Welcome!
We are pleased to introduce
The Granville Common Sense Coalition
Our Mission: To preserve American tradition in our schools, government and community.
Our Current Issue: We opposed the School Income Tax as presented in November because it was PERMANENT, and not TEMPORARY, as the “RENEWAL” implied. Most of us were prepared to support an Income Tax for 5 year periods, which would allow the community to weigh in regularly, or for the Board to adjust their ask as appropriate.
But we’ve learned more since November and question the need for a .75 Income Tax. We’ve listed some of our concerns below, with links you may want to check out.
The School Board, Treasurer and Superintendent of our school district are great sources of information, and you may want to reach out to them with your questions. You can find their contact info here:
(click for) Board of Education Contact Info
Postcard to Voters
We recently mailed a postcard to Granville voters listing our main concerns about this levy. We unfortunately made two errors in our numbers. The postcard text and corrections follows …
Did you know?
- In the November 2022 election cycle, it was noted that there was an $18,000,000 cash balance.
NOTE: ACES argues that a balance isn’t a surplus, which … of course it isn’t.
ACES argues that a balance is a natural occurrence when monies come in at once and are dispersed over time, which … of course it is.
As yet no member of the Board, administration or ACES disputes that there WAS an $18,000,000 cash balance. Instead they have created a “policy to deal with a cash balance.” - The current .75 tax is bringing in 30% more money than was forecast when implemented in 2018. It generated $2,000,000 more than expected just last year. The all income tax includes all income except Social Security.
To learn more about this, listen to the citizen comment at the December Board meeting, begin at the 25 minute mark:
[Click here to watch Board Meeting] - When this income tax was introduced in 2018, it was proposed by the school board to be for only 5 years – NOT a renewal OR permanent – but temporary.
- The Board of Education has acknowledged that a bond issue and property tax levy will be needed in the near future. There will also be a county property tax assessment in 2023 which could increase your property taxes by 20-30%.*
*CORRECTION: The assessment may increase the VALUE of your property up to 30%, which could increase your TAX by up to 5%.
How This Happened: The person creating the postcard experienced a 38% increase in their property taxes after reassessment, so didn’t catch that the card should have read “5% increase.” (Later they negotiated with the Auditor and eventually brought their taxes back down into alignment.)
Not only is it possible that your property tax could increase by up to 5%, it COULD be even higher, if you are that odd outlier whose property hasn’t changed hands in years or (obviously) if you’ve made improvements. MOST people will not experience a significant increase after reassessment and GEVSD will not receive more funds based on the reassessment. Ultimately ACES and the GEVSD CANNOT promise what will happen to YOUR taxes due to a property reassessment. - During the demanding Coronavirus years, other local school districts used funding to thank and reward staff members working with challenging protocols, providing education remotely and in-person for all students. Granville leadership chose to give bonuses to administration and NOT to teachers, custodians, bus drivers, cafeteria workers, and secretaries.
NOTE: The ACES committee strongly rejects this because “the Treasurer confirms that no COVID funds were used …” and in fact that would have been illegal. GCSC doesn’t suggest that COVID funds were used, but that funds WERE.
Where We Got This Info: This issue was discussed during a Board Meeting in the fall, and later confirmed verbally with teachers (who are NOT permitted to comment publicly on the levy.) We hoped to link TO that meeting when this information was originally posted, but it was not available at the time (the website said “due to a migration” of software or platform.)
We have been told that ALL Board Meetings ARE again available online. - The Board of Education’s proposed budget includes building a new elementary school on property to be acquired, likely in Union Township, to address future growth. This could divide our community, staff and our youngest population.
- These are unstable economic times and residents’ budgets are stretched. Last fall’s levy FAILED because it was disingenuously called a “renewal“ even though it was really a “permanent” tax. So, the Board of Education requested a special election this May,** costing taxpayers $40,000***. We community members bear the cost of poor decision-making. Why not ask for a percentage that is truly needed and not one that is bringing in excess income beyond projected needs?
**CORRECTION: The Aces committee has rightly pointed out that the Board did NOT request a special election; the election was already scheduled.
***Fortunately there were other issues on the ballot, and we have been told that the cost to the community is only $10,000 this election.
Where We Got This Info: The $40,000 figure was quoted from a Board meeting during which these figures were discussed. We have been told they later clarified that it’s $10,000 if the election is already being held. - The Board of Education will still have time to craft a new plan and put forth a common sense budget, since the current levy runs through this coming fall. The Granville Common Sense Coalition recommends voting NO on the .75 income tax renewal.
After reading the above, is .75 really necessary?
Vote May 2, 2023.
What’s Next?
These are the kind of Common Sense issues we hope to come together to address. We’re just getting started, and as a grass roots group of local citizens, we’re still figuring it out. If you have questions, comments, suggestions, or would like to join our email list, email us at info@GCSCoalition.com
If you’d like to support us, consider making a donation or getting involved.
If you’d like to make a donation online, click the button below:
If you prefer to mail a check, send to:
Granville Common Sense Coalition
PO Box 49
Granville OH 43023
Paid for by The Granville Common Sense Coalition.
The Granville Common Sense Coalition is made up entirely of Granville residents who are voters and taxpayers. To contact our leadership team, email info@GCSCoalition.com