County staff, auditor disagree over midyear delinquent‑billing certifications; commissioners delay decision

Medina County officials debated whether to certify delinquent water and sewer utility balances multiple times in 2025, with sanitary‑engineering staff urging repeated certifications to improve collections and county fiscal certainty while the auditor’s office and treasurer warned the county’s tax/assessment software and administrative process cannot easily absorb an extra midyear certification without manual work and vendor support.

Jeremy Cinco, the county’s sanitary engineer, told commissioners that three certifications in 2024 helped the county recover delinquent balances and reduce the need to raise rates, and he urged continuing more frequent certifications. "In '24, this past year, we did 3 certifications and we actually collected an additional $375,000 in revenue," he said during the meeting, adding that certification helps capture delinquent balances that otherwise become unrecoverable when properties transfer ownership.

Auditor’s office staff, represented by John Hunter in the discussion, said the county’s tax processing runs on a year‑in‑arrears schedule and the county’s current software workflow does not handle the extra midyear special assessment without significant manual reversal and vendor‑side coding. “The software doesn't allow for it,” Hunter said, describing the need for substantial staff and vendor time when the county attempted a three‑certification process. He and other finance officials said the treasurer’s process collects certified liens as part of the tax cycle and that special assessments must be applied after core tax calculations are complete.

Commissioners and staff debated the magnitude of the benefit versus administrative cost. Hunter and treasury staff said that, while certifying is intended to put delinquencies on the tax roll, the county had to pull and reapply items in 2024 to match the tax cycle — work that required many hours from both auditor and treasurer staff and coordination with vendor software providers. County staff noted that a significant share of certified collections come from sewer accounts (which cannot be shut off) and that the certification process reduces revenue risk tied to unpaid sewer charges.

Officials discussed specific figures at the meeting. Sanitary staff summarized multi‑year collection activity: single certifications in 2020–2022 (with roughly $250,000 recovered in one year after a certification), two certifications in 2023 (about $843,000 collected that year according to one presentation) and three certifications in 2024 (figures presented ranged in the discussion; sanitary staff cited $375,000 additional revenue from doing three certifications, while the auditor later referenced collection totals up to approximately $1.2 million for 2024 when including all deposit flows presented to the auditor/treasurer for tax application). Commissioners asked both sides to reconcile those differences and to provide a clear, auditable accounting of the collections and write‑offs.

Because the March 15 certification deadline approached, commissioners opted to delay formal direction for one week to allow the auditor, treasurer and sanitary staff to produce cost estimates that quantify the vendor and staff labor required to implement a three‑certification schedule in 2025. Commissioner discussion reflected a balance of concerns: several commissioners said they were inclined to pursue more frequent certifications to protect ratepayers who pay on time, others urged prudence given the administrative burden and asked staff to produce the vendor cost estimate and the treasurer’s operational perspective before making a final choice.

The transcript records no definitive vote to change the certification schedule at the meeting; commissioners directed staff to return with the requested cost and technical detail for a final decision.