COLUMBIANA CO. Sales tax increase imposed
A group opposed to imposing the tax intends to undertake an effort to block collection.
By NORMAN LEIGH
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
LISBON -- Citing a need to avoid imminent financial disaster, two of three Columbiana County commissioners voted to impose a 0.5 percent sales tax increase.
The action, taken at a special meeting Thursday, means that collections on the increase begin Sept. 1.
The increase, which will produce about $3 million annually, will bring the county's sales tax to 1.5 percent.
It will be in effect for three years, unless county residents undertake a referendum effort and put a measure on the November ballot to scrap the imposed tax and voters do so.
Alex Snyder of Columbiana, leader of a group opposed to imposed taxes, said his organization intends to mount a referendum effort immediately.
If the group collects more than 3,000 valid signatures, it can place a tax rejection measure on the Nov. 5 general election ballot.
Simply filing the referendum will block any collections of the imposed tax even before the issue goes to the polls.
Financial need
"There's nothing else to cut," Commissioner Sean Logan said during a public hearing before commissioners imposed the tax.
"We have a need now," Logan added, noting that the county could be $1 million to $1.6 million in the red by year's end because revenues aren't keeping up with expenses.
Logan and commissioners Dave Cranmer and Jim Hoppel noted that the county government has enacted a bare-bones budget, adjusted employee health-care coverage to produce savings and trimmed staffing through attrition, layoffs or reduced hours.
The belt-tightening isn't enough, however, to help the county government steer clear of fiscal ruin, commissioners argued.
Hoppel, commissioner president, voted against imposing the tax.
"I'm not denying that we need it," Hoppel said. "It's the responsibility of the citizens to vote in it. I don't like imposing it."
Earlier in Thursday's special meeting, Hoppel voted against a measure that would have imposed the sales tax increase as an emergency and automatically placed as an issue on the general election ballot, allowing voters to scrap the imposed tax if they wished.
The emergency measure also would have prevented opponents from blocking collections of the tax before it was placed before voters.
Hoppel's "no" vote thwarted the emergency measure, which requires a unanimous decision.
Reactions
About 20 people attended the public hearing before the commissioners' vote.
"Our county can't limp along and expect to attract economic development," Jim Janek of Winona said of the need for the sales tax increase.
"We have serious needs in the county," said Jack Walsh of Salem, who also is in favor of the increase.
But others attending the meeting were opposed to it.
"Money's tight for us all," said Todd Vedino of Leetonia.
"I'm sick of taxes," complained Ken Hawkins of Lisbon. "Don't spend what you don't have."
leigh@vindy.com