Riverlea Levy FAQ
On the Levy
Eric MacGilvray
Riverlea will have a property tax levy on the ballot on November 2nd. Below are answers to some common questions. Please feel free to contact me or one of your other elected officials if you have any further questions.
1. Why is there a levy on the ballot?
Riverlea voters passed a 4.5-mill operating levy in 2005 which expires this year. This levy generates about $83,000/year for the Village, which is more than a third of our annual revenue. It is essential to maintaining services such as police protection, snow and trash removal, street and sewer maintenance, etc.
2. Why has the amount of the levy been increased?
Council voted unanimously in July to propose increasing the operating levy from 4.5 to 5.0 mills. If passed by voters, the new levy would generate about $117,000/year, or about $34,000/year more than the existing levy.
We decided to do this for the simple reason that revenues have declined and expenses have increased since the 2005 levy was passed. The Village has run an operating deficit for 2 of the last 3 years, and is projected to be in deficit for 2011. We’ve been able to cover these shortfalls because the Village has a substantial cash balance, but this is obviously not a sustainable situation.
On the revenue side, our investment income (from savings accounts and CDs) has dropped by about $25,000/year with the general drop in interest rates. In addition the Village has received more than $35,000/year on average from the Ohio estate tax over the past several years as Village residents have passed away. This is not a stable source of revenue, and there’s a good chance that the estate tax will be repealed or reduced by the state legislature, especially if state government is in Republican hands next year.
On the expense side, we’ve incurred substantial engineering and maintenance costs in recent years because of our aging infrastructure, and we anticipate an increase in the cost of police protection (the largest line item in our budget) in the near future.
3. What will this levy cost me if it passes?
If we divide $34,000 by 230 (the approximate number of families in Riverlea) we find that the average family would see an increase in property taxes of about $144/year ($12/month).
To see exactly what the levy would cost your family if passed, search for your property at the Franklin County Auditor's web site (http://franklincountyoh.metacama.com/altIndex.jsp) and click on "Current Levy Info" in the menu on the left.
4. Will this levy pay for the street repairs?
Yes and no. As you know all of the streets in Riverlea were resurfaced over the past several weeks, and this expense (about $200,000) was paid for out of our regular operating budget. The new surface is expected to get us through the next 5-10 years. The much larger project involving repair and replacement of the water mains, street beds, curbs and gutters, etc. is still a few years out and will be funded separately through a bond issue, special assessment, and/or state loans and grants.
Eric MacGilvray
Riverlea will have a property tax levy on the ballot on November 2nd. Below are answers to some common questions. Please feel free to contact me or one of your other elected officials if you have any further questions.
1. Why is there a levy on the ballot?
Riverlea voters passed a 4.5-mill operating levy in 2005 which expires this year. This levy generates about $83,000/year for the Village, which is more than a third of our annual revenue. It is essential to maintaining services such as police protection, snow and trash removal, street and sewer maintenance, etc.
2. Why has the amount of the levy been increased?
Council voted unanimously in July to propose increasing the operating levy from 4.5 to 5.0 mills. If passed by voters, the new levy would generate about $117,000/year, or about $34,000/year more than the existing levy.
We decided to do this for the simple reason that revenues have declined and expenses have increased since the 2005 levy was passed. The Village has run an operating deficit for 2 of the last 3 years, and is projected to be in deficit for 2011. We’ve been able to cover these shortfalls because the Village has a substantial cash balance, but this is obviously not a sustainable situation.
On the revenue side, our investment income (from savings accounts and CDs) has dropped by about $25,000/year with the general drop in interest rates. In addition the Village has received more than $35,000/year on average from the Ohio estate tax over the past several years as Village residents have passed away. This is not a stable source of revenue, and there’s a good chance that the estate tax will be repealed or reduced by the state legislature, especially if state government is in Republican hands next year.
On the expense side, we’ve incurred substantial engineering and maintenance costs in recent years because of our aging infrastructure, and we anticipate an increase in the cost of police protection (the largest line item in our budget) in the near future.
3. What will this levy cost me if it passes?
If we divide $34,000 by 230 (the approximate number of families in Riverlea) we find that the average family would see an increase in property taxes of about $144/year ($12/month).
To see exactly what the levy would cost your family if passed, search for your property at the Franklin County Auditor's web site (http://franklincountyoh.metacama.com/altIndex.jsp) and click on "Current Levy Info" in the menu on the left.
4. Will this levy pay for the street repairs?
Yes and no. As you know all of the streets in Riverlea were resurfaced over the past several weeks, and this expense (about $200,000) was paid for out of our regular operating budget. The new surface is expected to get us through the next 5-10 years. The much larger project involving repair and replacement of the water mains, street beds, curbs and gutters, etc. is still a few years out and will be funded separately through a bond issue, special assessment, and/or state loans and grants.
posted by Bonk at Home at 11:29 AM
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