Serving Lucas, Ottawa, Sandusky and Wood Counties
Ottawa County commissioners will once again provide temporary property tax relief in the upcoming year.
Without meaningful reform from Columbus, Ottawa County residents continue to be confronted with the same burdensome property tax bill as they did in 2025. The county’s general fund receives two mills of the 10 mills available within the property tax. The 2024 increased property value updates and the pricing of real estate in the market have amounted to approximately $1.5 million of additional revenue available for the county’s general fund.
The county commissioners, for the second year, are asking the Ottawa County Budget Commission to collect only 1.5 mills in collection year 2026. This request will keep the property tax near the same as collected in 2024 and 2025.
County commissioners Mark Coppeler, Mark Stahl, and Donald Douglas, along with the budget commission, have recognized that while the county is a small portion of the inside millage, a reduction again this year is the appropriate action. The increased property tax generated by the inside millage and the 20 mill floor was not caused by any action taken by the recipients of said property tax.
The county commissioners and the budget commission acknowledge that this is a small part of a much larger problem. We encourage all other taxing authorities to join us and consider doing the same with a voluntary reduction of their inside millage and/or reducing the amounts collected on voted levies. By working together with the county auditor, our goal is to help ease the burden on Ottawa County property owners.
This decision is non-precedent setting and the county’s collection of inside mills will be reassessed in the upcoming years. It should be noted that other tax liabilities such as school levies, other political subdivision levies, etc. are not subject to commissioner oversight and without any voluntary reductions they will still be collected and distributed to the appropriate taxing authority.
While the county commissioners and the budget commission are endeavoring to provide temporary local relief, a permanent fix still lies with our state legislature. Ottawa County officials will also continue to work with the state legislature to find solutions to the issues that affect the entire state as well as those property owners exclusive to Ottawa County.
