Section 5748.04. Petition for election repealing tax

(A) The question of the repeal of a school district income tax levied for more than five years may be initiated not more than once in any five-year period by filing with the board of elections of the appropriate counties not later than ninety days before the general election in any year after the year in which it is approved by the electors a petition requesting that an election be held on the question. The petition shall be signed by qualified electors residing in the school district levying the income tax equal in number to ten per cent of those voting for governor at the most recent gubernatorial election.

The board of elections shall determine whether the petition is valid, and if it so determines, it shall submit the question to the electors of the district at the next general election. The election shall be conducted, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections for county offices in the county. Notice of the election shall be published in a newspaper of general circulation in the district once a week for two consecutive weeks, or as provided in section 7.16 of the Revised Code, prior to the election . If the board of elections operates and maintains a web site, the board of elections shall post notice of the election on its web site for thirty days prior to the election. The notice shall state the purpose, time, and place of the election. The form of the ballot cast at the election shall be as follows:

"Shall the annual income tax of ..... per cent, currently levied on the school district income of individuals and estates by .......... (state the name of the school district) for the purpose of .......... (state purpose of the tax), be repealed?

For repeal of the income tax
Against repeal of the income tax	"

(B)

(1) If the tax is imposed on taxable income as defined in division (E)(1)(b) of section 5748.01 of the Revised Code, the form of the ballot shall be modified by stating that the tax currently is levied on the "earned income of individuals residing in the school district" in lieu of the "school district income of individuals and estates."

(2) If the rate of one or more property tax levies was reduced for the duration of the income tax levy pursuant to division (B)(2) of section 5748.02 of the Revised Code, the form of the ballot shall be modified by adding the following language immediately after "repealed": ", and shall the rate of an existing tax on property for the purpose of current expenses, which rate was reduced for the duration of the income tax, be INCREASED from ..... mills to ..... mills per one dollar of valuation beginning in ..... (state the first year for which the rate of the property tax will increase)." In lieu of "for repeal of the income tax" and "against repeal of the income tax," the phrases "for the issue" and "against the issue," respectively, shall be substituted.

(3) If the rate of more than one property tax was reduced for the duration of the income tax, the ballot language shall be modified accordingly to express the rates at which those taxes currently are levied and the rates to which the taxes would be increased.

(C) The question covered by the petition shall be submitted as a separate proposition, but it may be printed on the same ballot with any other proposition submitted at the same election other than the election of officers. If a majority of the qualified electors voting on the question vote in favor of it, the result shall be certified immediately after the canvass by the board of elections to the board of education of the school district and the tax commissioner, who shall thereupon, after the current year, cease to levy the tax, except that if notes have been issued pursuant to section 5748.05 of the Revised Code the tax commissioner shall continue to levy and collect under authority of the election authorizing the levy an annual amount, rounded upward to the nearest one-fourth of one per cent, as will be sufficient to pay the debt charges on the notes as they fall due.

(D) If a school district income tax repealed pursuant to this section was approved in conjunction with a reduction in the rate of one or more school district property taxes as provided in division (B)(2) of section 5748.02 of the Revised Code, then each such property tax may be levied after the current year at the rate at which it could be levied prior to the reduction, subject to any adjustments required by the county budget commission pursuant to Chapter 5705. of the Revised Code. Upon the repeal of a school district income tax under this section, the board of education may resume levying a property tax, the rate of which has been reduced pursuant to a question approved under section 5748.02 of the Revised Code, at the rate the board originally was authorized to levy the tax. A reduction in the rate of a property tax under section 5748.02 of the Revised Code is a reduction in the rate at which a board of education may levy that tax only for the period during which a school district income tax is levied prior to any repeal pursuant to this section. The resumption of the authority to levy the tax upon such a repeal does not constitute a tax levied in excess of the one per cent limitation prescribed by Section 2 of Article XII, Ohio Constitution, or in excess of the ten-mill limitation.

(E) This section does not apply to school district income tax levies that are levied for five or fewer years.

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

Amended by 128th General AssemblyFile No.29, HB 48, §1, eff. 7/2/2010.

Effective Date: 10-28-1992; 06-30-2005; 06-01-2006