Program to end soon

More than $5.5 million in sales tax revenue was dished out over five years.
By BOB JACKSON
VINDICATOR COURTHOUSE REPORTER
YOUNGSTOWN -- Mahoning County commissioners said goodbye Thursday to a revenue sharing program they started five years ago.
They doled out the last round of grants from a community development program that has been funded with revenue from a 0.5 percent county sales tax.
The tax expires at the end of this year, and commissioners will ask voters to renew it in November. But even if the tax passes, the revenue sharing program will be gone next year. Commissioners have said they can no longer afford to give up that money, which is needed to meet general fund operating expenses.
Auditor George Tablack told commissioners last year that the county's general fund had lost money for five consecutive years.
"It was an amazing program," Commissioner Vicki Allen Sherlock said of the revenue sharing. "This was a great opportunity for people to see their tax money reinvested in their communities."
The program
When commissioners campaigned for the tax in 1999, they promised to earmark 10 percent of its revenue for distribution among communities for local development projects.
The county was divided into seven funding districts based on geography, population and common development goals. Youngstown, as the county's largest city, was designated as its own funding district, so it did not have to share money with any other municipality.
The money was to be spent on projects submitted by each district's participants. Projects were required to encourage public or private investment in the county; improve the health, safety and well-being of residents; or directly benefit neighborhoods.
"This was not for wages and benefits. It was to be directly for public improvements," said Joseph Caruso, assistant county administrator.
Caruso said a total of $5.6 million in sales tax revenue was allocated to municipalities over the five-year period.
Sherlock said the program encouraged local subdivisions to work cooperatively on projects.
"I really wish there was a way this could be continued," Campbell Mayor Jack Dill told commissioners. "This has helped us a lot."
Other local officials also thanked commissioners for the revenue, which has been used for projects ranging from building new fire stations and municipal buildings to restoring a water tower.
bjackson@vindy.com