1,100 levies seek new taxes on Ohio ballots

Associated Press

COLUMBUS

Despite warnings by Gov. John Kasich that raising local taxes could hurt Ohio’s development efforts, local governing bodies say they have no choice but to ask voters for more money this fall after enduring cuts in state aid.

On Nov. 8, voters throughout Ohio will decide nearly 1,100 requests for more tax dollars, ranging from school operations and improvements to parks and senior services, The Columbus Dispatch reported.

“The economy is incredibly tough, and there is a lot of competition for property taxes,” said Matt DeTemple, executive director of the Ohio Township Association.

Kasich and GOP leaders have said their budget, which went into effect in July, closed a massive budget hole without raising taxes, but cuts in state dollars flowing to local government have combined with cuts from earlier years to create an urgent need for cash, the newspaper reported.

Dozens of townships are asking their residents for more money on the ballot to make up a 25 percent cut in state aid, with an additional 25 percent cut expected next year.

“It’s a huge hit for township budgets,” DeTemple said. “They have no choice but to ask local voters.”

Cuts in state money have meant some libraries have had to cut back on staff and hours, despite increased demand. Douglas Evans, executive director of the Ohio Library Council, tells the newspaper that state aid for libraries has been reduced by 30 percent in the last decade — most of which was cut in the past four years.

Throughout Ohio, 20 library levies will ask taxpayers to either maintain taxes passed previously or increase the level residents are giving.

“The new levies are not excessive; libraries are just trying to make up for what they’ve lost,” Evans said.

Voters seem to be growing weary of continual requests for tax revenue.

Charlie Cox, a 68-year-old retired car salesman in Westerville, tells the newspaper that “enough is enough.”

“I love my neighborhood, and I love my schools, and Westerville has great ideas,” said Cox, who has campaign sign in his yard that reads “The Time Has Come. Vote No on Everything.”

“They spend money before they know where it’s coming from, and it gets to the point where you have to say: ‘Stop’.”

Eric Sanchez, 42, also of Westerville, said he is researching all of the city’s three levies, but he feels like they come back every year.

“I wonder where this money is being spent and whether we can’t hold off a few years until the economy turns around,” he said.

The 1,100 levies this year are actually down from previous years. Some school districts have leftover money from the federal stimulus, and other local government leaders may not want to be on the same ballot as state Issue 2 — the effort to repeal Ohio’s contested new collective bargaining law.

For his part, Kasich said he’s still studying the issues for his local Genoa Township ballot.

“I intend to find out what they’re all about, if they merit a vote in favor, I’ll vote in favor,” he told The Dispatch. “And when I do vote, I’m not going to tell you how I voted because it’s a private ballot.”

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Information from: The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com