As central Ohio home values continue to climb, so do tax bills, straining household budgets and stirring debate about funding for schools, public safety and other local services.
There are several local levies on the May 6 primary ballot. How might rising property taxes affect support for those measures?
Bevan Schneck is Director of Public Affairs for the Ohio Municipal League, a statewide association that serves the interests of Ohio municipal governments at the Statehouse.
Matthew Rand: This is an off-year primary election, so voter turnout is expected to be low to begin with. What's your sense of voter sentiment right now? Are rising tax burdens weighing much into voters' decision-making this election cycle?
Bevan Schneck: I think as it relates to municipalities with property levies, I think there's definitely a concern that their residents have fears that they may not be able to pay their property taxes. So, as those communities that are reliant on property tax levies have those on the ballot, they're definitely taking more of an educational aspect to the voters and trying to stress the need for the services that the levies would provide.
Matthew Rand: Ohio's median property tax has risen 23% in the last five years. So as local municipalities try to pass some of these levies, how do you tell property owners who have seen their property taxes increase, they should pay more?
Bevan Schneck: Well, it's a struggle. From a municipal perspective, it's interesting, because we're not generally as reliant on property taxes as say schools and townships are. But about one third of Ohio's municipalities don't have a municipal income tax base. And the communities without income taxes generally are more reliant on state funding and local property tax levies. Generally speaking, they are very much needed services when a municipality puts it on the ballot, because about about 65 to 80% of municipal revenues go toward police and fire alone. And then you'll also sometimes have property tax levies that have to do with, for instance, street maintenance or other capital projects, on down to sometimes parks and recreation. So, I know municipal officials try to have the property tax levies on the ballot that are the most needed services for their residents.
Matthew Rand: Looking at last year's general election, more than 100 school districts across the state asked their communities to raise taxes in support of them, and about a fifth of those levies failed. On the other hand, Columbus voters approved a sales tax levy to support bus rapid transit and other improvements to the Central Ohio Transit Authority. What trends, if any, are you seeing about the reliability of support for local levies, based on the results of the last few election cycles?
Bevan Schneck: I think when the issue is important to them, they show up. And so, for instance, if you take the COTA LinkUS levy, which was a sales tax, that's different than a property tax levy. So, there could be more willingness to pay sales taxes than property taxes, because it's not as steep as an increase and people have a choice in whether they buy things. But also, when it comes to property taxes, and especially as it relates to schools, there's a whole host of dynamics that go into school funding and so forth. From a municipal perspective, it's usually much simpler, because it's those needed services like police and fire and streets and streetlights and water and sewer.
Matthew Rand: What’s been your messaging for the local municipalities you represent to try to help them get some of these levies over the finish line?
Bevan Schneck: It's pretty much just make your case as transparent as they can be. They can let their residents know what revenue they have coming in and how they spend it. And if they're more reliant on a property tax, then say, other municipalities, they need to make the facts known as to why whatever service or project they're hoping to fund with that levy is important to their voters.
Matthew Rand: Finally, what advice would you give to voters who are concerned about affordability but also want to support strong schools and communities?
Bevan Schneck: I would say do your research. A lot of times with these issues, say you have a municipal levy, if you call up someone from your municipality, they're willing to talk you through where their revenue comes from and what the changes would be with that levy, or whether those changes stay the same, depending on how the levy is structured. So, most of the time, municipalities are willing to speak to their constituents and let them know the actual facts and the actual numbers, and that can help constituents come to their own conclusions about whether that service or project is needed.
