Jail, landfill hot topics in Columbus testimony

TIFFIN —Two big issues for Seneca County are affected by recently passed state legislation: the WIN-Waste Landfill and the county jail. For four months, county leaders have traveled to Columbus to give their testimonies, supporting more funding for projects while emphasizing local control and discretion. This month, the results have come clear. On jail funding On May 7, Seneca County Sheriff Fred Stevens gave his testimony on the state budget, which includes state funding for county jails. He presented his idea for equal funding across Ohio, saying the current grant application system "creates few winners and many losers across the state." Last week, it was announced that the Seneca County jail was awarded $124,000 in grant funds from Gov. Mike DeWine's Construction and Renovation project, specifically for security upgrades. This is the first time the jail has received funding in the past four years of this program. Meanwhile, Stevens said the Sheriff's Office has spent $2 million on repairs since 2021. Stevens explained that although evenly distributed funding might not cover new construction, "there are far more aging facilities with renovation/remodel needs than new construction needs." One of the biggest strains on the Sheriff's Office is inmate medical expenses, because mental health and substance abuse treatments are not covered by Medicaid while a patient is incarcerated. In 2024, the jail spent $83,000 on inmate medical expenses, a consistently growing portion of the jail's budget. Stevens' testimony also asked lawmakers to allow federal medicaid dollars to be used on incarcerated individuals in county jails. Seneca County Commissioner Bill Frankart backed the sheriff's statements in his testimony that day. He supported the use of medicaid dollars in county jails, particularly for inmates in pretrial or unconvicted statuses, and urged increased state support for jail construction and renovation grants. The grant funding will provide great relief to the jail, but it does not address all concerns. HB 96, the proposed state operating appropriations for the 2026-27 Fiscal year, was passed in the House on April 9. The Senate released its version of the bill on June 4, with significant changes. The bill was passed by the Senate on Wednesday. It has returned to the House for the final stretch of negotiations. The House and Senate have until the end of the month to agree. On local control of landfill The topic of the landfill is also top of mind, but is not directly tied to the state budget. The current SB 147, which has since been sent to the governor for his signature, and HB 222 would change the law about the transfer and disposal of waste to be more favorable to local control. Frankart's May 7 testimony also included commentary that Seneca County wishes to withdraw from the joint solid waste district and "to control their own destinies." Fostoria Mayor Don Mennel testified on the bill on March 25, stating that current state laws were "unworkable." Currently, Seneca County is part of a joint waste management district, a collaborative effort by Seneca, Ottawa, and Sandusky counties to manage the WIN-Waste landfill, located outside of Fostoria. The Seneca County Health Department says that it does not receive enough of the fees from the landfill to appropriately monitor it. Seneca County Commissioners attempted to withdraw from the solid waste district last year, but the request to withdraw was denied by both the Sandusky and Ottawa County Commissioners. Current state law states that for one member of a solid waste district to withdraw, all other members must agree. The Senate and House bills seek to allow one member of a solid waste district to withdraw even if the other entities do not agree to the withdrawal. If signed by DeWine, the bill would change state law to allow a member of a solid waste district who brings in 75% or more of the revenue to request to withdraw and meet with other entities in the district. If the other entities do not agree to the withdrawal, the requesting member can still withdraw after a time. Senate Bill 147 was passed with a vote of 90-2. "This legislation is critical for the health and wellbeing of our communities," said State Rep. Gary Click, R-Vickery, Chairman of the House Community Revitalization Committee. "Ohioans are rightly concerned about their quality of life as a result of the waste coming into our state, and this commonsense bill is a direct response to their concerns." Click and other members of the House and Senate have spent months hearing testimony about this issue. Discussion began on March 25, when Commissioner Anthony Paradiso traveled to Columbus to give testimony to the Ohio Senate over Bill 147, on the same issue. He was joined by Seneca County General Health District's Health Commissioner Julie Richards and Mennel. Richards specifically advocated for Seneca County to be permitted to leave the Waste Management District agreement. She believes the county will be able to retain the funds more efficiently. So far, Seneca County has