Summit County Local, State Elected Officials Hosted Press Conference to Detail Plan Addressing Skyrocketing Property Taxes

COLUMBUS - Summit County State Reps. Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson), Veronica Sims (D-Akron), Cuyahoga Falls City Schools Board of Education Member AJ Harris, and Summit County Councilwoman Liz Walters Wednesday at a press conference addressed the need for the state to take action and reduce skyrocketing property taxes in Summit County and across Ohio.

"The higher property valuations and taxes Ohioans are facing are not the fault of any county auditor, county commissioner, or any county executive. It's due to more than two decades of Republican policies passed at the Statehouse that are forcing Ohio's working families with the lowest incomes to pay more while the wealthiest Ohioans are receiving handouts, and the state is being drained of the resources it needs to ensure the prosperity of its residents," said Rep. Weinstein. "We are working together for bipartisan solutions that jumpstart our economy and provide direct relief to homeowners, renters, and seniors. By lowering property taxes, we can make housing more affordable for everyone and help more seniors afford to stay in their own homes."

"High property taxes are a choice. We are working across the aisle to address solutions that matter, making sure that the elderly can live independently in the homes they love, a young couple can afford to own a new home, and Ohio's strong communities remain intact," said Rep. Sims. "It is clear targeted property tax relief is critical to helping workers, families, and senior citizens who cannot afford to pay their property taxes and stay in their homes. We can offer that support, it's a choice we need to make."

The elected officials outlined their commitment to provide assistance and support to those impacted by statewide valuation increases and how they will advocate for legislative action in Columbus to aid seniors and homeowners with rising costs.

"It's time our elected officials at the Statehouse stand up against harmful policies that underfund our schools and local communities by funneling billions of our tax dollars to unaccountable school voucher handouts and tax subsidies for the wealthiest Ohioans. These unfair state policies have only increased costs and forced homeowners and renters to pay more than their fair share to keep safety forces on the streets and students in the classroom," said Harris. "By working across the aisle at the Statehouse and putting party politics aside, it is possible to provide direct relief to our community, seniors and homeowners now."

"Ohio homeowners and farmers are paying over two-thirds of the total property taxes while the Republican-controlled legislature handed out billions for unaccountable and unregulated private school vouchers, and even more tax cuts for the very wealthiest. We can't get ahead when we're just trying to keep up with backwards state policies," said Councilwoman Walters. "Ohio's cities, counties, and townships are working with about a billion dollars less per year from the state - compared to what they received in 2011. That puts even more pressure on local taxpayers to keep police officers on the streets, firehouses open, and streets paved."

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.

The news conference can be viewed here.