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Forum provides some answers, more questions about economy

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By Richard Wilson, Staff Writer 10:05 PM Monday, March 8, 2010

LEBANON — The odds are 50/50 whether the recent uptick in the national economy will be sustained, according to Stephen Wilson, LCNB president and chairman-elect of the American Bankers Association.

The message was part of Wilson’s presentation to hundreds of Lebanon residents who gathered Monday night, March 8, for a community forum at the Lebanon Junior High Auditorium.

Wilson said technically the nation is out of the recession because of all the money that the federal government has pumped into the system.

“This recession has been deep and wide. While I’d like to tell you it’s over, I don’t believe it’s over,” Wilson said. “I think it will slowly get better, but it’s going to take a change in employment, consumer confidence and an improvement in the housing market.”

Wilson warned that the state of Ohio used a one-time infusion of federal stimulus dollars to avoid a potential budget gap of $9 billion, which will need to be addressed in the next biennial budget and could negatively impact local municipalities and schools.

Lebanon City Manager Pat Clements and Lebanon City Schools Treasurer Eric Sotzing also took turns addressing the crowd.

Clements explained the structure of Lebanon’s finances and detailed its roughly $76 million budget. He said revenue from income taxes is down and the overall impact from the economy represents a loss of about $1.6 million in revenue over a three-year period.

While not referring directly to the proposed 2-mill road repair levy that voters will be asked to pass in May, Clements presented statistics that show Lebanon’s roads are 79 percent underfunded and a survey of residents shows declining satisfaction with the roads.

Sotzing said the recent trend for the school district shows increased costs and declining revenue. Factors working against the district’s financial stability include the state’s revamped school funding formula and the recent loss in property values because of the struggling housing market.

“The bottom line is we need to renew the three-year emergency operating levy (in 2011),” Sotzing said.

The levy generates about $4.2 million annually to cover general operating expenses in the district.

“A nonrenewal will be financially devastating to the district,” Sotzing said.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2122 or rwilson@coxohio.com.

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