In December city council voted to roll back the tax credit for income tax paid to other municipalities. It’s a bit of a stealth rollback in that only half of the credit was removed for this year with the other half of the credit vanishing in 2025. Most voters weren’t aware this was coming until they felt the pinch in their paystub and it’s a pretty safe bet even fewer are going to remember that the other half is going away until January 2025 paychecks start to hit the bank. One might argue that this isn’t an increase, it’s a rollback of a credit but that’s a distinction without a difference.
This comes at a time when taxpayers are still reeling from the affect of massive property tax increases. Property taxes suck. At least with an income tax you’re being taxed on real income you really earned. With a property tax it’s a work of fiction. The government takes your money based on what the government says your home and land is worth. Talk about the fox guarding the henhouse!
In my 2019 campaign I called on council to enact a permanent solution to funding the needs of first responders even as I begrudgingly voted yes on that levy. This income tax credit rollback could be that permanent solution but it needs to be offset by a reduction elsewhere and the most natural candidate would be the property tax.
At the time the rollback was approved in a 6-1 vote we heard that the intent was to put a renewal of the fire service property tax levy renewal on the ballot this fall. If you blinked you missed it but at the June 4th council meeting we learned that they will not be putting the fire levy renewal on the ballot in November after allp and will instead revisit the levy in 2025. Whether this is a first step toward letting the levy die or simply a politically expedient move to get it on a lower turnout ballot is anybody’s guess.
It’s hardly a victory lap worthy event but this delay is a step in the right direction.
Joe Combs Thoughts on Harrison, Ohio 