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City manager warns House Bill 335 could eliminate Napoleon’s inside millage and force budget choices
Summary
City staff alerted council that House Bill 335, as introduced, would eliminate inside millage funding streams that provided roughly $613,000 to the city last year, potentially forcing the city to place levies on the ballot or raise income tax to replace the revenue if the bill passes in its current form.
City staff told the Napoleon City Council on June 16 that House Bill 335, introduced by Representative David Thomas, could eliminate what the city receives from inside millage and materially reduce local revenue if enacted as currently drafted.
A staff member identified as Kevin explained that, using last year’s inside millage receipts, the city collected about $613,000 that is used for general fund costs including police and fire pension obligations. “What this could possibly do, well, if this passes in the current state, could eliminate the inside millage of our village,” Kevin said. He described two primary options the city would face to replace the lost revenue: place a property-tax levy before voters or raise the municipal income tax.
Kevin said other statewide organizations oppose the proposal, including the Ohio Municipal League, county auditors’ associations, county commissioners’ associations and school districts. He said townships would be unaffected because they do not levy an income tax. Staff did not present a definitive model of which programs would be cut if the revenue were lost and cautioned the discussion was preliminary.
Council members asked for continued updates as the bill moves through the legislature. Kevin said he would keep the council informed and that the issue could require committee-level review and public discussion if the bill advanced.
