Letter to the editor: Streetsboro schools need tax support

Editor’s note: The Portager publishes letters to the editor from the community. The opinions expressed are published not because they necessarily reflect those of the publication but because we feel they contribute meaningfully to the local discourse on matters of public interest.

Streetsboro City Schools has a levy on the ballot and I hope people will vote to support the levy. I completely understand that the additional tax can be quite a burden on some folks, so I want to make sure people understand some important points regarding the levy and school funding. 

Ohio does have a Homestead Exemption for homeowners who make under a certain income and are at least 65 years old or permanently disabled, a disabled veteran or the surviving spouse of a disabled veteran or the surviving spouse of a public service officer killed in the line of duty. There are a few other situations that qualify as well. I would encourage anyone who feels they may qualify to look into the Homestead Exemption. 

A bond levy that was approved by voters to help pay for the construction of Henry Defer Intermediate School is complete and will be coming off our taxes in 2026, making our taxes go down. 

This is an operating levy, which covers all manner of school operating expenses, from salaries to utilities, transportation and maintenance expenses. It is not used for any permanent or capital improvement projects. 

Approximately 70% of Streetsboro’s operating budget comes from property taxes and only about 19% from state funding, and state funding continues to decrease due to legislative actions. Our legislators continue to increase the school voucher program, which effectively takes your state taxes that should otherwise go to our local schools and lets people use them to send their kids elsewhere, which is not only out of Streetsboro, but often out of Portage County. People who can afford to send their children to private schools should not get public funding from your tax dollars. 

Back in the 1990s, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that Ohio’s school funding program was unconstitutional, mostly due to its reliance on property taxes, but our legislators have failed to come up with any viable alternative funding source. Our current legislators also recently rejected an opportunity to increase the Homestead Act, whose requirements have been the same since 2014, which would have helped more people qualify for the program. 

No one likes paying more taxes, but I urge voters to point their ire and discontent at our legislators and not our school district, which is trying to do its best to provide our children with a quality education as economically as possible.

— William W Scott, III, Streetsboro