Property Valuation Challenges and the BOR
The Ohio House Ways and Means Committee yesterday amended Senate Bill (SB) 95 to include the provisions of House Bill (HB) 75, a bill sponsored by Rep. Derek Merrin (R-Monclova Township) that mandates a highly problematic and overly bureaucratic process for school districts when filing property valuation claims or counter-claims with county boards of revision (BOR).
The House passed HB 75 last December, and the bill is pending in the Senate Local Government, Public Safety, and Veterans Affairs Committee where it has received only two hearings thus far. This sudden move by the House panel, which is chaired by Rep. Merrin, to amend HB 75 into a Senate bill without the Senate’s full consideration is extremely concerning.
Please contact your House members and tell them not to support SB 95 or to simply remove from it the HB 75 provisions. Also urge your Senate members not to support HB 75. There may be opportunities to testify next week on both SB 95 in the House and HB 75 in the Senate, so please stay tuned. Click here to read more about HB 75 and its detrimental effects on school district finances. Also, click here for a bill analysis and fiscal note of the bill.
Property Valuation Challenges Associated with COVID-19
Meanwhile, House Bill 751 is pending in a House committee and would provide a reduced property valuation for tax year 2020 for eligible individuals as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Passage of this measure will result in the loss of local revenue for school districts and a shift in the tax burden onto other property owners.
Even worse, we have learned that House Bill 751 is considered for inclusion into HB 38, a bill pending a Senate committee. The bill has been drafted as an amendment to HB 38 and would also extend the valuation challenge provisions into tax years 2020, 2021, and 2022 – not just 2020, as under HB 751. Click here to read the amendment.
Please contact your legislators about these bills! There may be an opportunity to testify on both bills next week. We will keep members updated.
Please contact us with questions.
Important Resources
Legislator Contact Lookup Resources: