News Summary

BUTLER COUNTY — In a Nov. 3 letter to the Ohio Tax Commission, Butler County Commissioner Donald Dixon warned of a "taxpayer led revolt" over a recently completed tax reappraisal.

The opening salvos of that revolt may be in the air.

Dixon, state Rep. Courtney Combs, R-Hamilton, and Butler County Auditor Roger Reynolds have each outlined their own plans to deal with an appraisal that threatens to send taxable values up an average 5.95 percent while many homeowners are seeing their market values plummet.

Dixon has asked the state for an extension. If he doesn't get it, he'll consider a class action lawsuit on behalf of local homeowners. Combs has drafted legislation to freeze values statewide at this year's level and Reynolds has promised to reappraise all residential properties next year.

The problem, they say, is that the appraisal — started under former Auditor Kay Rogers, completed under Reynolds in July and approved by the state in September — takes into account home sales in 2006 and 2007 while values have dropped in 2008.

This year's appraisal goes into effect Jan. 1, 2009.

In a letter in October denying Reynolds' request for an extension, Ohio Tax Commissioner Richard Levin pointed out that Reynolds had already finished his reappraisal and the numbers appear accurate as of Jan. 1, 2008.

This is the goal of the appraisal, Levin wrote, "not changes in value that may have occurred after that date."

Said Levin: "The current economic problems affect the entire state, not just Butler County. All other county auditors have managed to complete their reappraisals in a timely manner. I do not believe that good cause exists for an extension in this case, and your request is therefore denied."

Combs has scaled back a plan proposed earlier this month to provide a statewide, 10 percent exemption on property values. The reason: it would cost the already ailing state budget roughly $800 million.

Instead, Combs is pushing legislation that would freeze all property taxes at this year's levels, nullifying any increases or decreases resulting from this year's reappraisal. The General Assembly would then decide in subsequent years whether to extend the freeze.

Any county that conducted a reappraisal that put values lower than this year's would get the lower of the two values, Combs said.

This will cost school districts and other governments money. "If they're counting on increases, they'll be disappointed," Combs said.

On the campaign trail this year, Reynolds promised to appraise property values again in 2009. The next scheduled update would otherwise be in 2011.

Reynolds said this year's appraisal was nearly complete when he replaced Rogers in April, but he did everything he could to lower values. He also blamed the state for refusing him an extension to include 2008 sales.

"The state controls every three years what we do, but I don't need state approval in 2009." Reynolds said. "Most people have not seen such economic instability in their lifetimes. I can get values down in 2009 based on 2008 sale."

This year's reappraisal cost the county more than $2 million, but Reynolds said he can do a scaled-back update next year in-house for nearly nothing.

Dixon said if the state doesn't grant the extension he requested, he may file a class action lawsuit to try to stop the new valuation, or may set up an organization to help every homeowner file an appeal.

"I'm prepared to use some of my personal funds to help get it started," Dixon said. "I think it's that much of a fundamental issue of right and wrong."

Dixon's concern is that if some people contest the appraisal and some don't, those that don't will see their share of the tax burden increase. "Most people get hit twice as hard," he said.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2175 or jsweigart@coxohio.com.