Sweeping property tax reform may save Ohioans $850 ...Middle East

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- A new property tax reform bill at the Ohio Statehouse has some singing its praises, and others sending out warning signals.

House Bill 335, sponsored by Rep. David Thomas (R-Jefferson), is the latest in a series of bills aimed at reducing Ohioans’ property tax burden.

This new proposal folds several ideas into one bill and is estimated to bring Ohioans $3.5 billion in relief.

“[The bill] will impact five out of six Ohioans and tremendously limit the spikes that we have seen over the last five years,” Thomas said.

Thomas said that if the bill passes before lawmakers break for the summer, which will happen at the end of June, “the average Ohioan” will start saving more than $850 a year on their property tax bill come January 2026.

“Had we had this five years ago, we would not have had near, any, or close to the issues that have seen over the last five years,” he said. “This needed to be done yesterday in the sense that our taxpayers have been crying out for that type of action.”

The bill does things like ensure that schools are only receiving more money equivalent to the rate of inflation (unless it is levied), gives more authority to local jurisdictions to oversee property tax and abolishes inside millage for cities, villages and counties.

Some said this bill will be “catastrophic” to local governments.

“Putting them in a position where they are going to be restricted or almost stifled in providing the critical services that local governments have to provide,” Rep. Dan Troy (D-Willowick) said.

More than 60% of local government revenue in Ohio comes from property taxes, with services like fire, police and schools relying on that revenue. John Harvey is the president of the Ohio Association of Professional Firefighters, representing 13,500 firefighters and EMS workers throughout Ohio. He said the impacts of this bill would be difficult to fight.

“Municipalities and townships could face budget shortfalls in the tens of millions,” he said. “We've seen this before. Our partners will have to explore options like hiring freezes, deferred equipment upgrades, station closures and fewer personnel per shift.”

Harvey said reform is necessary, but said it should not “come at the expense of public safety.” He said the bill could put Ohioans in a position where they are waiting longer for help during emergencies.

“Ohio firefighters are not asking for luxuries,” Harvey said. “We are asking for what's necessary for us to do our job safely. Keep the local funds local, keep the funding stable, and keep our residents safe.”

Public schools would also not be immune to this bill, President of the Ohio Education Association Scott DiMauro said.

“If House Bill 335 were to be enacted, we could see potentially a loss of 20,000 teachers in our state,” DiMauro said. “No doubt we would see exploding class sizes, shrinking curriculum offerings, and a reduction of the vital services that our students need and deserve.”

DiMauro pointed out that nearly 90% of all students in Ohio depend on public schools.

Thomas said there are solutions to these problems that will not fall on the backs of property taxpayers.

“Counties are able to have a sales tax, our cities and our villages and our schools are able to have a [local] income tax,” Thomas said. “Our question back is ultimately, ‘If you have other ways to provide services, why place it all on the property owner who, over the last five years, has been crying out that enough is enough and they're tapped out?’”


He said this will create “a lot of conversations” about how the state provides services, what “the basic requirements” are, and how to be taxpayer-friendly in providing them. Thomas said that in some cases, local governments can consolidate or share services too, instead of even turning to increases elsewhere.

Thomas said that is why “real” tax reform is needed.

“There's no incentive to decrease spending, to share services, to actually cut the tax rate,” he said. “There's just, unfortunately, the incentive to continue to ask Columbus, our state taxpayers, for more and more dollars to come back, and we would rather, say, keep that money at the local level, let local property owners, income taxpayers, sales tax folks decide where best to have that money being spent instead of sending it down to Columbus and us subsidize higher and higher taxes.”

Thomas said he is eyeing the state budget to get this proposal through. The bill has its first hearing on Wednesday, which will include invite-only and written testimony, likely an effort to fast-track it before lawmakers break for the summer at the end of June.

The multi-billion-dollar property tax relief package is being considered alongside a flat income tax rate in the state budget as well. The state budget is likely to pass by the end of next week; lawmakers in the House and Senate are currently negotiating behind closed doors.

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