Ohio's New Village Dissolution Process: Key Provisions and Implications of House Bill 331
On December 18, 2024, the Ohio General Assembly passed House Bill 331 which created a new process for dissolution of villages in Ohio. This new process is in addition to the existing procedure for the dissolution of a village per section 703.33 of the Revised Code.
Newly created Ohio Revised Code Section 703.331 requires that once every ten years, in the year following every federal census, every village in the state will be evaluated to determine if it should be considered for dissolution by the voters.
In every county, the county auditor, county treasurer, and one member of the board of county commissioners will evaluate every village in the county to determine if, over the prior ten years, two factors have been met. The first factor analyzes what public services the village has been providing and the second factor reviews whether at each election at least one candidate for each elected village position has appeared on the ballot.
Regarding the first factor, more specifically the review will focus on whether the village provided, or contracted with a private nongovernmental entity or regional council of governments[1] to provide, at least five of the following services:
- Police protection
- Fire-fighting services
- Garbage collection
- Water service
- Sewer service
- Emergency medical services
- Road maintenance
- Park services or other recreation services
- Human services
- A public library established and operated solely by the village
Villages will also be asked to provide information to the reviewing county officials to assist in making the determination if the two criteria have been met. If the reviewing county officials determine that a village failed to provide sufficient services or failed to field candidates as required by the newly created R. C. 703.331, the issue will automatically be submitted to the board of elections to be placed on the ballot to the electors of the village at the next general election. The ballot will read: "Shall the village of __________ surrender its corporate powers?" If the electors of the village vote in favor of the village surrendering its corporate powers, the village will be dissolved.
Following dissolution of a village, voted village levies will cease. Village inside/unvoted millage will be up for grabs by other overlapping political subdivisions, including county, school district, and township. Determination of which entities receive this millage is subject to a demonstration of need and distribution of the millage must be uniform across the successor entity. This millage does not automatically go to the underlying township, instead, a petition to the county budget commission will likely be required requesting the county budget commission make this determination.
Township-voted levies will need to be reviewed to determine whether they would automatically extend to the former village territory without a vote. Finally, the township inside/unvoted millage will need to be reviewed to determine whether it needs to be reconfigured.
Additionally, other significant issues to consider include fire protection in the previously incorporated territory and the sale of real and personal property owned by the village, including the transfer of auto titles.
[1] In this context, the regional council of governments must be as defined in section 167.01 of the Revised Code and include three or more political subdivisions, at least two of which are municipal corporations.
