Ohio Governor Candidates Split on Property Tax Strategy

Cleveland residents Linette Roberts and JT Regan describe the same financial pressure: rising costs for gas, groceries, and utilities are consuming a larger share of their paychecks. Roberts noted that "just everything is going up," while Regan feels "ripped off" at the pump. These voters are looking for relief, a demand that has driven the platform of every candidate in the Ohio governor's race.

Dr. Amy Acton, the Democratic candidate, proposes immediate action through executive orders on day one. Her plan targets property taxes, energy bills, and housing costs. She proposes a working families tax cut that would return approximately $1,800 to a family of four earning $60,000. Additionally, she wants to establish a child tax credit of $1,000 annually for children up to age 6 and $500 for other minors in households earning up to $85,000.

Acton also intends to expand the homestead exemption and create an earned income credit. She argues that the state can afford these changes by reallocating funds away from special interest groups. "It isn't a matter of there not being the money; it's what you put the money to," she said. Acton also plans to renegotiate state debt to lower health care costs, describing the potential savings as "pennies on the dollar."

Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, who has declined sit-down interviews in favor of campaign stop remarks, focuses on phasing out the income tax over the next decade. He seeks to roll back property taxes to 2020 levels and then cap their growth. Ramaswamy noted that school test scores and other metrics were higher before the pandemic, suggesting a rollback is feasible without eliminating the tax entirely.

Ramaswamy points to his previous work with the legislature to suspend the gas tax as evidence of his commitment to lowering costs. However, driver Dawn Perry described the tax break as "depressing" and said she has had to cut groceries from her budget. Ramaswamy proposes paying for his tax cuts by reducing "government bloat" and consolidating public universities.

Libertarian candidate Don Kissick, running with James Mills, takes a more aggressive stance. The duo opposes property taxes entirely and wants to eliminate them. They prefer local consumption-based taxes instead. Kissick and Mills argue that lottery funds, which currently serve as a general education fund, lack transparency and act as a stopgap for other budget areas. They propose balancing the budget and ending "corporate welfare" for large institutions to save money for Ohioans.

The candidates present three distinct paths to affordability. Acton offers targeted credits and rebates funded by budget reallocation. Ramaswamy proposes gradual tax phaseouts and property tax caps funded by efficiency cuts. Kissick and Mills seek to remove property taxes from the equation altogether, replacing them with consumption-based alternatives. Each plan relies on different assumptions about where state money is currently going and how best to redirect it.