Issues 50 and 51 are levy renewals, so there’s no tax hike, and mental health and senior services stay the same. These are levies that even fiscal conservatives have not opposed. The Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes (COAST) has taken no position on it.
Even with the levy, Hamilton County services will still face cuts due to falling property values around the county. Even with the levy, senior services will still see a $7 million reduction from $104 million to $97 million, and mental health services will drop $17 million from $187 million to $170 million.
Commissioners decided not to allow a levy that would have kept each department’s funding the same — at an annual cost of $5 per $100,000 home valuation. But at least renewing the levy keeps some funding. That’s a lot better than nothing.