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As Introduced
136th
General Assembly
Regular
Session
S. B. No. 141
2025-2026
Senator Hicks-Hudson
Cosponsors: Senators DeMora, Ingram
To
amend section 5705.19 and to enact section 307.852 of the Revised
Code
to
authorize counties and other political subdivisions to place on the
ballot tax levies supporting pre-kindergarten programs and to
establish conditions on a county's use of moneys derived from the
levied tax.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF OHIO:
Section
1.
That
section 5705.19 be amended and section 307.852 of the Revised Code be
enacted to read as follows:
Sec.
307.852.
(A)
The board of county commissioners of any county shall appropriate
money derived from a tax levied pursuant to division (BBB) of section
5705.19 of the Revised Code to one or more nonprofit entities
organized under the laws of this state, exempt from federal income
taxation under section 501(a) of the Internal Revenue Code as an
organization described under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal
Revenue Code, and located in the county, if the board determines that
each entity meets the requirements of division (B) of this section.
(B)
To be eligible to receive money under this section, a not-for-profit
entity shall provide assurances to the board of county commissioners
that the entity shall dispense the money directly to child care
centers and preschool programs that are all of the following:
(1)
Licensed under Chapter 5104. of the Revised Code or sections 3301.52
to 3301.59 of the Revised Code;
(2)
Rated in the middle ratings tier or higher under the step up to
quality program established by section 5104.29 of the Revised Code;
(3)
Providers of early learning and development services to children who
are at least four years of age, but not yet attending kindergarten.
An
entity also shall provide assurances to the board that, when
dispensing money directly to child care centers and preschool
programs, the entity, centers, and programs shall prioritize
assisting children and families with incomes not exceeding four
hundred per cent of the federal poverty line with the costs of
pre-kindergarten.
(C)
If the board of county commissioners finds that a not-for-profit
entity has improperly used money appropriated under this section, the
board shall adopt and certify to the entity a resolution demanding
that the entity refund the improperly used money. If the entity does
not refund the money within a reasonable period of time, the board
shall adopt a resolution directing the prosecuting attorney to bring
a civil action to recover the money.
Sec.
5705.19.
This
section does not apply to school districts, county school financing
districts, or lake facilities authorities.
The
taxing authority of any subdivision at any time and in any year, by
vote of two-thirds of all the members of the taxing authority, may
declare by resolution and certify the resolution to the board of
elections not less than ninety days before the election upon which it
will be voted that the amount of taxes that may be raised within the
ten-mill limitation will be insufficient to provide for the necessary
requirements of the subdivision and that it is necessary to levy a
tax in excess of that limitation for any of the following purposes:
(A)
For current expenses of the subdivision, except that the total levy
for current expenses of a detention facility district or district
organized under section 2151.65 of the Revised Code shall not exceed
two mills and that the total levy for current expenses of a combined
district organized under sections 2151.65 and 2152.41 of the Revised
Code shall not exceed four mills;
(B)
For the payment of debt charges on certain described bonds, notes, or
certificates of indebtedness of the subdivision issued subsequent to
January 1, 1925;
(C)
For the debt charges on all bonds, notes, and certificates of
indebtedness issued and authorized to be issued prior to January 1,
1925;
(D)
For a public library of, or supported by, the subdivision under
whatever law organized or authorized to be supported;
(E)
For a municipal university, not to exceed two mills over the
limitation of one mill prescribed in section 3349.13 of the Revised
Code;
(F)
For the construction or acquisition of any specific permanent
improvement or class of improvements that the taxing authority of the
subdivision may include in a single bond issue;
(G)
For the general construction, reconstruction, resurfacing, and repair
of streets, roads, and bridges in municipal corporations, counties,
or townships;
(H)
For parks and recreational purposes;
(I)
For providing and maintaining fire apparatus, mechanical
resuscitators, underwater rescue and recovery equipment, or other
fire equipment and appliances, buildings and sites therefor, or
sources of water supply and materials therefor, for the establishment
and maintenance of lines of fire-alarm communications, for the
payment of firefighting companies or permanent, part-time, or
volunteer firefighting, emergency medical service, administrative, or
communications personnel to operate the same, including the payment
of any employer contributions required for such personnel under
section 145.48 or 742.34 of the Revised Code, for the purchase of
ambulance equipment, for the provision of ambulance, paramedic, or
other emergency medical services operated by a fire department or
firefighting company, or for the payment of other related costs;
(J)
For providing and maintaining motor vehicles, communications, other
equipment, buildings, and sites for such buildings used directly in
the operation of a police department, for the payment of salaries of
permanent or part-time police, communications, or administrative
personnel to operate the same, including the payment of any employer
contributions required for such personnel under section 145.48 or
742.33 of the Revised Code, for the payment of the costs incurred by
