think they understand it by now."
The tax is one of two on the books in Mahoning County and it expires at the end of this year. The other expires in December 2004. They each bring in about $12 million a year for general operating expenses.
Commissioners put the tax on the ballot for renewal in May, but it was defeated. They've announced their intention to put it back on the ballot in November.
What's required
Under Ohio law, they are required to first have two public hearings and gather input from people both for and against the measure.
Both taxes have been subject to voter approval over the past half-dozen years, being voted off the books, then back on again.
"We've held many hearings over the years," said Commissioner Ed Reese, who said he wasn't surprised either that no one came to the hearing.
"This will be on the ballot in November. The people will make their voices heard then," he said.
Thursday's was the first of the required public hearings. The next will be at 9:30 a.m. June 27 in the commissioners' hearing room, in the courthouse basement.
During their regular meeting, commissioners awarded a contract to Valley Foods of East Boardman Street, for $300,363, to provide food for the county's summer food program.
The program provides free meals to children through age 18 from low-income families. Nearly 169,000 meals were served last year to children at 89 sites around the county.
The county contributes $20,000 from sales tax revenue toward the program, which provides both breakfast and lunch meals. The Ohio Department of Education reimburses the remaining cost.
bjackson@vindy.com