Section 5748.021. Replacement tax under RC 5748.02 - submission to electors

A board of education that levies a tax under section 5748.02 of the Revised Code on the school district income of individuals and estates as defined in divisions (G) and (E)(1)(a) and (2) of section 5748.01 of the Revised Code may declare, at any time, by a resolution adopted by a majority of its members, the necessity of raising annually a specified amount of money for school district purposes by replacing the existing tax with a tax on the school district income of individuals as defined in divisions (G)(1) and (E)(1)(b) of section 5748.01 of the Revised Code. The specified amount of money to be raised annually may be the same as, or more or less than, the amount of money raised annually by the existing tax.

The board shall certify a copy of the resolution to the tax commissioner not later than the eighty-fifth day before the date of the election at which the board intends to propose the replacement to the electors of the school district. Not later than the tenth day after receiving the resolution, the tax commissioner shall estimate the tax rate that would be required in the school district annually to raise the amount of money specified in the resolution. The tax commissioner shall certify the estimate to the board.

Upon receipt of the tax commissioner's estimate, the board may propose, by a resolution adopted by a majority of its members, to replace the existing tax on the school district income of individuals and estates as defined in divisions (G) and (E)(1)(a) and (2) of section 5748.01 of the Revised Code with the levy of an annual tax on the school district income of individuals as defined in divisions (G)(1) and (E)(1)(b) of section 5748.01 of the Revised Code. In the resolution, the board shall specify the rate of the replacement tax, whether the replacement tax is to be levied for a specified number of years or for a continuing time, the specific school district purposes for which the replacement tax is to be levied, the date on which the replacement tax will begin to be levied, the date of the election at which the question of the replacement is to be submitted to the electors of the school district, that the existing tax will cease to be levied and the replacement tax will begin to be levied if the replacement is approved by a majority of the electors voting on the replacement, and that if the replacement is not approved by a majority of the electors voting on the replacement the existing tax will remain in effect under its original authority for the remainder of its previously approved term. The resolution goes into immediate effect upon its adoption. Publication of the resolution is not necessary, and the information that will be provided in the notice of election is sufficient notice. At least seventy-five days before the date of the election at which the question of the replacement will be submitted to the electors of the school district, the board shall certify a copy of the resolution to the board of elections.

The replacement tax shall have the same specific school district purposes as the existing tax, and its rate shall be the same as the tax commissioner's estimate rounded to the nearest one-fourth of one per cent. The replacement tax shall begin to be levied on the first day of January of the year following the year in which the question of the replacement is submitted to and approved by the electors of the school district or on the first day of January of a later year, as specified in the resolution. The date of the election shall be the date of an otherwise scheduled primary, general, or special election.

The board of elections shall make arrangements to submit the question of the replacement to the electors of the school district on the date specified in the resolution. The board of elections shall publish notice of the election on the question of the replacement in one newspaper of general circulation in the school district once a week for four consecutive weeks or as provided in section 7.16 of the Revised Code. The notice shall set forth the question to be submitted to the electors and the time and place of the election thereon.

The question shall be submitted to the electors of the school district as a separate proposition, but may be printed on the same ballot with other propositions that are submitted at the same election, other than the election of officers. The form of the ballot shall be substantially as follows:

"Shall the existing tax of ..... (state the rate) on the school district income of individuals and estates imposed by ..... (state the name of the school district) be replaced by a tax of ..... (state the rate) on the earned income of individuals residing in the school district for ..... (state the number of years the tax is to be in effect or that it will be in effect for a continuing time), beginning ..... (state the date the new tax will take effect), for the purpose of ..... (state the specific school district purposes of the tax)? If the new tax is not approved, the existing tax will remain in effect under its original authority, for the remainder of its previously approved term.

For replacing the existing tax with the new tax
Against replacing the existing tax with the new tax	"

The board of elections shall conduct and canvass the election in the same manner as regular elections in the school district for the election of county officers. The board shall certify the results of the election to the board of education and to the tax commissioner. If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote in favor of the replacement, the existing tax shall cease to be levied, and the replacement tax shall begin to be levied, on the date specified in the ballot question. If a majority of the electors voting on the question vote against the replacement, the existing tax shall continue to be levied under its original authority, for the remainder of its previously approved term.

A board of education may not submit the question of replacing a tax more than twice in a calendar year. If a board submits the question more than once, one of the elections at which the question is submitted shall be on the date of a general election.

If a board of education later intends to renew a replacement tax levied under this section, it shall repeat the procedure outlined in this section to do so, the replacement tax then being levied being the "existing tax" and the renewed replacement tax being the "replacement tax."

Amended by 129th General AssemblyFile No.28, HB 153, §101.01, eff. 9/29/2011.

Effective Date: 2006 HB699 12-28-2006