Hamilton County property owners, including those in Anderson Township, Mariemont, Terrace Park and Newtown, will see a Children's Services levy on the November ballot. How much it asks for remains an open question heading into a Tuesday, Aug. 4 vote by the Board of Commissioners.

The county's Tax Levy Review Committee says Job and Family Services needs $144 million a year to keep providing mandated child-welfare services. The current levy brings in $81 million, leaving a $63 million gap. All three commissioners have said they will not put the full amount before voters, according to WVXU reporting.

The board has more than a dozen options on the table, ranging from the committee's recommended 6.57-mill levy down to shorter-term, lower-rate alternatives that would all generate less than $144 million.

Commissioner Denise Driehaus said at the board's July 30 meeting that she supports a 5.61-mill option covering roughly half the identified need, and prefers a four-year cycle for stability, though she has not made a final decision. She said she wants a levy as low as possible for taxpayers while still funding mandated services to keep children safe.

Commission President Stephanie Summerow Dumas struck a similar tone at the July 30 meeting, warning that if the levy fails at the ballot, the county would have to draw from its general fund to cover Children's Services costs.

Stadium sales tax dispute

Commission Vice President Alicia Reece proposed a different path: redirect stadium sales tax revenues or borrow against future stadium tax earnings to reduce the property tax ask. County attorneys and bond counsel issued a staff report concluding both approaches violate state law. The bond indenture requires the riverfront Sales Tax Fund to serve stadium debt first, and Ohio law bars long-term borrowing to cover recurring operating expenses, the memo states.

Reece disputes those conclusions, citing outside attorneys who argue the word "primarily" in the bond indenture leaves room for partial use. At a Tuesday staff meeting, the exchange grew heated enough that Reece left early. "I'm gonna adjourn myself from this conversation because we done got out of line and out of control," she said before walking out.

At the July 30 regular meeting, Reece suggested the county hire new bond counsel to find "creative ways to put the taxpayers first."

Budget pressures

JFS has already cut $36 million from its budget. Lisa Webb, assistant county administrator, told commissioners at the July 30 meeting that Hamilton County leads Ohio's urban counties in kinship care placements, with 36% of children placed with family members rather than costlier foster or residential settings.

All three commissioners criticized the state for underfunding local child welfare. Ohio contributes 18% of child-welfare costs, second-lowest in the nation compared to a 42% national average, according to the Tax Levy Review Committee.

Driehaus said after the levy decision she wants a broader conversation about restructuring all seven levies the county controls, given what she called a "challenging climate for property taxes."

The deadline to certify a levy for the November ballot is 4 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 5. Five public hearings preceded the scheduled vote.