By Brian Massie, A Watchman on the Wall
Thanks to Victoria Rykaczewski, legislative aide for Bride Rose Sweeney, for this summary of proposed property tax legislation being considered by the Ohio legislators.
HB 60 (Troy) https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/135/hb60
- Increases the homestead exemption for elderly or disabled homeowners and certain surviving spouses from $26,200 to $40,000 of the home’s appraised value or cost.
- Indexes the amount of that homestead exemption so that the exemption and resulting tax savings increase in proportion to the increase in inflation.
- Expands eligibility for the homestead exemption by raising the qualifying income from the current $38,600 to $45,000.
- In an October 2023 House Session, Rep. Troy introduced HB 60 as an amendment to HB 187. The amendment was rejected by the GOP majority. This is a blatant example of the Republicans unwillingness to enact common sense property tax legislation.
HB 263 (Isaacsohn/Hall) https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/135/hb263
Freezes property taxes for homeowners at 2023 levels who meet the following criteria:
- Are 65 or older
- Have resided in their home for at least 2 years
- Have a total annual income of $50,000 or less
- The home in which they reside has a true value below $500,000
HB 274 (Dell’Aquila/Matthews) https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/135/hb274
- 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 Property Tax Circuit Breaker (Isaacsohn) https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/135/hb645
- Legislation authorizing a property tax circuit breaker benefit for eligible homeowners and renters whose property taxes, or portion of rent attributable to property taxes, exceeds 5% of their income.
- The circuit breaker benefit will be available as a refundable income tax credit or as a direct rebate, capped at $1,000 per year, to individuals whose household income does not exceed $100,000, and is further limited to homes whose value does not exceed a certain median home value or specified median monthly rent.
- Companion legislation to Sen. Blessing’s and Sen. Craig’s S.B. 271
HB 33 (State Operating Budget) https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/135/hb33
- Contained a provision indexing the amount of the property tax exemption for qualifying homeowners to the rate of inflation.
- However, Democrats proposed increasing the base value of the property exempted from taxation from $26,200 for 2024 to $40,000 of true value and raising the homeowner’s qualifying income level to $45,000 from the current $38,600. Ultimately, this proposal wasn’t included in the final budget.
HB 33 (State Operating Budget) https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/135/hb33
- Contained a provision indexing the amount of the property tax exemption for qualifying homeowners to the rate of inflation.
- However, Democrats proposed increasing the base value of the property exempted from taxation from $26,200 for 2024 to $40,000 of true value and raising the homeowner’s qualifying income level to $45,000 from the current $38,600. Ultimately, this proposal wasn’t included in the final budget.
Categories: State of Ohio