Council asked to endorse FCS income tax

FINDLAY — Findlay Council is expected to vote today on a resolution supporting the city schools' ballot request for a 1% earned income tax. Five council members, including Beth Warnecke, R-3, Dan DeArment, R-4, and all three Republican at-large councilmen, Randy Greeno, Grant Russel, and Jeff Wobser, requested that the resolution be placed on today's agenda. Council meets at 6 p.m. at the Findlay Municipal Building, 318 Dorney Plaza. All council meetings are open to the public and are livestreamed on the city's YouTube channel: Findlay Ohio. In a letter to council dated April 9 and signed by all five members, the group said, "Strong schools are a foundational element of a healthy and thriving community." "The city of Findlay may have world-class infrastructure - streets, utilities, parks - and provide best-in-class police and fire services, but without strong schools, the city's future will be bleak," the letter states. "After all, nobody ever moved to a city because they had 'great sewers ...'" The letter goes on to say that people who have a choice decide where to live based on the quality of schools. "Simply put, the city of Findlay has a vested interest in the success of Findlay City Schools. As goes the Findlay City Schools, so goes the city of Findlay, our common interests and our community," the letter states. School district voters are being asked to approve a 1% tax on earned income in the primary election. Early voting in the primary started April 8. Election Day is May 6. An earned income tax means the tax will be paid by school district residents with earned income, such as salaries, wages or self-employment income. Social Security payments, pensions, retirement income, child support, unemployment benefits and investment income would not be subject to the tax. The tax is expected to generate $13 million each year for district operations. A district request for the same tax was defeated by 52.18 % of the vote in November 2024. The school board then voted in January to approve $6 million in budget cuts for next school year. Should voters reject the tax again, Findlay Schools are projecting a $12.7 million deficit by the 2026-27 school year, with the board planning an additional $4 million in cuts that year. Voters last approved additional operating money for the school district in 2004, with a five-year, 5.9-mill levy. In May 2014, voters agreed to make that levy permanent. Mayor Christina Muryn endorsed the tax in her State of the City address on Feb. 12, stressing the importance of the school district's financial stability. She said, "Strong schools, in general, are core to a strong community." Muryn said the city schools have been managing their expenses on a revenue level from 20 years ago. "If we want to attract good teachers, we need to increase their pay. To get students to school, so they aren't out causing trouble, we need to bus them to school," Muryn said. "If we want to attract high performers that are going to fill the jobs that we want in this community, we have to make sure when they are looking to come here and they say, 'Ok, it's safe. Do they have good schools and can I find a house?' And if we can't mark those three boxes, they're not going to be able to come here. And if we can't get the right workers here, we're not going to be able to get the right businesses here. So, I definitely support it. We have to pass it."