On behalf of Americans for Prosperity-Ohio, I urge you to support House Bill 28: Eliminate the authority to levy replacement property tax levies.

At Americans for Prosperity, we advocate for property tax solutions like House Bill 28 that are simple, transparent, and fair. Our preferred approaches include:

• Broad-Based, Low-Rate Taxes
• Elimination of Special Interest Carve-Outs
• Predictable and Permanent Reforms
• Transparency and Accountability

Eliminating replacement levies as an option for political subdivisions simplifies property taxes by reducing confusion at the ballot box. Renewals are simpler to understand because they extend the previous levy for a number of years with the same benefits to the school district and same bill to the homeowner. Replacements appear to keep the same ask on the ballot, but in reality, reset the effective millage to reflect rising property values, which in turn raises the tax bill on homeowners. 

Understandably, voters use these terms synonymously, which can lead to a surprise increased tax bill when they think they voted to keep things as they were.

House Bill 28 is a fair and transparent solution. Political subdivisions lose their authority to levy replacement property tax levies, but the bill leaves in place renewals as well as renewals with increases, which point out on the ballot what had been paid and what would be paid in the future. This clearly shows the math to homeowners when they cast their vote at the ballot box, which in turn grows trust between community members and their local governments. 

We thank the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Mathews and Rep. Hall, for their leadership on this issue.