2015 Cities Caucus

1.      Call to Order/Welcome/Introductions – Mike Beazley called the meeting to order.

Topics discussed included Non-resident Income Tax Legislation, House Bill 5, ShareOhio, Regional Water Authority.

        

2.      Election of Representatives to the serve on the TMACOG Board of Trustees – There were three Trustees and three Alternates that were elected. The Trustees nominated were James Bagdonas, Mayor Craig Stough, and Council Member Thomas Mackin. The Alternates nominated were Mayor Eric Keckler, Council Member Angie Ruiz, and Council Member Mary Westpahl. A motion was made by Council Member Chuck Larkins to approve these nominees to the TMACOG Board of Trustees, and it was second by Mayor Lori Brodie. The motion passed.

        

3. Introduce Discussion Topics

·         Non-resident Income Tax Legislation – Mike Beazley had explained that those cities that have a lot of commuters that come to their city to work will be negatively impacted.  The consensus of the group was that most cities would be hurt by this. If funding sources keep being taken away, then cities will have to cut back on services. Mayor Craig Stough mentioned that this is a compromise from what has been previously proposed.

·         HB5 Tweaks Scheduled in Budget Bill – Mayor Craig Stough was concerned with the five-year loss carryover, but Mike Beazley felt that most communities were not going to be too affected by it. Mayor Dick Edwards asked if anyone had done a financial analysis on how HB5 will impact their communities, and he said that it was not looking good for his community (Bowling Green). Mike Beazley said that they (Oregon) had done one too, but it will be difficult to really know how it will impact cities until the bill is in place and the nuts and bolts are figured out. Then they will have a better understanding of where they stand financially.  It was said that jurisdictions could benefit from sessions to help them understand new rules and to modify city codes accordingly.

·         ShareOhio – David Gedeon commented on ShareOhio which is a program that the state has put together to allow for agencies to share resources with one another through an online system.

·         Regional Water – Mike Beazley shared with the group that the City of Oregon is switching to ozone treatment for their water system. There was group discussion about the Regional Water Study status and it was noted that it is ongoing. There was a suggestion to relook at the different models used in other regions, because that part of the study was complete prior to the August Water Crisis.  Mayor Stough said that redundancy is needed in regional systems to avoid distribution issues. Sandy Spang commented on the need to restore confidence in the system after the water crisis.  Tom Brown mentioned that when he was mayor of Port Clinton he had to double the rates just for the upkeep of the infrastructure, and then it was about a 4% increase every year just to keep up with the system’s needs. Council Member Sandy Spang mentioned that one way to keep the rates down for those in need is to offer discounts. The City of Toledo offers a 25% discount for seniors and disabled. Mike Beazley commented that if the rates keep going up at the rate that they are, then other jurisdictions could be looking for more options in how they get their water. There is a high cost to supply water, but it could be beneficial long term to build redundant systems.    

        

4. Next Steps

        

5. Adjourn – Mike Beazley adjourned the meeting.

Toledo Metropolitan Area Council of Governments | www.tmacog.org