State Balances Budget but...

Local Home Owner's Budgets Take a Hit 

Tax-law changes to squeeze seniors

Not only will all home owners have to pay an additional 12.5% on any new property-tax levies that local local governments and school districts will be forced to ask for. Forced to do so because the legislature has reduced the amount of state funding for those entities.

Turning sixty five is not always a pleasure but at least you could look forward to the $300 property tax credit for senior home owners. Not so fast seniors! Stating next year people turning 65 and earning over $30,00 year will not be eligible to enroll in the homestead exemption program.

More Information

Existing Homestead Exemption

The Homestead Exemption is a program that provides a reduction in property taxes to any senior or disabled citizen, regardless of income, on the dwelling that is that individual's principal place of residence and up to one acre of land of which an eligible individual is an owner. The reduction is equal to the taxes that would otherwise be charged on up to $25,000 of the market value of an eligible taxpayer's homestead.

http://www.lsc.state.oh.us/fiscal/fiscalanalysis/127ga/tobacco.pdf

The state will continue to pay the bill on the first $25,000 in home market value for those already in the program, but all new senior citizen and disabled homeowners entering the program will have to prove they earn less than $30,000 a year.

Read more at http://www.toledoblade.com/Politics/2013/07/29/Ohio-cancels-property-tax-rollback.html#rpUY8jCcibJeKYXK.99 

Annexation

Who Benefits? 7/29/13

Wilmington City Council is being asked and will probably grant annexation to The McMahan's Mobile Home Park on 134 South.

The Ohio EPA has condemned the parks sewer disposal system and they need to be in the city to use the city treatment plant. The park will be required to install the sewer line from Davids Dr. to their property.

Not only will McMahans receive sewer service they will also cut their present city water costs by 50% by being in the city.

In order to prevent the property from being an isolated parcel the city's reservoirs will finally be annexed as well.

Union Township will be relieved of fire and emergency responsibility for the property and the sheriff will no longer have to cover the territory.

The city will gain the $3,000 in property taxes and maybe some income taxes.

Union Township wants to be compensated for the loss of $400 per year in property taxes forever. A prior contract between the city and township requires that the rebate be paid for only ten years.

In this poster's opinion they were receiving the tax to cover services to the property. A responsibility they will no longer have after the annexation and the city will be required to provide coverage.. Union Township is already receiving thousands of dollars per year of city taxpayers money as a result of previous annexations. The Air Park annexation compensation alone was over $30,000 per year for the first three years. Due to the reduced value of the Air Park that amount has been reduced to around $6,000.

Paul Hunter paulhunter45177@gmail.com 

No free lunch

Opinion 

The conservative approach to the wages of the working poor has, in part, resulted in apparent bargains for shoppers. Cheap prices at Wal-Mart, Kroger and McDonalds are a direct result of low wages, little or low benefits and manipulated work schedules.

Wake up shoppers! What you are saving on goods you will spend on medical care, food stamps and other life sustaining tax payer supported goods and services for these employees.

Data collected from Ohio public records indicate the following:(DDN 7/21/13

The number of employees' or family members using tax payer supported Medicaid from 2008-2013:

Wal-mart 9,000 – 17,700

McDonalds 10,000 – 14,000

Kroger* 4,000– 6,700

*A unionized company

More relevant information

http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/25/fast-food-low-pay/?nl=opinion&emc=edit_ty_20130726&_r=0

Some folks may rationalize by saying…...So what? Those workers are all teenagers. They live at home.” But the median age of today’s fast-food worker is over 29, and many are trying to support families. One estimate claims that a family of four needs nearly $90,000 a year to get by in the nation’s capital. That’s six minimum-wage jobs. Explain to me, please, how you can be pro-family and anti-living-wage simultaneously?

Paul Hunter contactpaulhunter54177@gmail.com

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Future Of Local Education

Sound familiar re: Wilmington and other county school districts?

http://www.whiotv.com/news/news/local/vandalia-butler-schools-to-pursue-operating-levy/nY2XT/

The Vandalia-Butler City Schools Board voted unanimously Tuesday night to pursue a 6.99-mill operating levy on the November ballot.

This levy decision comes four months after the board voted to cut 47 positions, 33 of which are teaching positions. At the time, district spokeswoman Bethany Reiff said the cuts were “due to the $7 million deficit we have that is the result of state funding cuts-----------and property devaluations.”

The five-member board also voted to allow Superintendent Bradley Neavin to enter into contract negotiations with First Student, Inc. in Cincinnati to provide transportation services for the district’s students.

Casino Money Update

2012 news item. 

Cities want casino funds

City and township officials in Greene County are asking the Greene County Board of Commissioners to consider distributing to them the casino revenue that the county will be receiving to replace their losses from the local government fund.

However, county commissioners said it’s premature to address the issue now because that money specifically is allocated to the county and it remains unclear how much the county will receive when the money begins being distributed later this year.

2013 data from Ohio treasurer. It is now clear how much money the counties will receive.

Casino tax distribution

Quarterly Distributions to Clinton County

July 2012 County Distribution $36,598

October 2012 County Distribution $73,047

January 2013 County Distribution $97,084

April 2013 County Distribution $116,458

July 2013 County Distribution 139,725

Total to date $462,912

Clinton County population 41,866

Wilmington population 11,544

Blanchester 4,243

Sabina 2,564

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Aggregation Update

Saving Big Money Three Ways .

1. In early 2012 I noted that Washington CH council had electric aggregation on their agenda. I informed Scott Kirchner that we should restart the process that had been abandoned by past councils and administrations..

2. Scott and Loren Stuckert attended the Court House meeting and became interested in the project.

3. I also contacted Buckeye Energy, an aggregation brokerage firm, that I had conversed with several years ago concerning aggregation.

4. I arranged for the Buckeye representative to address the County Commissioners, the Regional Planning Commission (RPC) and City Council.

5. The County Commissioners were not impressed with Buckeye and decided to ask the Ohio County Commissioners Association for assistance.

6. Palmer Energy, the association's aggregation broker, was invited to give a presentation to the commissioners.

7. The Palmer presentation offered a better deal than Buckeye had offered.

8. I arranged for the Palmer representative, Bill Bradish, to give presentations to RPC and city council.

9. At this point the commissioners and council took over the project and the rest is history.

10. During the city's conversion to aggregated supply I worked with DPL Energy’s Sheri Bannister to facilitate the process.

11. Over the next several years residents and small businesses in the county and city will save millions of dollars on electric bills. Dollars that will now be available for spending in the local area. Local governments will also save hundreds of thousands on their electric bills.

12. Wilmington savings summation for the first five months of program:

a. Residents $482,000

b. City taxpayers and service fee payers $35,000

c. Property tax payers for street lighting $23,000

Note: Non-village county residents (including Midland) began savings in May and total savings will be even more significant.

13. Next project, working with city council, natural gas aggregation.

Paul Hunter paulhunter45177@gmail.com