Note on 10/20: PLEASE READ this insightful piece about the ballot language vs. charter language:
Pave the Parks? by Michael Earl Patton
This is the language that would be added permanently to our city charter, should Issue 22 pass:
Article VIII
TITLE: AN AMENDMENT TO THE CITY CHARTER OF CINCINNATI
TO ENSURE A SUSTAINABLE AND VIBRANT CINCINNATI PARK BOARD SYSTEM
Be it resolved by the people of the City of Cincinnati that a new Section 9 to Article VIII of the Charter is hereby added as follows:
TAXATION AND FINANCE
Section 9.
Beginning with the levy for the purposes of use in the year 2016 the council shall levy a tax of one (1) mill upon the real and personal property in the city, to be used to fund capital improvements to new and existing city parks facilities consistent with the following requirements:
(a) Revenue generated by the levy is limited to use for the following purposes: (1) acquisition of new parks department land and facilities; (2) capital maintenance of new and existing parks department facilities; and (3) payment of debt service on parks department land and facilities, including costs of issuing and managing debt instruments, which payment shall have priority over all other expenditures of levy revenue.
(b) Twenty-five percent (25%) of annual levy revenue shall be made available to the board of park commissioners for any use authorized in subsection (a) except for payment of debt service.
(c) The remaining seventy-five percent (75%) of levy revenue shall be made available to the board of park commissioners to be spent in accordance with a parks capital levy program recommended by the mayor and approved by board of park commissioners, including but not limited to the payment of debt service. The mayor annually shall submit a proposed capital levy program for expenditure of levy revenue for levy purposes, which program shall be subject to approval by a simple majority of the board of park commissioners. Upon approval of the capital levy program each year, the board of park commissioners shall have control and management authority over the implementation of the approved capital levy program. The board of park commissioners may amend an approved capital levy program with approval from the mayor.
In addition to and separate from the park capital levy revenue described above, council shall fund the annual parks department capital budget at an amount not less than 2016 funding levels, adjusted annually for inflation. For the avoidance of error, the capital budget funding level in 2016 is deemed to be $2,300,000 for purposes of this section.
This is Issue 22, as you will see it on your Nov. 3 ballot:
CHARTER AMENDMENT
A MAJORITY VOTE IS NECESSARY FOR PASSAGE
Shall the Charter of the City of Cincinnati Article VIII, Taxation and Finance, be amended to add a new Section 9 for the purpose of establishing a permanent source of funding to be used by the Board of Park Commissioners for capital improvements and capital maintenance, including the acquisition of new park lands and green space, upgrades to existing park facilities and equipment, bicycle paths, and lighting and safety improvements, specifically as follows:
(a) Establish a tax levy for the benefit of the Cincinnati Parks Department for the purposes of (1) acquisition of new parks department land and facilities; (2) capital maintenance of new and existing parks department facilities; and (3) payment of debt service on parks department land and facilities at a rate not exceeding one mill for each one dollar of valuation, which amounts to 10 cents for each one hundred dollars of valuation;
(b) Twenty-five percent of the annual revenue generated by such additional levy shall be made available to the Board of Park Commissioners for any purpose permitted by section (a) except for the payment of debt service on parks department land and facilities;
(c) Seventy-five percent of the annual revenue generated by such additional levy shall be used in accordance with a capital program recommended by the Mayor of the City of Cincinnati and approved by the Board of Park Commissioners; and (d) Beginning with fiscal year 2016, the Council of the City of Cincinnati shall appropriate no less than $2,300,000.00 per year to the Cincinnati Parks Department and such appropriation shall be adjusted annually to reflect inflation.