developed a separate landfill division to train sanitarians and hired consultants to provide extra training and coverage. Both of these efforts come with significant personnel costs. Mennel expressed frustration that Seneca County has tried to leave the Waste Management District before, but was continuously voted against by the other counties, "shackling Seneca County into a district they oppose." The new bill would rewrite the procedures for managing the districts, allowing Seneca the freedom to leave. On the landfill's effect Beyond funding, another concern is the effect that the landfill has on life in the area. Frankart testified to the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee on April 1. He said the landfill does not fulfill the Ohio Dept. of Development's goal of "providing an environment for job creation and strong quality of life for residents." "Business-friendly is not always synonymous with community-friendly," Frankart added. He was followed by Dr. Clay Wolph, president of Seneca County Board of Health, and Robert Podach, Fostoria city councilman and vice president of the county's health board. Wolph expressed frustration the landfill files lawsuits against the waste district whenever it attempts to regulate the landfill. Based on current standards, the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency has sided with the landfill at every public hearing. He said, "The OEPA has failed us." Podach emphasized the landfill's unprecedented growth and its proximity to Fostoria. In many states, the landfill is required to fund Environmental Impact Studies to measure the safety of the landfill. In Ohio, the burden of the study falls on the health department. The new bill would provide more funding for these studies and allow the fees received from the landfill to be used not only for waste management but also to address health and safety impacts. Richards testified again on April 1, reading on behalf of Harold Huffman, the county health department's Director of Environmental Sciences and Landfill Oversight. Huffman was on site managing complications from two leachate spills at the landfill, and unable to attend. In his statement, Huffman promised the new funding would serve the residents of the county by modernizing landfill equipment and data sharing. He attached photos of puddles, piles of trash, smoke and dust from the landfill site. Paradiso testified in support of the current House Bill 222 on May 5. Paradiso made the point that, "Seneca County gets 96% of all its waste from out of state that is almost all construction and demolition debris material. Yet, it is handcuffed with a system that pays them only a quarter of the fees collected." On behalf of the landfill, Brian Ezyk testified to the Senate Community Revitalization Committee on May 20. He wished to clarify some of the points about the landfill and presented a list of facts for the consideration of the Senate. He said, "Over the past 18 months, the landfill has been inspected 392 times by local and state officials, including the Ohio EPA," Ezyk said. "These inspections have resulted in zero enforcement actions …This landfill is one of the most technologically advanced landfills in the country, and yet, is inspected more than any other landfill in the State of Ohio." Ezyk said the health department would make up violations after visits to the site, and urges the committee to tour it themselves. He said that since acquiring the landfill, WIN-Waste has "invested well over $100 million in advanced technology, personnel, and infrastructure. Today, the site stands among the most technologically advanced landfills in the United States, evidenced by the hundreds of inspections conducted by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency over the last year without any outstanding violations." He reminds the Senate that this bill not only increases taxes in Ohio but is unconstitutional. According to Ezyk's testimony, Ohio is the second-largest exporter of hazardous waste in the country because of the two nuclear power plants operated here. He urges the committee to focus on the benefits the landfill provides instead of the origins of the waste. WIN Waste is currently investing in gas collection and treatment systems to generate Renewable Energy Gas. Now that the bill has been passed, the new bill will provide for each of the three major issues discussed in the hearing. The bill allows for new fees for construction and demolition debris to support health boards that have waste facilities in their territories. Boards of health can use these dollars to mitigate impacts to health, safety and welfare. It also allows solid waste management districts to pass funds on to cities, counties, boards of health, municipalities and townships so they can mitigate impacts to health, safety, and welfare. Finally, the bill allows a county to leave a solid waste management district via resolution by that county's board of commissioners. If the bill is signed by DeWine, Seneca County can expect to see changes in how the WIN-Waste landfill is regulated and maintained.