Ohio Senate Introduces Amendment To Tax Land Value
BY JEFF SKINNER
STATEWIDE - In the shadow of growing discourse over rising property taxes, Ohio Republicans have introduced a constitutional amendment which would potentially change property taxes, which generate tax revenue based on established properties constructed, to only taxing the land itself.
Under the current Ohio constitution, schools and municipalities can tax properties, not land. Under the proposed Senate Joint Resolution the constitution would be altered to tax the land itself.
"Ohio votes on more levies than any other state, this amendment seeks to relieve citizens facing heavy property tax burdens as a result of levies," Blessing said. "A land value tax only applies to the underlying land and not anything built or added onto it. This amendment allows our state to do more with less by lowering taxes, shifting the system away from levies, and incentivizing productive use of land."
According to a statement issued by Blessing, the amendment does not require local communities to use land value taxation but provides them the option to do so. Exemptions to the tax will apply to land underneath public buildings, churches, and other similar situations. The amendment gives local governments an option to raise revenue without resorting to a property tax levy that needs to have the approval of the voters.
The amendment was introduced by Senator Louis W. Blessing in late October however the resolution has not yet been scheduled for a committee hearing and is facing some opposition from republicans in the Ohio house. Representative David Thomas has been vocal about his skepticism surrounding the initiative, stating he felt the resolution could negatively impact farmers.
“That helps your renters, that helps your actual homeowners, but if we’re shifting all that over to the land side, they’re still paying on their land, and the folks that own vacant land or farmland, are they going to be paying a tremendously higher amount,” Thomas said.
Some have argued the move appears to be an attempt to sideline a growing contingency in Ohio seeking to abolish property taxes entirely. Among some of the leading arguments for abolishing property tax is the principle of the Government still technically owning a person’s property and being able to seize it should the homebuyer be unable to pay the property taxes. While the amendment would change exactly what is taxed, it would not change the overall system of taxation which many argue is threatening to boot senior citizens on fixed incomes out of their homes due to rising tax increases.
