Section 505.481 | Unincorporated territory may be added to district - contents of ballot.
(A) If a township police district does not include all the unincorporated territory of the township, the remaining unincorporated territory of the township may be added to the district by a resolution adopted by a unanimous vote of the board of township trustees to place the issue of expansion of the district on the ballot for the electors of the entire unincorporated territory of the township. The resolution shall state whether the proposed township police district initially will hire personnel as provided in section 505.49 of the Revised Code or contract for the provision of police protection services or additional police protection services as provided in section 505.43 or 505.50 of the Revised Code. If the board proposes to levy a tax throughout all of the unincorporated territory of the township, the board shall request and obtain from the county auditor the information required for a tax levy under section 5705.03 of the Revised Code, except that the levy's annual collections shall be estimated assuming that the unincorporated territory has been added to the township police district.
The ballot measure shall provide for the addition into a new district of all the unincorporated territory of the township not already included in the township police district and for the levy of any tax then imposed by the district throughout the unincorporated territory of the township. If the measure includes a tax, the measure shall state the rate of the tax, which need not be the same rate of any tax imposed by the existing district, to be imposed in the district resulting from approval of the measure, expressed in mills for each one dollar of taxable value, the estimated effective rate, expressed in dollars for each one hundred thousand dollars of the county auditor's appraised value, the last year in which the tax will be levied or that it will be levied for a continuous period of time, and the county auditor's estimate of the levy's annual collections.
(B) The election on the measure shall be held, canvassed, and certified in the manner provided for the submission of tax levies under section 5705.25 of the Revised Code, except that the question appearing on the ballot shall read substantially as follows:
"Shall the unincorporated territory within ____________ (name of the township) not already included within the ___________ (name of township police district) be added to the township police district to create the ___________ (name of new township police district) township police district?"
The name of the proposed township police district shall be separate and distinct from the name of the existing township police district.
If a tax is imposed in the existing township police district, the question shall be modified by adding, at the end of the question, the following: ", and shall a property tax be levied in the new township police district, replacing the tax in the existing township police district, that the county auditor estimates will collect $_____ annually, at a rate not exceeding _________ mills for each $1 of taxable value, which amounts to $_________ (estimated effective rate) for each $100,000 of the county auditor's appraised value, for _______ (number of years the tax will be levied, or "a continuing period of time")."
If the measure is not approved by a majority of the electors voting on it, the township police district shall continue to occupy its existing territory until altered as provided in this section or section 505.48 of the Revised Code, and any existing tax imposed under section 505.51 of the Revised Code shall remain in effect in the existing district at the existing rate and for as long as provided in the resolution under the authority of which the tax is levied.
As used in this section, "the county auditor's appraised value" and "estimated effective rate" have the same meanings as in section 5705.01 of the Revised Code.
Last updated July 15, 2022 at 8:42 AM
Available Versions of this Section
- September 29, 2011 – House Bill 153 - 129th General Assembly [ View September 29, 2011 Version ]
- September 13, 2022 – Amended by House Bill 140 - 134th General Assembly [ View September 13, 2022 Version ]