The money would be used to maintain the city’s current levels of police, fire and EMS services without making any cuts.
Bellbrook is seeking this funding due not only to the rising cost of business, but also due to reduced local government funding from the state of Ohio, city manager Rob Schommer said, citing the elimination of the estate tax and tangible personal property tax, as well as the economy.
“Due to effective tax rates and reduction factors, there has not been proportionate increases in collected revenue to balance the increase in the cost of the delivery of services,” he said. “Although values of many properties have recently been reassessed at a higher value, the actual assessed tax rate and revenue received by the city remains virtually the same.”
The ballot issue would establish a Public Safety Fund, and revenue received would be solely for police, fire, and EMS operations, Schommer said.
The 2.2 mills would generate $610,000 for the city, Schommer said, filling the gap in annual funding currently being filled by the city’s cash reserves.
Bellbrook maintains itself as one of the most efficient and transparent political subdivisions in the region, Schommer said, and city staff is “dedicated to being open, honest and transparent to arm residents with any and all information needed to make a decision about the level of public safety services the city will provide.”
Sugarcreek Twp. has a 1-mill fire levy on the ballot, which would cost homeowners an annual $35 per $100,000 of appraised home value.
Similar to its neighboring city, the township is seeking the additional revenue in order to maintain its levels of service as the status quo. It’s the first additional money levy for the fire department in about 10 years, said township Administrator Barry Tiffany.
“Since COVID, the cost of fuel, equipment, lots of costs have doubled or more,” Tiffany said. “Staff has done a great job managing budget to get as much out of previous levies as possible.”
In particular, personnel costs for firefighters have gone up, Tiffany said, as area agencies have raised their wages to attract firefighters.
“It’s essential for us to maintain the level of service at or above where it is currently. That’s what our residents expect, and we have an obligation to our residents to maintain that level of service,” Tiffany said.
The new levy has potential to be a “stopgap” measure, Tiffany said, as the township is working with the Ohio Fire Chief’s Association to see if there are areas where the township can increase efficiency by sharing fire and EMS services with Bellbrook. The association will be studying whether or not it makes sense to combine Bellbrook and Sugarcreek into one fire district.
“At first blush, I don’t know if it will make sense from a budgeting standpoint, but it might,” Tiffany said.
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