Economic conditions worry levy advocates

The Valley's economic condition may make it difficult for tax levies to pass, one township leader said.
By ED RUNYAN
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
WARREN -- On the heels of some of the worst economic news to hit Trumbull County in years, area voters and levy proponents say money issues on the Nov. 8 ballot will face a tough test.
"This is just possibly the worst time to be trying to put a levy on the ballot," conceded Gary W. Engstrom, the county's Office of Elderly Affairs director. The office seeks passage of a 0.75-mill, 5-year additional levy.
Engstrom noted the large number of ballot issues, including five statewide issues that will take a long time to read; and the fact that Trumbull County voters will be using touch-screen voting machines for the first time.
He said one of the state issues takes three pages on the computer to read, which will present a great "physical challenge" to voters -- who may be tired out by the time they get to the seniors levy at Issue 8.
Delphi raises concerns
Those challenges are in addition to concerns raised in recent weeks by news that Delphi Corp. is making plans to reduce jobs and facilities to cut costs. Delphi Packard Electric's Mahoning Valley operations have 3,800 hourly workers.
Delphi has told its unions that it wants to trim its 8,500-member work force to 3,000 with plant closings, sales, retirements and attrition. GM and Delphi retirees are also concerned about loss of income.
"I won't vote for anything," said Debbie Palumbo of Cortland, who was having coffee at Panera Bread on Elm Road. "This area's so depressed, so you have to hang on to what you have."
Palumbo, who said her husband works for WCI Steel, said she thinks the Fairhaven levy (Trumbull Board of Mental Retardation & amp; Developmental Disabilities) will pass, and the senior citizens levy might get approval. "But I don't think the others will pass," she said.
"If people are viewing their employment in a more difficult light than they were a couple weeks ago, it might affect how they would vote on issues that would affect their expenses," agreed Kelly Pallante, Trumbull County Board of Elections director. She said 140,675 people are registered to vote in the county.
Gloomy views
"With the prospect of going from $31 to $17 an hour for skilled trades, it's probably not going to pass," said a man in his 30s from Champion, referring to the 8.1-mill, 5-year, additional Champion schools levy. He said he didn't want to be identified because he is thinking about starting a business.
"It's pretty much a moot point when it comes to school levies. They're not going to get any" money, he said.
"I'm not going to put any more on my real estate taxes," said a retired GM worker from Warren having coffee at McDonald's on Elm Road. He said he won't be voting for anything right now because of concerns about future cuts in his pension -- and feared he would be harassed if his name appeared in the newspaper.
"I might vote for the library one. You gotta have a place to read, communications. Other than that, I vote them all down. I'm a salesman, and you're digging into my pocket," said Steve Tsilimos, a bail bondsman from Warren.
In addition to the senior citizens levy (Issue 8), residents served by the county library system will be asked for 1 mill in additional taxes (Issue 9), and replacement levies are on the ballot for children's services (Issue 6, 0.8 mills) and the Fairhaven program (Issue 7, 2.25 mills). Replacement levies are different from renewal levies only in that they allow for an inflationary increase, while renewals don't.
"I'll still vote for the Fairhaven levy, and we need the library, but some of the other things we pay for, and I don't think we should be," said Warren resident Wilma Pernice, a retired Packard Electric worker on a GM pension.
Touch-screen voting
She and friend Marion Powell said at Panera Bread that they feel certain the number of elderly people voting this time might be down because of the new touch-screen voting equipment. Powell said the write-in voting procedure, which involves typing in someone's name, sounded especially complicated.
Elections director Pallante said she didn't consider the write-in procedure complicated but agreed that there may be senior citizens who are trying to avoid using the system by casting absentee ballots, which are done on paper.
The number of absentee voters appears to be higher than normal this fall, she said, and there are 78 precincts with write-ins on the ballot. Being age 62 or over is a valid reason to vote absentee. Requests for absentee voting have to be received by the board of elections by noon Saturday, Pallante said.
Asked if her vote would be affected by the Delphi bankruptcy, Joyce DeSantis of Howland said, "I'd be defeated as a person and as a Christian if I did. We've walked through this before at Packard. The community has always come through.
"I really believe in our community. I think it will make us stronger. I've seen it. We've survived," said DeSantis, whose husband works for Delphi Packard.
Bazetta Township Trustee Michael Piros said he is concerned about even small renewal levies such as the 0.4- and 0.6-mill levies Bazetta Township is asking for Nov. 8.
"Levies at this point are hard to come by in light of the economic condition of the Mahoning Valley," he said. "Thank goodness these are not additional levies. Yes we're concerned, but if these were large amounts, we would be more concerned."
Robert Kubiak, Children Services Board executive director, said the economic conditions in the area make it that much more important for the agency to explain to the public that services provided by his agency are mandated by state law and that the agency tries to "be responsible in how we carry out our mandate."
He said the community has historically supported the agency with 10-year renewals passing the last three times in a row dating back to 1974. This time the agency asked for a replacement levy to allow increased property values to allow the agency to "keep up with the times."
runyan@vindy.com