Marion County committee agrees to amend ballot language to direct half-cent sales tax to law enforcement, clarify effective date

A Marion County committee agreed to draft amendments to a proposed sales/use tax ordinance so that an additional one-half cent would be used for law enforcement purposes rather than being limited to law enforcement "facilities," and to add language tying the tax's start to the sunset of the current jail bond issue.

The committee's action, taken during an undated meeting, followed questions about whether the ballot language as written would limit spending to construction and facility costs and whether adding the half-cent could create a temporary overlap with existing jail bond revenues. Committee members asked county attorneys to rewrite the ordinance language and send the revisions to the budget committee for review before the measure goes to voters.

Committee members discussed the ballot text that voters will see and how a small wording change would expand the sheriff's discretion to spend proceeds. The ballot currently describes uses such as to "acquire, construct, improve, expand, equip, furnish, operate, and maintain jail and law enforcement facilities"; committee members proposed removing or changing the word "facilities" so the language would read jail and law enforcement (and related improvements), which they said would allow the sheriff's office to use revenue for personnel, equipment and other law enforcement needs.

Members raised several procedural and timing points. They asked that the ordinance explicitly tie the additional 0.5 percentage point to the sunset of the county's existing jail bond issue (participants referenced an anticipated payoff in early 2026) so the change would not function as a tax increase or cause a period in which both measures were levied. Committee members also noted that state/local rules require new sales taxes to begin on a calendar quarter, which affects any start date in the ordinance. County attorneys were asked to add language that the new half-cent would commence at the sunset of the current bond rather than at a fixed calendar date.

Committee members discussed projected revenue figures during the meeting. One participant said the combined 0.5 and 0.25 percentage points under consideration would generate roughly $1,800,000 annually and that the jail's current annual budget was about $1,600,000. Another participant described the 0.25-cent currently dedicated to the jail as producing roughly $600,000 (all figures discussed at the meeting and not specified in a formal fiscal report at the time of the conversation).

The committee asked county counsel to prepare clean ordinance language reflecting the agreed changes and to circulate a draft to committee members. The committee also requested that the final amendment language be placed on the budget committee agenda for review before any final vote or referral to the court of common pleas (or other authorizing body) and before being placed on a special election ballot.

Members discussed the possibility of public challenges to the ordinance after adoption and asked counsel to confirm legal exposure and the correct drafting approach to reduce the risk of litigation or confusion. Several participants emphasized that the county should make public materials clear to voters throughout the special-election period.

On other business, the committee held a brief internal organizational step to select leadership and agreed to schedule recurring monthly meetings and a budget-committee review of the ordinance amendments. No final election results for a countywide ballot measure were decided at the meeting; the committee's actions were limited to directing staff and counsel to prepare language and materials for further review.

The committee's next steps: county attorneys will draft and circulate amended ordinance language, the budget committee will review the amendments at its next meeting, and counsel will advise the committee on effective-date wording and any legal risk of post-adoption challenges.