Jerome Township Trustees are hopeful that a police levy will strike a balance between protecting their community without footing the bill for the entire county.
The board voted unanimously Tuesday to place a 1.1 mill renewal with a 0.1 mill increase on the November ballot.
The funds generated by the levy would be used to fund the Public Safety Officer (PSO) program that places Union County Sheriff’s Office deputies in Jerome Township.
Trustee C.J. Lovejoy described himself as “super pro-blue,” but said he is concerned about how much Jerome Township is funding the county’s deputies.
“Where do we stop?” he asked his fellow trustees.
Lovejoy said Jerome Township PSOs spend time in other areas of the county. He questioned why the Union County Commissioners and the Sheriff’s Office do not request other townships invest in the program, as well.
“What could that do if all 14 townships pitched in a little bit for the whole county, not just Jerome Township?” Lovejoy asked.
Sheriff Jamie Patton first proposed that Jerome Township add two additional deputies – a fifth PSO and a School Resource Officer (SRO) – at the Oct. 6, 2020 trustees meeting. Trustees voted to do so in January.
An additional PSO will cost the township $108,297.05 annually. Jerome Township will pay 25% of the SRO’s cost, $27,485.27, with the rest covered by the commissioners’ office and Dublin City Schools.
Lovejoy has previously questioned the funding mechanism for the PSO program.
He noted in January that every township in the county participated in the program at one point, but most areas have phased out the program. Instead, Jerome has added two PSO positions since 2017.
Lovejoy said he would “challenge” the commissioners to spread funding more evenly across the county.
“How can we increase law enforcement presence in all areas of the county by talking to each individual township, not just hammering us – hammering Jerome – because we have commercial (development) coming in and trying to go for a money grab.
“I’m not saying that’s what’s happening, but I do feel pressured,” Lovejoy said.
Trustee Joe Craft said he understands Lovejoy’s concerns, but feels the PSO program’s value in Jerome Township is worth the cost.
Jerome Township split the cost of its initial four PSOs with Millcreek Township, 80%/20%. The fifth PSO will be covered entirely by Jerome, but will provide coverage only to the township.
“I want 24/7 coverage,” Craft said, adding that he’s spoken with residents also in favor of expanding the program.
Lovejoy said he knows local residents support law enforcement, but their opinion on increased coverage will become clear on the ballot.
“Who’s knocking on doors asking for votes?” he asked the board. “(During the fire levy campaign) I couldn’t even go get gas without getting cussed out.”
Still, Craft and Trustee Chair Megan Sloat said they felt confident going to voters in the November election.
Although the language on the ballot could be confusing, trustees agreed that a renewal with an increase is the best option.
While it appears to be an increase to 1.2 mills, Fiscal Officer Robert Caldwell explained that the current levy is collecting at an effective rate of just below 0.8 mills.
With the 0.1 mill increase, the total levy will collect at approximately 0.9 mills.
The trustees did not want to simply approve a replacement levy of 0.9 mills because a new levy would not be grandfathered into a state rollback program that saves taxpayer dollars.
Caldwell said an entirely new levy would cause taxpayers to pay more out of pocket, as approximately 10% of the levy’s current revenue is paid through the state credit.
A plain renewal, though, would not provide sufficient funding, according to Caldwell.
Renewing the levy without an increase would force the township to use $150,000 annually throughout its duration, dropping the funds to $250,000 in 2026. Caldwell said that is below the six-month operating threshold.
“I’m not particularly comfortable with… really draining that fund,” Sloat said.
Caldwell said adding the 0.1 mills would decrease use of the reserves to $100,000 each year. He said that would leave 2026 reserves at $500,000, which is above the amount needed to operate for six months.
“It kind of sounds ridiculous but it makes all the difference,” Craft said.
Ultimately, the change would cost residents approximately an additional $3.50 per $100,000 of valuation annually, on top of the current levy’s collection.