BAY VILLAGE, Ohio – The mayors of Bay Village and Rocky River announced that their cities and local schools will receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in unexpected returned funds from Cuyahoga County.
They are not alone, as cities, school districts, and taxing authorities across the county will receive refunds of excess money collected.
Bay Village Mayor Paul Koomar, addressing City Council on Oct. 6, called it “good news from the county executive.”
Rocky River Mayor Pam Bobst called the notification “a love letter from the county.”
County Executive Chris Ronayne last week announced the return of $35 million in real estate assessment funds to cities, school districts, and other taxing authorities in Cuyahoga County. This is the largest amount ever returned after a reappraisal process, according to the announcement.
The funds were collected to support the county’s sexennial (every six years) reappraisal process. Through the adoption of new technology and modernization, the county improved efficiency and reduced costs associated with the reappraisal process. The extra revenue the county collected from the taxing districts will soon be returned.
The city of Rocky River will receive about $127,000 from the county. The Rocky River City School District will receive more than $533,000, the mayor told members of City Council.
“This is very, very good news,” Bobst said. “It’s surely very good for our schools.”
The school district is receiving more funds back because it collects more in property taxes. The city of Rocky River receives 7.34 percent of the property taxes collected, the school district receives 70.57 percent, and the rest of the collections fund other local and county taxing authorities, Bobst said.
Meanwhile, the city of Bay Village will receive more than $128,000 from the county, while the school district will receive about $428,000, for nearly $557,000 combined, Koomar said.
“We just received the notification,” Koomar said. “We don’t have the timing of when we’ll receive that, but I’ve not seen that refund happen in the past during my time on council. It was new to me.”
Koomar served for 16 years on the City Council and has been mayor for about eight years.
Cuyahoga County, on Oct. 9, stated on its website that the money should be returned by the end of this month.
“Returning these funds will provide meaningful support to local budgets and help uplift our schools,” Cuyahoga County Fiscal Officer Michael Chambers said in a news release.
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