Worcester council adopts ordinance to peg bidding threshold to state inflation index

Worcester's City Council on March 2 adopted Ordinance 2026-04, amending Chapter 160 of the codified ordinances to increase the competitive-bidding threshold and automatically adjust it in accordance with the state index under Section 9.17 of the Ohio Revised Code. The measure passed in a roll-call vote after a short debate.

The mayor, speaking during communications from the administration, said the change prevents the city from paying more in procurement overhead and argued "failure to adopt this ordinance will not make taxpayer funds any safer" because finance procedures and outside audits protect public money. Council member Abernathy said many small contractors avoid the formal bidding process for lower-value work and that the change will attract more bidders and yield better prices for the city.

Council members asked clarifying questions about how the state-set percentage is applied and whether the council would need to reauthorize changes each time the state updates the index. A councilor confirmed the ordinance is written to follow the state's published percentage automatically rather than requiring repeated council action.

During the final roll call, the motion to adopt carried; the recorded votes in the transcript show Abernathy, Wharton, Gaffey, Jose and Paul voting yes and Owens voting no. The mayor reiterated that the administration supports the ordinance but left the final decision to the council.

The ordinance references Section 9.17 of the Ohio Revised Code as the legal basis for automatic indexing. The council president closed the item and moved on to other business.

The adoption is effective immediately per the ordinance language on third reading. There was no amendment to the measure in the meeting and no additional conditions were recorded.