Staff photo / Brandon Cantwell Trumbull County Commissioner Tony Bernard listens to a presenter at a special meeting Wednesday evening in Howland regarding property tax reform and bills making their way through the Ohio legislature that could affect townships’ bottom lines.

HOWLAND — One county commissioner emphasized the importance of putting pressure on state representatives regarding property taxes as officials discussed the status of reforms and owner-occupancy and homestead credits.

Trustees and fiscal officers from townships throughout Trumbull County made up a majority of the crowd that also included residents at the township administration building Wednesday evening, as Howland Administrator James Pantalone provided an overview of where the petition-based efforts to abolish property taxes stood.

The effort is being spearheaded by the Committee to Abolish Ohio Property Taxes. The organization aims to place the initiative on the ballot for the November 2026 election after missing the 2025 ballot deadline.

The 2026 deadline is July 1.

Pantalone said 413,000 is the target number of signatures to have it placed on the ballot, which could go as high as 443,000 because they need to be checked after submission and there’s a margin of error.

Pantalone said there are minimums in each county that need to be met as well.

As of late 2025, Pantalone said there were approximately 150,000 to 160,000 signatures obtained, according to Lake County Administrator Andy Rose at their last Ohio Townships Association meeting.

“That information leaked; they certainly weren’t happy about it, and whoever was on his (Brian Massey’s) committee at that time that leaked that information immediately was fired,” Pantalone said. “No one has any clue where these numbers are at this point in time.”

Pantalone said he spoke with State Rep. Dave Thomas, R-Jefferson, Wednesday, touching on several House Bills relevant to property tax reforms and adding that several have been passed as of December.

Pantalone said there have been recent presentations regarding HB 574, a pilot program incentivizing local governments to merge or consolidate, and HB 592, which changes rules for incorporation.

Pantalone said there are 50 legislative items in the pipeline right now, according to Thomas, and 20 of them have traction.

HOWLAND’S FINANCES

Fiscal Officer Thomas Krispinsky presented an overview of how owner occupancy and homestead credit programs would affect each township. Howland would receive the harshest impact at a $272,480 loss, according to Krispinsky.

Krispinsky said he calculated that their general fund would lose $22,000, the county health department would lose $3,000 to $4,000, the road department would lose $71,000, the fire department would lose $88,000 and the fire/EMS fund would lose $8,400.

He said the police department would lose $77,000, which adds up to the $272,000 loss. He said the numbers were verified with Trumbull County Auditor Martha Yoder.

Krispinsky said township government and services costs $1.37 per resident a day — $498.69 yearly.

OWNER OCCUPANCY CREDITS

Yoder touched on HB 186, clarifying that the 20-mill floor language in it only affects two Trumbull County school districts — Mathews and Warren.

The legislation introduced an “Inflation Cap Credit” to prevent unvoted school district tax increases, which occurs when rising property values boost revenue on the 20-mill floor.

“Those folks that live in those districts will not be getting that credit; the credit has to do with the changes they’re making to the 20-mill floor, they’re taking and kind of making them retroactive to tax year 2023, payable 2024,” Yoder said.

Yoder said there was reform built into HB 96 that “piggybacks” on homestead and owner occupancy credits — fully dependent on whether it’s enacted by the county commissioners.

She explained certain stipulations to the owner-occupancy credit, such as its application, eligibility and how the reduction is applied.

Yoder said for owner occupancy credits, the individual must own and live in the home as of Jan. 1, but it’s not automatic and must be applied for, providing a tax reduction up to 2.5% on all pre-2013 levies — including inside millage. It applies to one acre and the home itself.

The rules are slightly different regarding homestead credits and their eligibility.

“Before 2013, anybody who was over 65 could get it, and there were no income restrictions,” Yoder said. “People who had it in 2013, based on this, can still have it, they’re grandfathered in.”

If the commissioners were to enact a homestead credit, the county’s general fund would lose nearly $271,000, with the board of developmental disabilities losing $565,000.

Adding owner occupancy to the mix would result in an additional $90,000 and $189,000 loss, respectively.

Yoder said any decision made by the commissioners apply to tax year 2026, payable 2027, and must be made by July 1. She added that the commissioners do not have to apply both credits, and, if they choose to do owner occupancy credits, they can choose between 0.1% and 2.5%.

COMMISSIONERS’ COMMENTS

In his concluding remarks, Commissioner Tony Bernard said the state has formed the present problem, handing it off to the commissioners to solve it.

“They created it, they have the money; they have $4 billion sitting down there in a rainy day fund, and all they’re doing is passing legislation, which allows the commissioners to lower taxes or raise taxes,” Bernard said. “Again, they created it. they should be here, helping us solve it, not pass legislation.”

Bernard said he didn’t think the commissioners should rush into doing anything, because if they pass it, it doesn’t take effect until 2027.

Commissioner Rick Hernandez said they’ve been put in a “no-win” position, adding that he understood residents needed a break — especially the seniors.

Hernandez said he understands the money that goes into funding township services, as a former Hubbard Township trustee himself.

“The state has to pony up. They have to be more forgiving to the county to the townships, and they need to come up with some money,” Hernandez said. “They do have $4 billion in a rainy day fund, and it just keeps ample. It just keeps garnering more and more money; we’re not seeing any of it.”

Hernandez expressed belief that a homestead credit would kill the county and the townships, adding it would be a “real stressful situation to have to overcome.”

“We need property tax reform, and that is going to have to happen in a manner not such as this — it’s going to have to happen on a larger scale,” Hernandez said.

Commissioner Denny Malloy echoed Hernandez’s empathy toward the townships as a township resident himself — noting it to be the first time in 50 years that the board has consisted of such residents.

“There’s something special about the Integrity of townships that makes us special here in Trumbull County, and we need to protect and preserve the integrity of our townships,” Malloy said.