Mahoning County's sales tax is among the lowest in Ohio

Believe it or not, it is in everyone's best interest for Mahoning County taxpayers to renew the half-percent sales tax on the May 8 primary ballot. Even those who are working for defeat of the tax -- some through a sincere belief that the county could function without the income and others who are grinding ugly political axes -- will lose if the tax is defeated.
We will not attempt to argue that Mahoning County government is a perfectly oiled machine, running at peak efficiency and performance. But in all candor, few workplaces turn out a perfect product at the least possible cost every day.
Most of us go to work each day committed to doing the best we can, and most days that's exactly what happens. So it is with most of the people who are working in county government -- the deputies on patrol, the jailers, the social workers dealing with juvenile delinquents, the clerks who record deeds, mortgages, titles and judgments that bring order to a potentially chaotic society, and the lawyers and judges striving for justice, sometimes against all odds.
For this, Mahoning County residents -- and, importantly, those who don't live in the county but do their shopping here -- are asked to pay a penny on each dollar spent. Half of that penny is up for renewal at this election, and county commissioners are attempting to have that levy run continually. That this tax would not come up for renewal every five years is an issue for some, but we suggest the importance of that is blown out of proportion.
Recipe for disaster
As it is, the county has two half-cent issues on the books, each running for five years. That means that every two or three years the commissioners must mount a campaign for renewal of one of the taxes. And every once in a while, the perfect political storm develops and one of those taxes is defeated. When that happens, county government breaks down.
The county is emerging from a fiscal crisis invoked by past votes that suspended collection of one or another of these taxes. The details of that rebuilding is covered in a story on page A1 today.
The facts speak for themselves. Here, on the editorial page, our job is to reinforce what should be clear to all.
Mahoning County already has one of the lowest tax rates in the state, and the county has justice system costs -- including juvenile justice -- that are far greater than any rural or suburban county and somewhat greater than some of its sister urban counties. All 88 counties have approved some level of piggyback sales tax. Only eight counties have lower rates than Mahoning County. Twenty-seven counties are the same. Fifty-two counties have higher rates.
There is no reason to suggest that Mahoning County could defy the economic realities of life in Ohio any more than it already is.
Are there improvements to be made? Yes. Is there reason to believe that the county is wasting a fourth of its general fund budget? Absolutely not.
A vote to continue this sales tax is a vote to avoid government by crisis. It is a vote that both demands and enables county officials to do a better job.