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Finance director: Xenia did not see net property-tax increase after county valuation changes; county returned portion of inside millage
Summary
Finance Director Ryan Duke told council that despite recent valuation-driven increases countywide, Xenia's general-fund property-tax collections were lower than in 2023 and the city received no net increase; the county commissioners opted to forgo part of their inside millage increase and encouraged other governments to consider similar action.
Finance Director Ryan Duke and Mayor Will Urschel briefed council on Oct. 9 about a letter from the Greene County Board of Commissioners regarding valuation-driven property-tax increases.
Duke said water and sewer billing is consumption-based and clarified sanitation is billed in advance under contract with Rumpke. He told council the city did not receive a net increase in property-tax revenue as a result of the recent reassessments and, in fact, general-fund collections were lower in 2025 than 2023 despite new development.
Mayor Urschel explained the technical difference between fixed voted levies and 'inside millage' allocations that float with valuations. He said much of the recent, unanticipated increase in property-tax bills flowed to school districts under state formulas (including a 20-mill floor used by schools) and not to municipal general funds. Urschel described the county commissioners’ decision to return their portion of the inside millage increase to taxpayers as a good-faith step and encouraged residents to address questions about broader tax policy with state legislators and school boards, which hold discretion over accepting or redirecting the valuation-driven revenue.
Council and staff discussed possible local steps, including exploring a policy to tie municipal inside-millage allocations to inflation to reduce large spikes, but members noted that such local measures would affect only a small portion of the total tax bill and that most changes are determined at the county and school-district level.
