- There are 13 Stark County communities seeking tax renewals or additional tax dollars from voters on Nov. 7.
- Lawrence Township has the most tax issues - five. Two villages, Hartville and Wilmot, seek income tax increases.
- Hills and Dales is planning for the future with its levy request.
Thirteen Stark County communities have tax issues on the Nov. 7 ballot. Some have multiple requests.
Notably, Lawrence Township voters are facing the most tax issues with five.
Hartville is asking voters to approve 0.5% increase in the income tax for 10 years to pave its "terrible" streets. Hills and Dales also has a 5-mill levy for new tax revenue.
Looking closer into several issues, officials in those communities explain the reason for their requests.
Lawrence Twp. trustees say they understand the pressure
Lawrence Township is asking voters to consider five tax levies − four replacements and one additional − for roads and fire and police operations. The replacement levies are not new taxes, but revenue will be based on current property valuations.
Trustee Keith Blowers said they would have preferred not putting five tax issues on this ballot. For four of them, "it was their time on the five-year cycle," he said. The fifth tax request − an additional 1.65-mill levy − is intended to support the road department.
"We are very aware of the pressures being put on people. We're not numb to that. We are proud of our services. We are hoping people look past the five and see what they're getting," Blowers added.
The five tax issues are:
- Road levy, additional, 1.65 mills, five years, commencing in 2023. If passed, it will collect $416,859 per year and cost homeowners $58 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Road levy, replacement, 1 mill, five years, commencing in 2024. Is passed, it will collect per year $242,642 and cost $35 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Fire levy, replacement, 0.5 mills, five years, commencing in 2024. If passed, it will collect $126,321 per year and cost $18 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Fire levy, replacement, 1 mill, five years, commencing in 2024. If passed, it will collect $252,642 per year and cost $35 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Police levy, replacement, 1.5 mills, five years, commencing in 2024. If passed, it will collect $378,963 per year and cost $53 per $100,000 in valuation.
Bowers said inflation and operational expenses, including materials and wages, continue to rise, and the tax issues are needed to help the township better "absorb" those costs.
"We're not asking for anything over and beyond, just enough to keep the services they're getting now in place," he said.
Hartville mayor: Roads are 'terrible'
Eight times, Hartville Village has tried to increase income taxes and voters have said no. However, none of those attempts were earmarked to pave streets like the one they'll face Nov. 7.
"Our roads are terrible," Mayor Cindy Billings said candidly.
If it passes, the 0.5% income tax increase would generate about $1 million over 10 years and provide the village with the necessary funds to pave all streets over that time, Billings said. The current income tax rate is 1%.
She said officials have met with potential voters four times, in town halls, to explain the tax request and the plans for it. The response they've gotten has been more positive than in the past, she said.
While hopeful, Billings said: "There are other things on the ballot."
"If it fails, we will continue as we have been, paving what we can when we can," she added.
Hills and Dales seeks to be financially proactive
Affluent and small, Hills and Dales is home to roughly 250 people in central Stark County, between Canton and Massillon. The village has an annual budget of $250,000 for general operations.
Prior to 2013, it relied on revenue from estate taxes and interest rates to fund expenses. Then the tax was eliminated. Still, officials had enough money to maintain operations for another decade.
Plus, "We have enough in the general fund to last us for the next four years," said Mayor Mark Samolczyk.
But, he said, that's it.
To keep the general fund solvent by 2027, the village is asking its voters to approve an additional 5-mill, five-year property tax for operational expenses.
If it passes, the levy would collect about $118,000 a year. It would cost homeowners $175 per year per $100,000 in home valuation.
Samolczyk said the levy is a "proactive" approach to prepare for the future.
"If we let the general fund run dry out in the future, we would be requiring an even higher tax levy," he said. "We're trying to do what we believe is fiscally prudent to get out ahead of this."
What other tax issues are on the ballot?
Here are the other tax issues voters in the following communities will see on their ballot. Renewals are not new taxes.
- East Canton, renewal of 6.6 mills and increase of 1.5 mills, police, five years, commencing in 2023 (collect $200,000; cost $245)
- Lake Township, renewal, 1.25 mills, roads, five years, commencing in 2024.
- Lexington Township, renewal, 1 mill, five years, fire, commencing in 2024.
- Lexington Township, renewal, 0.5 mills, five years, police, commencing in 2024.
- Lexington Township, additional, 1.5 mills, five years, road, commencing in 2024. It would collect $180,000 per year and cost homeowners $53 per $100,000 in valuation.
- Nimishillen Township, renewal, 1 mill, roads, five years, commencing in 2024.
- Nimishillen Township, renewal, 5 mills, fire, five years, commencing in 2024.
- Osnaburg Township, additional, 1.05 mills, roads, continuing period of time, commencing in 2023. It would collect $149,332 per year and cost homeowners $37 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Osnaburg Township, additional, 0.15 mill, cemetery, three years, commencing in 2023. It would collect $21,333 per year and cost homeowners $5 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Pike Township, additional, 1 mill, roads, five years, commencing in 2023. It would collect $160,142 per year and cost homeowners $35 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Plain Township Road District, replacement, 1.5 mills and increase of 0.5 mills, five years, commencing in 2023. It would collect $2.01 million per year and cost homeowners $70 per year per $100,000 in valuation.
- Beach City, renewal, 3 mills, police, five years, commencing in 2023.
- Minerva, renewal, 0.3 mills, Minerva Senior Center, five years, commencing in 2024.
- Minerva, renewal, 1.2 mills, parks, five years, commencing in 2024.
- Wilmot, income tax increase of 0.75%, eight years, fire, commencing in 2024.
Reach Benjamin Duer at 330-580-8567 or ben.duer@cantonrep.com. On X (formerly Twitter): @bduerREP
