Governor veto may mean more levies

BEACHWOODThe Beachwood schools stand to lose more than $3.7 million over the next eight to 10 years, district Treasurer Michele Mills said.

The loss will come as a result of Gov. Ted Strickland's veto of a measure that would have staved off the elimination of tangible personal property taxes for school districts.

"We are extremely disappointed," Mills said. "The governor's evidence-based model does nothing financially for our district.

"It will force us to go back to the voters more frequently and will do nothing to reduce the overreliance on property taxes. It really is a shame."

The two-year, $50.5-billion state budget, approved last week, included a provision that would have permanently guaranteed school districts the same amount of funding they had received since 2004 from the state's former tangible personal property tax.

Under House Bill 66 in 2005, that levy was phased out and replaced with a new commercial activities tax on gross receipts of businesses.

During the transition, school districts and local governments were guaranteed to get the same amount of funding they received in 2005 from the tangible personal property tax through 2011.

After that, their guaranteed funding would be gradually phased out.

Strickland's veto continues the funding guaranteed at the 2005 level for school districts only through June 30, 2013. After that, the provisions of House Bill 66 return.

"We're trying to figure out what all this means to us," Mills said. "We have more questions than answers."

All district treasurers are required by law to submit five-year forecasts twice a year, Mills noted.

"With incomplete information, it makes it difficult to plan," she said.

Mills said the CAT money goes to the state, which will redistribute it to various entities, but Beachwood schools will not be one of them.

"In every scenario we've seen from the state, Beachwood is a grand loser," she said. "There are no positives for us....