----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Christine Matacic" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Tuesday, June 16, 2009 5:28 PM
Subject: [Fwd: Legislative Alert]


> ---------------------------- Original Message ----------------------------
> Subject: Legislative Alert
> From:    "Heidi Fought" <[log in to unmask]>
> Date:    Tue, June 16, 2009 3:44 pm
> To:
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> Dear Township Officials:
>
> Please find below very important information for all townships.  The
> Ohio Township Association strongly encourages you to review each section
> carefully.
>
> Local Government Funding
> Back on December 30, 2008, the OTA issued a legislative alert informing
> you that due to the declining state general revenue fund, which the
> Local Government Fund (LGF) is tied to, that townships are advised to
> budget 8-10% less in LGF revenue for 2009 budget year.
>
> Unfortunately the state's general revenue fund, like the federal
> government and many local governments, has not gotten better since
> December 2008, but instead has gotten worse.  At the beginning of June,
> the Office of Budget and Management and the Department of Taxation
> issued revised revenue forecasts for the state and informed the Ohio
> House and Senate that an additional $2.6 billion would need to be cut
> from the pending state budget due to declining withholding and sales tax
> revenue.
>
> That said, the Department of Taxation informed local government groups
> that they will revise 2009 LGF projections.  The OTA is recommending
> that all townships cut 10%, on top of the reductions recommended in
> December 2008, of projected LGF revenue from your township budget for
> 2009.  It is likely that the revised LGF revenue forecast by the
> Department of Taxation will show the LGF total for 2009 down by
> approximately 20% compared with 2008.  Once the revised LGF estimates
> are released by the Department of Taxation, I will send them out to you.
>
>
> HB 694
> In 2006, the Ohio General Assembly passed campaign finance reform
> legislation (HB 694) that required local governments, including
> townships, to obtain an affidavit from every company/person with whom
> the township does business.  In the affidavit, the company/person
> attests that they have not contributed more than a specified amount to
> any of the elected officials governing the township.
>
> The law was challenged and in late 2007, the Franklin County Common
> Pleas Court ruled that the law should not have been enacted due to
> procedural errors.  The Ohio Attorney General appealed the ruling and
> earlier this year, the 10th District Court of Appeals upheld the trial
> court's ruling.  The AG did not appeal this ruling and thus the appeal's
> court opinion stands.
>
> Therefore, this means that townships do not have to obtain affidavits
> from companies/people any longer.
>
> The Ohio Township Association encourages you to work with your
> prosecutor or legal counsel on this matter.  Ohio Secretary of State
> Jennifer Brunner has issued an advisory for county elections officials
> and you may view that advisory at
> http://www.sos.state.oh.us/SOS/Upload/elections/advisories/2009/Adv2009-
> 05.pdf .  We have also confirmed with the Auditor of State's office that
> HB 694 is no longer in effect.
>
>
> HB 141 Household Sewage Treatment Systems (Dodd)
> The companion bill to SB 109 (Niehaus) will be up for all testimony
> tomorrow, June 17 in the House Environment & Brownfield Development
> Committee.  The OTA will be submitting written testimony in support of
> HB 141.
>
>
> SB 109 Property Tax Exemptions (Gibbs)
> On Wednesday SB 109 will be up for all testimony before the Senate Ways
> and Means Committee, of which Senator Gibbs is the Chair.  As a
> reminder, this bill would exempt from real property taxation the
> increase in assessed value of a single-family residential property owned
> by a developer or builder until the title is transferred.  The OTA, in
> conjunction with the County Commissioners, Municipal League, School
> Boards, School Business Officials and School Administrators, will be
> testifying in opposition to this bill.  If you have any thoughts or
> concerns about this legislation, the OTA strongly encourages you to
> share those with your state senator and representative.
>
>
> Recently Introduced
> HB 220 Local Government Notices (Chandler) To implement the
> recommendations of the Local Government Public Notice Task Force by
> authorizing legal publication to be made in a newspaper of general
> circulation, eliminating certain publication and postal privilege
> requirements, reducing the number of times publication must be made,
> requiring newspapers to establish a government rate for publication,
> allowing publication of a summary of an ordinance rather than publishing
> it in its entirety, and allowing the costs of publishing delinquent
> property tax lists to be charged to delinquent taxpayers. To view this
> bill in its entirety, please visit www.legislature.state.oh.us.
>
>
>
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>