No immediate action likely on assessments

Property owners, including churches, are facing
assessments in January.

By MARC KOVAC

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

COLUMBUS — State lawmakers probably will not act on legislation changing the governance of the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District or exempting churches from a planned assessment to be collected in January.

The Ohio Senate has only a couple of scheduled voting days left before the end of the year, and the committee considering related legislation has not picked up the bill since the summer recess.

“I’m not going to raise expectations that we’re going to be able to get something done before the assessment bills start coming in people’s mail,” said Sen. Ron Amstutz, A Republican from Wooster, who introduced the legislation in the Senate.

The Muskingum district was created in the 1930s to establish flood protection for areas downstream. It includes all or parts of Ashland, Belmont, Carroll, Coshocton, Guernsey, Harrison, Holmes, Knox, Licking, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble, Richland, Stark, Summit, Tuscarawas, Wayne and Washington counties and covers about one-fifth of the state.

The district is overseen by a Conservancy Court, composed of 18 common pleas judges (one from each county). The judges select the five-member board of directors, which oversees day-to-day operations. Earlier this year, the district’s board of directors gave final approval for an assessment on property owners, with collections to begin in January.

Most of nearly 500,000 parcel owners in member counties will pay $12 each year, though commercial and industrial property owners will pay more. The assessments caused an outcry among some property owners, who view it as a tax levied without a vote of those affected. Opponents flocked to the Statehouse earlier this year to speak out during committee hearings, hoping to convince lawmakers to change the governance structure and exempt churches from the assessment.

In September, the Ohio House approved a bill doing just that. House Bill 47 was sponsored by Rep. Bob Gibbs, a Republican from Lakeville.

At the time, Gibbs said the bill would improve the oversight, accountability and transparency of the district’s operations and help to rebuild public trust in its management. He also said the intent of the legislation was to make sure the district focuses on its core missions of water conservation and flood mitigation.

HB 47 now awaits Senate action. Amstutz said there have been discussions in recent months with interested parties.

“The bill that we have still has issues that aren’t too well resolved,” he said.

Amstutz said he didn’t think the Senate would take up the issue or finalize a legislative fix before assessments come due in January.

“I’m getting a lot of willingness to address it from folks that are in a position to help,” he said. “But we’re going to have to work with more of the members and see what they want to do.”