townships as a result of contracts made with other political
subdivisions in order to obtain police protection, for the provision
of ambulance or emergency medical services operated by a police
department, or for the payment of other related costs;
(K)
For the maintenance and operation of a county home or detention
facility;
(L)
For community developmental disabilities programs and services
pursuant to Chapter 5126. of the Revised Code, except that such
levies shall be subject to the procedures and requirements of section
5705.222 of the Revised Code;
(M)
For regional planning;
(N)
For a county's share of the cost of maintaining and operating
schools, district detention facilities, forestry camps, or other
facilities, or any combination thereof, established under section
2151.65 or 2152.41 of the Revised Code or both of those sections;
(O)
For providing for flood defense, providing and maintaining a flood
wall or pumps, and other purposes to prevent floods;
(P)
For maintaining and operating sewage disposal plants and facilities;
(Q)
For the purpose of purchasing, acquiring, constructing, enlarging,
improving, equipping, repairing, maintaining, or operating, or any
combination of the foregoing, a county transit system pursuant to
sections 306.01 to 306.13 of the Revised Code, or of making any
payment to a board of county commissioners operating a transit system
or a county transit board pursuant to section 306.06 of the Revised
Code;
(R)
For the subdivision's share of the cost of acquiring or constructing
any schools, forestry camps, detention facilities, or other
facilities, or any combination thereof, under section 2151.65 or
2152.41 of the Revised Code or both of those sections;
(S)
For the prevention, control, and abatement of air pollution;
(T)
For maintaining and operating cemeteries;
(U)
For providing ambulance service, emergency medical service, or both;
(V)
For providing for the collection and disposal of garbage or refuse,
including yard waste;
(W)
For the payment of the police officer employers' contribution or the
firefighter employers' contribution required under sections 742.33
and 742.34 of the Revised Code;
(X)
For the construction and maintenance of a drainage improvement
pursuant to section 6131.52 of the Revised Code;
(Y)
For providing or maintaining senior citizens services or facilities
as authorized by section 307.694, 307.85, 505.70, or 505.706 or
division (EE) of section 717.01 of the Revised Code;
(Z)
For the provision and maintenance of zoological park services and
facilities as authorized under section 307.76 of the Revised Code;
(AA)
For the maintenance and operation of a free public museum of art,
science, or history;
(BB)
For the establishment and operation of a 9-1-1 system, as defined in
section 128.01 of the Revised Code;
(CC)
For the purpose of acquiring, rehabilitating, or developing rail
property or rail service. As used in this division, "rail
property" and "rail service" have the same meanings as
in section 4981.01 of the Revised Code. This division applies only to
a county, township, or municipal corporation.
(DD)
For the purpose of acquiring property for, constructing, operating,
and maintaining community centers as provided for in section 755.16
of the Revised Code;
(EE)
For the creation and operation of an office or joint office of
economic development, for any economic development purpose of the
office, and to otherwise provide for the establishment and operation
of a program of economic development pursuant to sections 307.07 and
307.64 of the Revised Code, or to the extent that the expenses of a
county land reutilization corporation organized under Chapter 1724.
of the Revised Code are found by the board of county commissioners to
constitute the promotion of economic development, for the payment of
such operations and expenses;
(FF)
For the purpose of acquiring, establishing, constructing, improving,
equipping, maintaining, or operating, or any combination of the
foregoing, a township airport, landing field, or other air navigation
facility pursuant to section 505.15 of the Revised Code;
(GG)
For the payment of costs incurred by a township as a result of a
contract made with a county pursuant to section 505.263 of the
Revised Code in order to pay all or any part of the cost of
constructing, maintaining, repairing, or operating a water supply
improvement;
(HH)
For a board of township trustees to acquire, other than by
appropriation, an ownership interest in land, water, or wetlands, or
to restore or maintain land, water, or wetlands in which the board
has an ownership interest, not for purposes of recreation, but for
the purposes of protecting and preserving the natural, scenic, open,
or wooded condition of the land, water, or wetlands against
modification or encroachment resulting from occupation, development,
or other use, which may be styled as protecting or preserving
"greenspace" in the resolution, notice of election, or
ballot form. Except as otherwise provided in this division, land is
not acquired for purposes of recreation, even if the land is used for
recreational purposes, so long as no building, structure, or fixture
used for recreational purposes is permanently attached or affixed to
the land. Except as otherwise provided in this division, land that
previously has been acquired in a township for these greenspace
purposes may subsequently be used for recreational purposes if the
board of township trustees adopts a resolution approving that use and
no building, structure, or fixture used for recreational purposes is
permanently attached or affixed to the land. The authorization to use
greenspace land for recreational use does not apply to land located
in a township that had a population, at the time it passed its first
greenspace levy, of more than thirty-eight thousand within a county
that had a population, at that time, of at least eight hundred sixty
thousand.
