LAKE COUNTY, Ohio — As Ohioans decide whether to keep or abolish property tax, Lake County officials are trying to prepare homeowners for the reality that could follow.
On Wednesday, the Riverside High School auditorium became home to an informational session led by Lake County Treasurer Mike Zuren.
"Tonight was just really information about the property tax issue. Overall they go for schools, they go for roads, they go for parks, they go for safety services, police and fire, but when you really dig into it, they go for services that really help people. You're talking about Meals on Wheels. You're talking about in-home health services. You're talking about the ADAMHS Board to help people reestablish their lives after they go through something traumatic," Zuren told me.
Riverside Local Schools Superintendent Chris Rateno said public schools like his would take a devastating hit in funding.
"Eighty percent of our budget comes from local property taxes, whether they're residential or commercial and business property taxes. It would be catastrophic," he said. "There is no real solution for property taxes if property taxes are abolished for us."
Rateno said educating each Riverside Local Schools student for a day is $83.
I asked if there are any backup plans for funding if Ohioans decided to do away with property taxes.
"We run as lean as we can. We wanna make sure that we are responsible with our voters', you know, monies and investment in the schools, and yet we produce the best possible product we can," Rateno said.
Zuren said the goal for Wednesday's informational session was to simply provide clarification and "unbiased" material.
"Just trying to show the whole picture because I think a lot of the presentations out there are geared towards one opinion or the other, and this is just a complete picture of what has happened with property taxes, the history we went over the last 50 years and how we got here, the legislation that recently passed, the proposed legislation, and just the scope of what property taxes pay for in a community," Zuren said.
One homeowner in the audience, Rich Armstrong, said he's not in favor of abolishing property taxes because he understands the limitations it would cause for public services.
Regardless of Armstrong's significantly higher property tax bill this last year, he told me he wants to see other cuts first, like wasteful spending.
"I feel we need reform in every level of the government, you know, whether it be the school, the state. We need our fire services, we need our law enforcement and definitely schools. We need teachers. Who else is gonna pay for it? It's either gonna come out of one pocket or the other," Armstrong said.
As the clock continues ticking on ballot initiative efforts and Ohioans now weigh the pros and cons of abolishing property taxes, both Zuren and Rateno said they hope voters will educate themselves before choosing either way.
"We haven't seen a viable solution to the abolishment of property taxes to keep sticking to even some level of service," Rateno said. "What's the solution? Education is the key to it. Make an educated choice."
Zuren added, "It's very simple to say I don't want to pay the property tax, but when you look at all the services they receive, it may be why they're able to live in the community or why they're able to live in their house and to eliminate the property taxes, the worst thing that could happen is that they don't have the services to maintain their living or in their house. Look at the whole picture and make the best decision."
Zuren said Lake County will host more informational sessions on property taxes throughout the year.
