By Brian Massie, A Watchman on the Wall

We received the following information about current pending property tax legislation from Matthew Berning (he/him/his), legislative aide for the State of Ohio Representative Dani Isaacsohn (Democrat).

• HB 1 is a regressive proposal that will repeal the 10% rollback on nonbusiness properties, which would raise Ohioans’ property tax bills by a total of more than $1.3 billion each year. This was introduced by Republican Rep. Adam Mathews, and also modifies the state income tax, which would blow an $11 billion dollar hole in the state’s revenue. The House Democrats oppose this proposal, as it could have detrimental effects on the state’s finances in the future and institute a much more regressive tax system all the way across the board for the average Ohioan.
  • HB 1 has received seven hearings in the House Ways & Means committee, most recently April 25, 2023.
    
• HB 60 is a proposal by Democratic Rep. Dan Troy that would increase the homestead exemption for elderly or disabled homeowners and certain surviving spouses form $26,200 to $40,000 of the home’s appraised value or cost. The proposal also expands eligibility for the homestead exemption by raising the qualifying income from the current $38,600 to $45,000.
  • In October 2023, Rep. Troy introduced HB 60 as an amendment to HB 187, which temporarily increased the amount of all property tax homestead exemptions. However, this amendment was rejected by the GOP super-majority, meaning that the temporary increase in HB 187 will only be effective for three years, rather than a permanent expansion.
    • HB 187 passed the House in October 2023 and passed the Senate in December 2023. The Senate modified the bill, and the House has yet to concur, meaning it has not yet been signed into law by Governor Dewine.
    • HB 60 has received four hearings int the House Ways & Means committee, most recently April 18, 2024.
      
• HB 90 is another property tax proposal introduced by Republican Rep. Thomas Patton. This bill would replace the partial homestead exemption for disabled veterans with an enhanced homestead exemption for all disabled veterans equal to all the taxes imposed on the homestead. The bill also reimburses local taxing units for the resulting reduction in tax revenue in the same manner as other homestead exemptions.
  • HB 90 has received three hearings in the House Ways & Means Committee, most recently on September 12, 2023.
    
• HB 263, which you are familiar with as Rep. Isaacsohn’s and Rep. Hall’s bipartisan proposal, freezes property taxes for homeowners at 2023 levels who are 65 or older, have resided in their home for at least 2 years, have a total annual income of $50,000 or less, and reside in a home with a true value below $500,000.
  • HB 263 has received four hearings in the House Ways & Means Committee, most recently on February 6, 2024.
    
• HB 274 is another bipartisan proposal from Republican Adam Mathews and Democrat Richard Dell’Aquilla. This bill increases the homestead exemption from $26,200 to $50,000 for qualifying individuals who have owned their homes for more than 20 years.
  • HB 274 has received three hearings in the House Ways & Means Committee, most recently December 12, 2023.
    
• The last standalone bill that I would like to note is HB 645, Rep. Isaacsohn’s bipartisan proposal also with Rep. Thomas Hall that would introduce a property tax “circuit breaker” system. Plainly put, this bill would authorize a property tax rebate/credit using the following needs-based scale: those making $60,000 or less per year would be eligible for a $1,000 rebate, those making between $60k-$70k would be eligible for an $800 rebate, those making between $70k-$80k would be eligible for a $600 rebate, and so on, until the final rebate is capped at $200 for people making $100k or less.
  • HB 645 is companion legislation to the bipartisan Senate proposal, SB 271. SB 271 has received two hearings in the Senate Ways & Means Committee, most recently June 25, 2024.
  • HB 645 was introduced by Reps. Isaacsohn and Hall during the summer recess, so it has not yet received a committee hearing. The bill will receive, at a minimum, sponsor testimony before the end of the General Assembly.
    
• Lastly, I would like to note a proposal from last year’s operating budget, HB 33, that was not included. The budget contained a provision to index the amount of the property tax exemption for qualifying homeowners to the rate of inflation. However, House Democrats proposed a much larger increase on the base value of the property exempted from taxation from $26,000 for 2024 to $40,000 of true value. Additionally, the qualifying income level for homeowners would have also been raised from $38,600 to $45,000. However, this provision was not included in the budget.

Please note that this list is by no means exhaustive and is just a highlight of a few proposals being considered in the House.

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Categories: Education, Real Estate Taxes, State of Ohio

Tags: Education, FT