There’s a possibility that Ohio voters could abolish property taxes if backers of that proposed constitutional amendment make it to the ballot next year. If voters approve it, safety forces that rely on that revenue could be left without funding. But a Republican lawmaker said he is developing a contingency plan to deal with that.
Rep. Ron Ferguson (R-Wintersville) said property taxes in Ohio are too burdensome for taxpayers. But he said they often provide revenue for safety forces that communities need, such as fire, police and EMS services. So he said he's working on a bill that would replace lost property tax revenue for first responders.
“It takes the current sales tax that the state of Ohio collects, which is 5.75% and it peels away 20% of the state’s share and creates its own funds that would help the locals and the first responders," Ferguson said in an interview.
Ferguson said some cities have income taxes that cover their safety forces, so this bill would serve as a contingency plan of sorts for areas that don't have that type of revenue.
"This is a separate fund because this fund would only be for places that receive property taxes, and so, of course, not all government entities actually receive property taxes," Ferguson said. "So there's a big difference in your townships and your villages versus say your cities who typically are people that rely on income taxes."
Bill has no contingency plan for schools and libraries
The two unions representing the state's public school educators are concerned about the proposal, saying any contingency plan bill should include more than safety forces.
“Any contingency plan that doesn’t include local school districts and or libraries is an incomplete, insufficient plan," Ohio Federation of Teachers President Melissa Cropper said in an interview. "Our communities are dependent upon their local schools and libraries, and our state is already underfunding both. And so we need to make sure that if the property taxes are lost, that is made up in some way."
Ohio Education Association President Jeff Wensing echoed Cropper's sentiments: “90% of the students in Ohio go to public schools. Public schools get students ready to go to college, get students ready to go into a career right out of high school, and anything that would affect public schools detrimentally, really, you are affecting the workforce in Ohio and, ultimately, Ohio’s economy, and I don’t think anybody wants that.”
Public input will be sought on the legislation
Ferguson said other lawmakers are working on legislation to replace funding that schools and libraries would lose. He said he wants to focus on public safety.
But he said he wants to know what the public thinks about the legislation. So once the bill is written, Ferguson said he’ll gather feedback through email, phone and a website.
Even though the bill is meant as a contingency plan, Ferguson said he thinks it should be passed anyway. "I think that there's far too much waste in the state government and that the locals spend their money a lot more wisely on local initiatives and needs," Ferguson said.