(II)
For the support by a county of a crime victim assistance program that
is provided and maintained by a county agency or a private, nonprofit
corporation or association under section 307.62 of the Revised Code;
(JJ)
For any or all of the purposes set forth in divisions (I) and (J) of
this section. This division applies only to a municipal corporation
or a township.
(KK)
For a countywide public safety communications system under section
307.63 of the Revised Code. This division applies only to counties.
(LL)
For the support by a county of criminal justice services under
section 307.45 of the Revised Code;
(MM)
For the purpose of maintaining and operating a jail or other
detention facility as defined in section 2921.01 of the Revised Code;
(NN)
For purchasing, maintaining, or improving, or any combination of the
foregoing, real estate on which to hold, and the operating expenses
of, agricultural fairs operated by a county agricultural society or
independent agricultural society under Chapter 1711. of the Revised
Code. This division applies only to a county.
(OO)
For constructing, rehabilitating, repairing, or maintaining
sidewalks, walkways, trails, bicycle pathways, or similar
improvements, or acquiring ownership interests in land necessary for
the foregoing improvements;
(PP)
For both of the purposes set forth in divisions (G) and (OO) of this
section.
(QQ)
For both of the purposes set forth in divisions (H) and (HH) of this
section. This division applies only to a township.
(RR)
For the legislative authority of a municipal corporation, board of
county commissioners of a county, or board of township trustees of a
township to acquire agricultural easements, as defined in section
5301.67 of the Revised Code, and to supervise and enforce the
easements.
(SS)
For both of the purposes set forth in divisions (BB) and (KK) of this
section. This division applies only to a county.
(TT)
For the maintenance and operation of a facility that is organized in
whole or in part to promote the sciences and natural history under
section 307.761 of the Revised Code.
(UU)
For the creation and operation of a county land reutilization
corporation and for any programs or activities of the corporation
found by the board of directors of the corporation to be consistent
with the purposes for which the corporation is organized;
(VV)
For construction and maintenance of improvements and expenses of soil
and water conservation district programs under Chapter 940. of the
Revised Code;
(WW)
For the OSU extension fund created under section 3335.35 of the
Revised Code for the purposes prescribed under section 3335.36 of the
Revised Code for the benefit of the citizens of a county. This
division applies only to a county.
(XX)
For a municipal corporation that withdraws or proposes by resolution
to withdraw from a regional transit authority under section 306.55 of
the Revised Code to provide transportation services for the movement
of persons within, from, or to the municipal corporation;
(YY)
For any combination of the purposes specified in divisions (NN),
(VV), and (WW) of this section. This division applies only to a
county.
(ZZ)
For any combination of the following purposes: the acquisition,
construction, improvement, or maintenance of buildings, equipment,
and supplies for police, firefighting, or emergency medical services;
the construction, reconstruction, resurfacing, or repair of streets,
roads, and bridges; or for general infrastructure projects. This
division applies only to a township or municipal corporation.
(AAA)
For any combination of the purposes specified in divisions (G), (K),
(N), (O), (P), (X), (BB), and (MM) of this section, for the
acquisition, construction or maintenance of county facilities, or for
the acquisition of or improvements to land. This division applies
only to a county.
(BBB)
For the support of pre-kindergarten programs and services. This
division applies only to a county.
The
resolution shall be confined to the purpose or purposes described in
one division of this section, to which the revenue derived therefrom
shall be applied. The existence in any other division of this section
of authority to levy a tax for any part or all of the same purpose or
purposes does not preclude the use of such revenues for any part of
the purpose or purposes of the division under which the resolution is
adopted.
The
resolution shall specify the amount of the increase in rate that it
is necessary to levy, the purpose of that increase in rate, and the
number of years during which the increase in rate shall be in effect,
which may or may not include a levy upon the duplicate of the current
year. The number of years may be any number not exceeding five,
except as follows:
(1)
When the additional rate is for the payment of debt charges, the
increased rate shall be for the life of the indebtedness.
