COLUMBUS - Mahoning County State Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown) was joined by Mahoning County Commissioners at a press conference Thursday addressing the need for the state to take action and reduce skyrocketing property taxes in Ohio.

"The state has long neglected to properly fund Ohio's public schools. Over the past decade, the state has shifted funding away from our local communities to benefit wealthy private schools. This neglect and shifting of funds lead to schools trying to make up the difference or do more with less. To maintain quality, they have to go to voters and homeowners with levy increases. This is why Ohio communities have needed to vote on school levies more often than any other state over the last twenty years and why homeowners are feeling the pinch in their bills," said Rep. McNally. "This is an unfair choice to put before seniors and working, middle class families who are stretched thin. Either lose your place to live or deny our kids a quality education and the chance for prosperity. It's especially unfair when the state HAS the resources, they're just choosing to prioritize different things."

The Mahoning County Commissioners thanked Rep. McNally for her support and attention on this very important issue, citing senior residents who may be forced to leave their homes because they simply cannot afford to pay steep increases driven by legally mandated reappraisals that increased the valuation of their property by as much as 60%.

"We hear it every single day, inflation is out of control and many throughout our state and county are living on a fixed income. People don't have a voice, they have nobody they can go to when their taxes go up hundreds of dollars and they can't afford it. That's why we're so appreciative to Representative McNally for bringing this to the attention of Columbus," said Mahoning County Commissioner Anthony Traficanti.

"Our state legislatures have had the opportunity for years to limit the impact of rising taxes. There are options available to keep our working men, women, family and seniors in their home and not be taxed out of their property," said Mahoning County Commissioner David Ditzler.

The elected officials outlined their commitment to provide assistance and support to those impacted by the new valuations and will advocate for legislative action in Columbus to aid seniors and homeowners with rising costs.

"This is not fair to our residents. Many of our residents in the city of Youngstown had a 57% hike in their taxes and they simply cannot afford it. I'm hoping that the rest of the Legislation in Columbus can get together and work for their people, not only in Mahoning County, but across the 88 counties in Ohio," said Mahoning County Commissioner Carol Rimedio-Righetti.

House Democrats have introduced bipartisan legislation to help Ohio's lower their property taxes:

• HB 60 (Troy) - Expands the homestead exemption to cover an additional 75,000 seniors and raises its value to $40,000, providing nearly $250M in targeted relief.
• HB 263 (Isaacsohn/Hall) - Freezes over $400M in property taxes for over 700,000 seniors making $50K or less.
• HB 274 (Dell'Aquila/Matthews) - For individuals who qualify and have owned their homes for more than 20 years, this bill increases the exemption from $26,200 to $50,000.
• HB 645 (Isaacsohn/Hall) - Legislation that provides a $1K property tax rebate to help more Ohioans afford their tax bills, targeting $1B in tax relief to over 1.3M middle-class homeowners and renters after their tax payments exceed 5% of their income.