House passes bill to allow counties to lower taxes

The Ohio House of Representatives passed two measures that proponents say would help Ohio lawmakers address ballooning property taxes.

House Bill 309, the Budget Commission Overhaul Act, reinforces that the County Budget Commission must annually review taxing authorities’ budgets and set tax rates based on the need for revenue and voter approval. It also allows the commission, which consists of the county auditor, county treasurer, and county prosecutor, to amend levies and reduce a jurisdiction’s millage rate, should the commission conclude that a government would collect unneeded or excessive property taxes.

“This bill helps a vast majority of my district and many Ohioans,” state Rep. David Thomas, R-Jefferson, said in a release. “This will prevent future spikes and give the voters transparency in taxation for guaranteed tax rates to schools. We also make sure schools don’t get a cut from this bill but will not see the future spikes unless the voters say yes.”

In announcing the bill’s introduction, Thomas said the budget commissions have “become a rubber stamp at a time when property tax rates are excessively high across Ohio.”

“House Bill 309 puts another tool in the tax reformers’ toolbox to help fix Ohio’s property tax problem, and Representative Thomas should be commended for his efforts,” Greg R. Lawson, a research fellow at The Buckeye Institute, said in a statement.

“House Bill 309 is only one piece of a much larger puzzle of local government and property tax reforms that need to be adopted to help Ohioans clamoring for relief, and The Buckeye Institute urges the Ohio Senate to take up this urgent reform to help homeowners struggling with skyrocketing property tax bills,” Lawson said.

Currently, school districts must receive at least 20 mills or 2% of their district’s property value in taxes. Districts cannot fall below 20 mills, thanks to a provision known as the “20-mill floor.” The second measure lawmakers passed, House Bill 129, would include in the 20-mill floor calculation for school funding purposes emergency, substitute tax, incremental growth, and conversion levies, as well as the property tax portion of combined income tax and property tax levies.

The Buckeye State’s ballooning property taxes have been a hot topic for state lawmakers. The bill’s approval follows Ohio’s Property Tax Working Group’s issuance of 20 recommendations for addressing the state’s property taxes.

The Republican Gov. Mike DeWine-appointed group, comprised of school and local government officials, included a recommendation to limit carryover balances for taxing districts to 100%. A taxing jurisdiction would need to make its case in writing to the County Budget Commission for any carryover balance exceeding 100%.

Both bills head to the Senate for consideration.

Meanwhile, Citizens for Property Tax Reform is circulating a petition that could see voters in November 2026 decide whether to abolish property taxes altogether. Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost previously called on elected county officials to form a coalition to address property taxes before a citizen-led ballot initiative eliminates them.

However, a new finding from the Tax Foundation found that nationwide, property taxes generate 70% of local tax revenue. While repealing property taxes may be popular among voters, it raises a significant question: How will elected officials replace it?

“The property tax will never win any popularity contests. Economists hold it in high regard, but, perhaps relatedly, economists are not terribly popular either,” the group said. “It’s one thing, however, to favor property tax repeal in the abstract: many Americans are clearly for that. But with which taxes should it be replaced, and how will the overall package of property tax replacement be received?

“Some proponents of property tax elimination wish to postpone this conversation, advancing ballot measures that repeal property taxes and charge the legislature with working out minor details like how to replace the lion’s share of local tax revenue,” it added. “The only responsible way to consider property tax abolition, however, is to grapple with the alternatives.”