Warren County creates $10M economic development credit fund; board pledges casino tax as backstop
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Summary
The Warren County commission unanimously established a $10 million economic development fund to act as a credit enhancement for development projects and authorized an intergovernmental agreement with the Port Authority; the resolution specifies the fund is not a pledge of the county's full faith and credit.
Warren County commissioners voted on Feb. 17 to create a dedicated $10,000,000 economic development fund intended to serve as a credit enhancement for qualifying projects, the board said in work‑session action following a staff presentation.
Matt Schnipke, the county's director of development, said the fund would be segregated from the general fund and reserved to provide credit support — not direct grant spending — to projects that meet county criteria. He said county legal staff had identified authority in the Ohio Revised Code to establish the vehicle and that the prosecutor's and auditor's offices had reviewed the concept.
Municipal adviser Andy Broserk and other finance advisers described underwriting constraints built into the program and pointed to other Ohio precedents (Butler, Delaware and Montgomery counties) that use similar credit support approaches. Staff described conservative leverage ratios (for example, roughly 1.75x coverage on the cash fund itself and up to about 3x when combined with pledged casino tax revenue) and estimated that the $10 million could support roughly $75 million–$90 million of project borrowing capacity, depending on market conditions and interest rates.
The resolution adopted by the commission appropriates $10,000,000 from the general fund to the economic development fund, pledges the county's gross casino revenue tax as a replenishment source should the fund be tapped, and authorizes execution of an intergovernmental agreement with the Warren County Port Authority to administer transactions. The resolution also requires that agreements involving the fund explicitly state the county is not pledging its general taxing authority or its full faith and credit.
Commissioners emphasized that establishing the fund does not itself commit money to any project; any use of the fund will require a separate public decision by the commission. The board voted on the resolution by roll call and recorded affirmative votes.
County staff said they would return to the commission with project‑level requests and recommended parameters as individual transactions are considered.