On the ballot, the Village of Enon has a 2.5-mill, 5-year property tax renewal, Mad River Twp. has a 0.8-mill, 5-year and a 1-mill, 5-year property tax renewal, and German Twp. has a 1-mill, 5-year additional property tax.
Village of Enon
Enon has a 2.5-mill, 5-year property tax renewal to provide and maintain motor vehicles, communications, other equipment, buildings, and sites for such buildings used directly in the operation of a police department, for the payment of salaries of permanent or part-time police, communications, or administrative personnel to operate the same, including the payment of any employer contributions required or for the payment of other related costs.
Enon Mayor Tim Howard said this levy is a renewal of an existing levy for the village’s police department. He said it would continue to generate $116,000 a year for five years and would cost property owners $88 for each $100,000 of property valuation.
“There would be no increase in taxes if this renewal levy passes,” he said.
Howard said this renewal levy is “extremely important” to police department operations. Funding can be used for salaries and wages, benefits, equipment, vehicle purchases and maintenance, communications, officer training and any other related expense associated with police department options. Money collected from this levy will also help continue to fund three full-time officer positions and part-time officers.
“I am hopeful that Enon voters will understand the importance of passing this renewal levy. I believe residents of Enon appreciate having their own police department and the services they receive,” he said.
The village currently has a 2.5-mill levy for police department operations and a 2-mill levy for general fund purposes.
“It is important to note that the Village of Enon, unlike most municipalities, has never had an income tax and relies on voter approval for property tax revenue to help support the operations of the police department,” Howard said.
If the levy doesn’t pass, Howard said village council will consider its options, including placing the renewal levy on the November ballot.
Mad River Twp.
Mad River Twp. has two property tax renewals on the ballot. These are:
- A 0.8-mill, 5-year property tax renewal to provide and maintain fire apparatus, appliances buildings, or sites therefore and providing protection against fire, and
- A 1-mill, 5-year property tax renewal to provide and maintain ambulance and emergency medical services.
Mad River Twp. Fire Chief John Heath emphasized that voters would see no increase on their taxes if these levies are approved, and the millage is based on 2001 and 2002 property values.
The fire levy brings in $189,561 annually, at a cost of $28 per $100,000 of property value. The EMS levy generates $236,825 each year and costs $35 per $100,000 of property value.
Heath said the township has explored other funding mechanisms beyond raising taxes and have gotten about $125,000 in grants over the last four years to “help offset some of the costs.”
Heath and trustees didn’t feel now was the time to ask for an increase due to the already strained nature of many people’s budgets, he said.
“And as of today, fuel costs are going up, which ... they’re going to go up for us, too; our fire trucks and ambulances run on diesel fuel, which has had quite an increase right now,” Heath said. “We just felt that right now would be the best time to just do a renewal and we can keep those funds where we’re at right now.”
Heath said the department is replacing an ambulance, which costs more than the annual budget.
Like many municipalities, Mad River Twp. bills citizens’ insurance to help offset costs, Heath said.
The levy would fund operating expenses including equipment, supplies and part-time salaries, Heath said.
Mad River Twp. Fire has seen a large increase in operating expenses in recent years and competes with neighboring municipalities for manpower, Trustee Bobby McClure said.
The department makes around six runs a day, Heath said. Last year, out of 2,064 calls, 235 were to the highway. The township is responsible for about 11 miles of highway, from Interstate 70 from mile marker 43 to 51, and a portion of I-675.
Heath said the township would reevaluate things if the levy fails but for now they are “squeezing the lemon for all the juice that it’s got.”
German Twp. (unincorporated)
German Twp. has a 1-mill, 5-year additional property tax on the ballot for the general construction, reconstruction, resurfacing and repairs of streets, roads and bridges in municipal corporations, counties or townships.
Bob Clark, the trustees’ acting president this year, said a road levy was originally approved by voters before 1990 at .09 mills and renewed multiple times. A renewal in November failed by two votes.
If the levy passes, it will generate about $269,000 and cost around $35 for each $100,000 of property value. It is an additional levy rather than a replacement, which is no longer permitted under Ohio law. The new levy proposal reflects updated property values rather than those from prior to 1990.
German Twp. maintains more than 40 miles of roadway and more than 80 roads, and has a two-member maintenance department, Clark said.
“Resurfacing of our roads is an expensive and inconvenient venture, so that’s why we are seeking this new levy, to be able to keep our roads in condition and maintain them as far as either repairs, snow removal, whatever the case may be at that point in time,” he said.
If the levy were to fail, Clark said the township would have to reevaluate its road budget and residents may see a decline in service quality.
