Hearings on sales tax aren't just for show

There's a reason Ohio law requires county commissioners to have at least two public hearings before placing a tax issue on the ballot, but you would have been hard pressed to discern what it is had you attended the one last Tuesday in Mahoning County. That's because only two noncounty government officials showed up.
In passing the law, the General Assembly wanted to make sure that residents weren't blindsided by tax questions on the ballot. They believed the citizenry -- taxpayers -- had the right to not only hear from the commissioners, but to question county officials on the operation of government, especially with regard to the expenditure of public dollars.
But if what occurred (or didn't occur) in Mahoning County last week is any indication, state legislators misjudged the level of interest people have in the civic life of their communities.
As Commissioner David Ludt put it after Tuesday's hearing: "We've had them at night, and we've had them in the daytime. We've had them downtown, and we've had them out in the townships. People just don't come. I don't know why."
Neither do we -- given the chatter on talk radio about waste in government, corrupt elected officials and high tax rates. We were anticipating a no-holds-barred exchange between commissioners Edward Reese, Vicki Allen Sherlock and Ludt and individuals who in March voted against a five-year renewal of a 0.5 percent sales tax.
The renewal was rejected, prompting Reese, Sherlock and Ludt to try again in November. Indeed, the public hearings -- the next one is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday in the courthouse -- were designed to elicit responses from the taxpayers as to whether the commissioners should seek another five-year renewal of the tax that expires Dec. 31, or go for a continuing period. Reese, Ludt and Sherlock are also toying with the idea of consolidating the expiring tax with another 0.5 percent tax that expires in three years. The 1 percent tax would expire in five years. 10 years, or be on the books permanently. If voters approved the consolidation option, commissioners would repeal the 0.5 percent tax that expires in 2007.
Given that Mahoning County government's general fund will lose about $12 million a year if the half-percent tax is not renewed, opponents have an obligation to publicly explain how they expect the various departments and agencies, including the courts and the sheriff's department, to absorb such a loss in revenue.
The public hearing Thursday must not become a copy of the one last week. The future of Mahoning County is at stake and the commissioners and other officeholders could use some thoughtful input from the public.
Columbiana County
Likewise in Columbiana County, the commissioners have scheduled public hearings at 7 p.m. July 7 and 10 a.m. July 14 on their proposal to place the 1 percent sales tax on the November ballot. The tax expires in 2005, along with a 0.5 percent sales tax, but commissioners decided to seek early renewal because of this year's presidential election.
They are hoping to be as successful as they were in the last presidential election four years ago.
Both taxes generate 43 percent of Columbiana County's general fund, which is why public participation in the hearings is so important.
In recent weeks, a series of Vindicator stories hasturned the spotlight on the health department and the spending practices of the director. The newspaper's findings have prompted a state investigation. What effect the revelations will have on the renewal of the sales tax is anybody's guess.
But commissioners must know that simply saying that the health department is not under the general fund will not appease suspicious taxpayers who don't distinguish between government spending. To them, a public dollar is a public dollar.