Restoring Prosperity
The Greater Ohio Policy Center Blog
Utilizing data made available by the Regional Income Tax Authority, GOPC reports that 300 small cities and villages could lose $105 million annually if the emergency measure is repealed. GOPC also examined the impact of the proposed repeal on Ohio’s 16 small legacy cities and finds that 62.5% of them can anticipate net losses in municipal income tax revenue resulting from the proposed changes.
On March 3, the Ohio House Finance Committee approved moved forward a revised state transportation budget that includes for funding for public transportation than had previously been proposed by the executive budget last month. That bill is now poised for a floor vote in the full House of Representatives on March 4.
The COVID-19 pandemic plunged the nation into a once-in-a-lifetime recession, triggering unprecedented levels of federal spending to provide direct relief to the American people, small businesses, and local governments. The most recent federal stimulus bill passed in December included funds for various transportation sectors.
Without a clear transition to a new way of collecting income taxes that is fair to all parties, Ohio’s major cities—and thus the state itself—could experience major contractions in their ability to provide services to employers and residents in the region. This will set off a chain reaction of unintended consequences.