(2)
When the additional rate is for any of the following, the increased
rate shall be for a continuing period of time:
(a)
For the current expenses for a detention facility district, a
district organized under section 2151.65 of the Revised Code, or a
combined district organized under sections 2151.65 and 2152.41 of the
Revised Code;
(b)
For providing a county's share of the cost of maintaining and
operating schools, district detention facilities, forestry camps, or
other facilities, or any combination thereof, established under
section 2151.65 or 2152.41 of the Revised Code or under both of those
sections.
(3)
When the additional rate is for either of the following, the
increased rate may be for a continuing period of time:
(a)
For the purposes set forth in division (I), (J), (U), (JJ), or (KK)
of this section;
(b)
For the maintenance and operation of a joint recreation district.
(4)
When the increase is for the purpose or purposes set forth in
division (D), (G), (H), (T), (Z), (CC), or (PP) of this section, the
tax levy may be for any specified number of years or for a continuing
period of time, as set forth in the resolution.
(5)
When the increase is for the purpose set forth in division (ZZ) or
(AAA) of this section, the tax levy may be for any number of years
not exceeding ten.
A
levy for one of the purposes set forth in division (G), (I), (J),
(U), or (JJ) of this section may be reduced pursuant to section
5705.261 or 5705.31 of the Revised Code. A levy for one of the
purposes set forth in division (G), (I), (J), (U), or (JJ) of this
section may also be terminated or permanently reduced by the taxing
authority if it adopts a resolution stating that the continuance of
the levy is unnecessary and the levy shall be terminated or that the
millage is excessive and the levy shall be decreased by a designated
amount.
A
resolution of a detention facility district, a district organized
under section 2151.65 of the Revised Code, or a combined district
organized under both sections 2151.65 and 2152.41 of the Revised Code
may include both current expenses and other purposes, provided that
the resolution shall apportion the annual rate of levy between the
current expenses and the other purpose or purposes. The apportionment
need not be the same for each year of the levy, but the respective
portions of the rate actually levied each year for the current
expenses and the other purpose or purposes shall be limited by the
apportionment.
Whenever
a board of county commissioners, acting either as the taxing
authority of its county or as the taxing authority of a sewer
district or subdistrict created under Chapter 6117. of the Revised
Code, by resolution declares it necessary to levy a tax in excess of
the ten-mill limitation for the purpose of constructing, improving,
or extending sewage disposal plants or sewage systems, the tax may be
in effect for any number of years not exceeding twenty, and the
proceeds of the tax, notwithstanding the general provisions of this
section, may be used to pay debt charges on any obligations issued
and outstanding on behalf of the subdivision for the purposes
enumerated in this paragraph, provided that any such obligations have
been specifically described in the resolution.
A
resolution adopted by the legislative authority of a municipal
corporation that is for the purpose in division (XX) of this section
may be combined with the purpose provided in section 306.55 of the
Revised Code, by vote of two-thirds of all members of the legislative
authority. The legislative authority may certify the resolution to
the board of elections as a combined question. The question appearing
on the ballot shall be as provided in section 5705.252 of the Revised
Code.
A
levy for the purpose set forth in division (BB) of this section may
be imposed in all or a portion of the territory of a subdivision. If
the 9-1-1 system to be established and operated with levy funds
excludes territory located within the subdivision, the resolution
adopted under this section, or a resolution proposing to renew such a
levy that was imposed in all of the territory of the subdivision, may
describe the area served or to be served by the system and specify
that the proposed tax would be imposed only in the areas receiving or
to receive the service. Upon passage of such a resolution, the board
of elections shall submit the question of the tax levy only to those
electors residing in the area or areas in which the tax would be
imposed. If the 9-1-1 system would serve the entire subdivision, the
resolution shall not exclude territory from the tax levy.
The
resolution shall go into immediate effect upon its passage, and no
publication of the resolution is necessary other than that provided
for in the notice of election.
When
the electors of a subdivision or, in the case of a qualifying library
levy for the support of a library association or private corporation,
the electors of the association library district or, in the case of a
9-1-1 system levy serving only a portion of the territory of a
subdivision, the electors of the portion of the subdivision in which
the levy would be imposed have approved a tax levy under this
section, the taxing authority of the subdivision may anticipate a
fraction of the proceeds of the levy and issue anticipation notes in
accordance with section 5705.191 or 5705.193 of the Revised Code.
Section
2.
That
existing section 5705.19 of the Revised Code is hereby repealed.