BAINBRIDGE TOWNSHIP, Ohio — A proposed constitutional amendment that would eliminate all property taxes in Ohio hasn't even made it to the ballot, but the idea of it is already drawing sold-out crowds looking to learn more about it.
At the Bainbridge Library in Geauga County, organizers are expecting 100+ to attend a meeting Wednesday evening (with an online waitlist following a sold-out registration crowd). The meeting is organized by The League of Women Voters of Geauga County, the Geauga County Auditor, and the Geauga County Public Library and is aimed at helping residents understand what the amendment would mean if it reaches the ballot this fall.
The group "Citizens for Property Tax Reform" wants to place a constitutional amendment on November's ballot that would eliminate all property taxes in the state, including residential, agricultural and commercial.
Here's the language behind the three-sentence amendment:
Section 14. Abolishment of Taxes on Real Property.
(A) No real property shall be taxed, and no law shall impose any taxes on real property.
(B) No other provision of the Constitution shall impose any taxes on real property.
(C) As used in this Section, "real property" includes land, all growing crops, all buildings, all structures, and all improvements permanently attached to land.
Property taxes currently fund public schools, emergency services such as police and fire, infrastructure including roads, libraries, parks and other community services.
Geauga County Auditor Chuck Walder said the goal of the meeting is not to take a side on the issue.
"We've got a group of people coming in that are elected officials to not speak to a position necessarily on whether we should or should not abolish taxes, but more what will things look like if this comes true – perhaps the good, the bad, the ugly is the best way of describing it," Walder said.
Earlier this month, Gov. Mike DeWine warned reporters the change could drive up the state sales tax.
"It would just be devastating to all kinds of local government, starting with schools, but also police and fire and children's services and mental retardation levies," DeWine said. "All of those would go away and we would be in a huge crisis in the state of Ohio. The sales tax would go up to 17, 18, 19, 20% sales tax in the state of Ohio on products that you buy, so it would just be absolutely devastating."
RELATED: DeWine warns on property taxes: sales tax could hit 20% as a result
Chuck Walder, the Geauga County auditor, serves on a newly formed task force examining what eliminating property taxes would mean for the county.
"If it does pass, there's probably more questions than answers," Walder recently told News 5. "It depends on the entity. There are some entities that will have a catastrophic effect. I know the library for example is primarily surviving on property tax, townships more than 90% of their revenue is property tax."
Similar to Gov. DeWine's comment, Walder told News 5 he calculated months ago that Geauga County would need to raise its sales tax from about 6% to 20% to maintain the current budget.
"You know what the effect of that will be – every reasonable person knows if you're charging 20% sales tax and a neighboring state charges something less, it's not even going to be a close competition any more," he said. "People are going to go to Michigan, Indiana, Pennsylvania, West Virginia – they're going to go where they need to go to save 20% of their money and I don't blame them."
Walder said the meetings are meant to move the conversation beyond fear and toward solutions.
"We can't just explain it away – we have to do something about it and we can't just say if they do this, the sky will fall. We have to give a plan B – what if something happens. Regardless if this initiative passes or not, at the state level changes are being made," Walder said.
Tonight's meeting at the Geauga County Library begins at 6 p.m.
For those unable to attend in person and want to learn more, you can watch a live stream of it by clicking here.
Two additional meetings are scheduled for those who want to learn more (click the link below to register):
- Tuesday, March 10 at 6:30 p.m. at the Geauga County Administration Building (12611 Ravenwood Dr, Chardon, OH 44024)
- Tuesday, April 7 at 7 p.m. at the Middlefield Library (16167 E High St, Middlefield, OH 44062)
Clay LePard is the Ashtabula, Geauga and Portage counties reporter at News 5 Cleveland. Follow him on X @ClayLePard, on Facebook ClayLePardTV or email him at Clay.LePard@wews.com.
