Lawmakers Propose Sales Tax Hike to Save Lorain County Ohio Sheriff's Office Budget

ELYRIA, OH — With federal COVID relief dollars expiring and the Sheriff’s Office grappling with inherited debts and rising costs, Lorain County Commissioners are exploring a 0.25% sales tax increase to provide sustainable funding for law enforcement operations.

The proposed tax, which would generate an estimated $13 million annually, was discussed at two public hearings last week. Commissioners say the measure would effectively restore a sales tax that was eliminated in 2020, a move that created a funding gap temporarily filled by federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) dollars.

But with the loss of those funds looming, the Sheriff’s Office is projected to soon face deficits.

“If you take $13 million out of a $75 million budget, I think you can see what the cuts would have to be,” said Commissioner Jeff Riddell. “We lucked out because the federal government decided to pump money into the economy during COVID... and that money runs out this year.”

Commissioners are expected to decide in July whether to place the measure on November’s ballot. If they proceed, Lorain County voters will ultimately determine whether to approve the tax increase.

New leadership, old debts

At both hearings, Chief Deputy Tanya Czack, who oversees the Sheriff’s Office budget, outlined the fiscal challenges it faces.

Czack said that when Sheriff Jack Hall assumed office in January, the new administration found a budget with little historical data, more than $250,000 in unpaid 2024 bills and $1.8 million in accounting errors.

“It has not been an easy process over the last six months to make sure that we had every dime accounted for,” Hall added.

The Sheriff’s Office is operating on a $31.2 million budget for 2025, with costs expected to rise to $34 million in 2026, not including a planned prisoner transport unit that would push the budget to $35.5 million, the officials said.

According to Czack, the county is spending approximately $1 million annually housing prisoners from other counties and facilities who are brought in for court proceedings. Deputies who should be on patrol are often pulled off the road to then take those prisoners back to other jurisdictions after court hearings, or to supervise inmates at hospitals.

“Right now we take from the road... for any prisoner that is at the hospital,” Czack said. “That then ties up deputies that should be on the road serving the public.”

To address these challenges, the county plans to establish a dedicated prisoner transport unit comprised of armed corrections officers, allowing deputies to remain on patrol. While the creation of the transport team will increase personnel costs initially, Czack and Hall say the savings generated by reducing housing, medical and overtime costs are projected to outweigh the expenses of hiring additional staff.

Additionally, Czack cited several unavoidable expenses that contribute to the 2026 budget’s projected rise. These include: $500,000 in lease obligations, replacement of 67 bulletproof vests at up to $3,000 each, higher-than-anticipated jail medication costs, mandatory staffing increases for medical coverage and a 3% contractual wage hike.

How the tax would work

If approved, the measure would raise Lorain County’s sales tax from 6.5% to 6.75%. Of that, the county would receive just 1% — with 5.75% still going to the state. Czack said the proposed increase would add 25 cents per $100 in purchases, or $25 on $10,000 in taxable spending.

Public feedback at the hearings was limited but pointed. Only two residents spoke at the hearings — one resident at each — both offering strong opinions.

Patricia Borke of North Ridgeville expressed support for the Sheriff’s Office but questioned whether commissioners had fully explored potential internal budget cuts before proposing a tax increase.

Brian Baker of Amherst said he knows Hall has been working hard to get more deputies on patrol and he commends him for that. However, he believes lack of communication from commissioners about the county’s financial situation is making the Sheriff’s Office’s job harder.

“Help the people out here to understand why they need it,” Baker told commissioners. “You can’t say for two or three years ‘oh we’re doing fine’ and then all of a sudden ‘we’re going to deficit spend and we have to have this.’ It makes their job a lot harder to go sell this.”

Czack acknowledged the concern, emphasized the office’s dedication to transparency and pledged to look for any excess spending “all the way down to paper towels.”

“I feel confident in asking the public for this quarter percent increase,” Czack said. “We will maintain a level of service that our county is deserving.”

Sheriff Hall agreed.

“We just want to make sure that we’re accountable directly to the people who vote us into this office and the budget they provide us,” he said. “And this is the best way that we feel that that can be done.”

Easing the strain on the general fund

Even if passed, the tax increase would not fully cover the Sheriff’s Office’s growing budget — but it would allow the county to cap its general fund contribution to the office at $7 million annually. This would free up funds for other priorities like infrastructure, mental health services and addiction recovery programs as the county grapples with anticipated shortfalls of its own.

Commissioner David Moore recognized that the tax wouldn’t solve all funding challenges but would provide crucial relief.

“Is it enough to cover it all?” Moore asked. “No. But... it’s going to help us out with the deficit.”

Riddell said the conversation ultimately comes down to Lorain County residents deciding what kind of services they want, adding that when it comes to public safety funding, “this is not a benefit; this is a necessity.”

He said that dedicating the tax revenue specifically to the Sheriff’s Office — rather than placing it in the general fund — assures voters that they could take comfort in knowing where their tax dollars are going.

“History has shown us for the last decade or so that nobody likes taxes, but they’re more palatable when they are dedicated taxes,” Riddell said.

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