Stewart: ‘If somebody votes to abolish property tax, I’m not going to Columbus to double income taxes’

The chairman of Ohio’s House Finance Committee said that should Ohioans opt to eliminate property taxes in the state, he won’t seek to “double” income taxes to make up for the lost revenue.

“I can tell you that as a state legislator, if somebody votes to abolish property tax, I’m not going to Columbus to double income taxes,” Ohio Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, said. “It’s not going to happen.

“And so, I think what we’re trying to do through the budget on the property tax side is respecting that, trying to get that issue under control so that … we can have real, meaningful relief and be competitive, maybe without completely upsetting the entire apple cart,” Stewart, the featured speaker at the Richland County GOP’s September First Monday Luncheon, added.

Addressing the Buckeye State’s skyrocketing property taxes is a hot-button topic for lawmakers. Republican Gov. Mike DeWine named a working group to brainstorm ideas. A few, such as tying property tax increases to the rate of inflation and giving some sort of relief to older Ohioans who qualify, have bubbled to the top.

However, at least one member of the committee said that every idea raises additional concerns, and the major issue of funding Ohio’s schools remains a persistent one.

A Citizen-Led Initiative?

Buckeye State residents could soon consider a citizen-led ballot measure that, if passed, would eliminate property taxes altogether. Attorney General Dave Yost previously called on elected county officials to form a coalition to address property taxes before Ohioans vote to eliminate them.

According to a news release, Yost told the Ohio Council of County Officials that property taxes in the Buckeye State increased by nearly 19%, or roughly $3.8 billion, between 2020 and 2024.

Stewart told attendees that the state does not receive a dime of property tax revenue. However, the state does have the ability to regulate how local property taxes are collected.

“If you look back, we spent a lot of money in past Ohio budgets, and so this budget actually has the lowest increase,” Stewart said. “Our budgetary increase was lower than the rate of inflation.”

Foundation for Future Reforms

He also said that Ohio Republicans have so far this legislative session paved the way for further reforms in the future, which he hopes to implement during a Ramaswamy administration. Specifically, he highlighted that Ohio now has a 2.75% flat income tax, the second-lowest in the country.

He lamented the opposition the DeWine administration has posed to their efforts. He told the crowd he believes several more DeWine vetoes will be overridden when the House ends its summer recess.