Buckeye Reporter

On Tuesday, The Buckeye Institute testified before the Ohio House Government Oversight Committee on the policies in Ohio House Bill 331, which ensures that village governments that are unable to provide core services to their residents are held accountable. The bill also makes it easier for village residents to vote on whether to dissolve their local government.

"In his testimony, Greg R. Lawson, a research fellow at The Buckeye Institute, noted the policy recommendations Buckeye has outlined to make local governments more efficient and less expensive, 'including ground-up consolidation and innovative ways to eliminate state mandates on local governments, strategically use state financial assistance, and responsibly share local revenues and resources.'"

"The policies in House Bill 331 advance these commonsense reforms by establishing a 'process to determine whether Ohio villages meet the needs of their taxpaying constituents.' Through a process that assesses whether core services—such as public safety and road maintenance—are provided in each village and whether at least one candidate is running for each elected village position, county budget commissioners will initiate a review that will protect village taxpayers and give village voters a greater say in whether to dissolve their local government. The bill also ensures that if village residents vote to dissolve their government, the local township will assume responsibility for providing government services."

"Lawson pointed out that the House Bill 331 process 'replaces the time-consuming, cumbersome task of gathering enough community signatures to even hold a vote' and gives village residents 'the last word in how much and what kind of government they want.'"