State Fiscal Highlights
· No direct fiscal effect on the state.
Local Fiscal Highlights
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LOCAL GOVERNMENT |
FY 2010 – FUTURE YEARS |
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Counties and Other Local Governments |
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Revenues |
Potential gain or loss in millage |
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Expenditures |
Potential increase or decrease in mosquito district operating costs, depending on the size of district |
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Potential minimal gain in election costs |
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Note: For most local governments, the fiscal year is the calendar year. The school district fiscal year is July 1 through June 30. |
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· The bill revises the law governing the creation, enlargement, reduction, or dissolution of mosquito districts. By requiring that any such proposed action be submitted as a ballot question, there could be some minimal new costs for the petition process. Because in most cases these questions would be put on the ballot with other items, any new costs are likely to be minimal.
· These districts are funded by property tax millage assessed to property owners residing within the area of the mosquito districts. The millage collected and the operating costs of the districts would depend on the size of the district.
Detailed Fiscal Analysis
Overview
The bill establishes special procedures for establishing, enlarging, reducing, or dissolving a sanitary district organized wholly for the eradication of populations of biting arthropods. These are otherwise referred to as mosquito districts. Under the bill, before a court establishes, enlarges, reduces, or dissolves such a sanitary district, a petition must be filed in the office of the clerk of the court, signed by the lesser of 500 registered voters or 10% of the electors who voted for the office of Governor within the political subdivision in the most recent gubernatorial election in each political subdivision in which any portion of the sanitary district is proposed to be located. If the petition is deemed valid, the court must submit the question of whether such a sanitary district should be created, enlarged, reduced, or dissolved to the electors residing within the territory in which the sanitary district is proposed to be located.
Two examples of special sanitary districts are the Mosquito Abatement District (MAD) of Barberton and Norton and the Toledo Area Sanitary District (TASD). These districts generally operate from May until September, but depending on weather conditions, the time of operation could expand further. The districts attempt to abate mosquitoes through:
1. larvaciding known wet areas and roadside ditches;
2. adulticiding (spraying) routinely every two weeks to eliminate biting adult mosquitoes;
3. surveilling for mosquito-borne disease and mosquito populations;
4. educating the public about mosquito-borne diseases and mosquito populations; and
5. eliminating mosquito breeding sources such as standing or stagnant water.
Generally, such districts receive revenues through millage that is assessed to those property owners that reside inside the district. With respect to the MAD, the current charge for mosquito abatement is 0.36 mils. This would mean that the charge is 36 cents for every thousand dollars of a property's assessed value, or $12.60 per year for a home that the Auditor has appraised at $100,000. The taxable value of such a home is 35% of the market value, or $35,000. Thus, the annual cost for this house would be $12.60 ((.36 x $35,000)/1,000 = $12.60).
Petition and election procedures concerning mosquito districts
Under the bill, the court must certify a copy of the court order proposing to alter a sanitary district organized wholly for the reduction of populations of biting arthropods to the board of elections of each county in which any territory of the proposed sanitary district is located. The board of elections of each such county must make the necessary arrangements for the submission of the question to the electors of the proposed district on the day specified in the order and occurring not less than 75 days after the order is certified to the board of elections. The election must be held, canvassed, and certified in the same manner as regular elections for the election of county officers. The bill also specifies public notice requirements concerning these proposed actions. All filing, advertising, and other related election costs would be paid for, proportionally, by the political subdivisions seeking to create the district. Presumably, this issue would be placed on the ballot for the next election, thereby making any such election costs minimal.
