CINCINNATI — Hamilton County voters have passed an increased children’s services levy, according to WCPO 9 projections.
The levy, which was placed on the ballot in August by Hamilton County commissioners, funds Hamilton County Job and Family Services programs, including child abuse and neglect investigations, family reunification, adoption and foster care support. Last year alone, the levy helped more than 13,000 children.
The newly passed levy will cost homeowners $121 for every $100,000 in home value per year. The previous levy, which passed in 2021, generated about $81 million annually and cost homeowners roughly $81 — $39 less than the new levy — for every $100,000.
When commissioners Denis Driehaus and Stephanie Summerow Dumas voted yes to putting the levy on the ballot, they said it would generate $116 million per year. Commissioner Alicia Reece voted to abstain.
Reece proposed an alternative plan that would have raised the levy by only 10% while using a portion of stadium sales tax revenue to help close the funding gap. Neither Driehaus nor Summerow Dumas supported that.
The levy came after commissioners considered 15 different proposals over the summer. They narrowed those options down to seven considerations in August, before deciding on the ballot measure.
Driehaus stressed the importance of passing the levy in August, emphasizing that if the levy wasn't renewed by voters, the county would still have to legally fund children's services.
"If we don't pass the levy, we go to zero (funding). So I just want to be very clear: we don't go back to where we started. We go to zero," Driehaus said in August. "It would be catastrophe for this county because now where are you coming up with that money, right? ... The general fund would be devastated."
The now-passed levy was also endorsed by the Cincinnati Regional Chamber.
"Growing, thriving regions take care of their most vulnerable residents, especially our children, so they can get the care they need," said Pete Metz with the Cincinnati Regional Chamber.
