Mahoning voters should back senior-services levy

As the number of Mahoning County residents 60 years and older increases – it now stands at 62,000-plus out of a population of 229,484 – the demand for services beyond the scope of government is also growing.

For instance, many seniors need help bathing, or fixing a broken door lock, installing a screen or storm door, cutting lawns or removing snow from driveways.

Indeed, there are close to 1,000 Mahoning County residents in the age group waiting for adult care; chore services; home repair and maintenance; homemaker, protective and personal care services; medication management; guardianships; and, home-delivered and congregate meals.

In other words, many of our relatives, our neighbors, our friends and acquaintances need a helping hand to make their lives just a little bit easier.

That helping hand will be available if voters in Tuesday’s election approve a 1-mill, five-year levy for senior services. The tax will generate $4.1 million a year, with about 70 percent of the revenue earmarked to meet the needs of those who cannot entirely fend for themselves.

As county Commissioner Anthony T. Traficanti so aptly put it last December when he and his colleagues, Carol Rimedio-Righetti and David Ditzler, agreed to place the measure on the March 15 primary ballot: “To me, that levy shows compassion, and we are a compassionate community. We’re a benevolent community.”

The benevolence will be put to the test Tuesday, and we are confident that a majority of the voters will support financing senior services.

As for the justifiable concerns of many taxpayers about the management of the money – the history of government in this region is replete with wasteful spending of public dollars – the involvement of the Area Agency on Aging 11 is reassuring.

Joseph Rossi, chief executive of the organization, who along with the region’s elder statesman, Harry Meshel, is leading the campaign for the levy, said he would consult with the commissioners on the allocation of the money.

The Area Agency would select the service providers, monitor their performance and assess senior citizens’ service needs.

“If the commissioner want us to have an advisory council, we don’t have a problem with that,” Rossi said.

Public PARTICIPATION

Although Rimedio-Righetti does not believe a citizen advisory council is necessary, the involvement of the public in the decision-making process is crucial.

Such an entity, made up of a demographic mix of county residents, would accomplish a couple of things: one, bring to the table private sector perspectives that could prove extremely valuable; and two, reassure the taxpayers that there will be adequate oversight of the program and the money.

This should not be viewed as a reflection on Rossi and the organization he leads. As Commissioner Rimedio-Righetti observed, the Niles-based Area Agency on Aging has “proven themselves in the Mahoning Valley.”

There are independent citizen advisory boards in Trumbull and Ashtabula counties, which have senior-services levies. The boards receive proposals from prospective service providers and make recommendations to the county commissioners, who decide how the levy money is spent.

Last November, voters in Trumbull County renewed the 0.75-percent levy by an impressive 4-1 margin. It was the third renewal.

Rimedio-Righetti contends the citizens board would not be needed in Mahoning County because the commissioners will meet quarterly with agency officials and would be making an appointment to the Area Agency’s advisory board. The commissioners would also be able to terminate their administrative contract with the agency on a 90-day notice and find another administrator, if necessary.

As for the size of the tax – 1-mill for five years – we would simply remind the residents of Mahoning County of what lies ahead.

In 2010, the number of residents 60 years and older was 58,088 (24 percent of the population); 2015, 62,707 (27 percent); 2020, a projected 67,562 (31 percent); 2025, 69,582 (33 percent); 2030, 69,202 (34 percent).

The countywide senior services levy on Tuesday’s ballot should be seen as a lifeline. We urge its passage.