Tonight in Circleville over 30 residents and community leaders gathered at Gibby’s to kick off their campaign to pass an update and renewal of the Circleville safety tax, which provides about $2.4m a year to pay for Circleville’s safety forces: firefighters & paramedics, police officers, and local 911 dispatchers. The safety levy will be on the November 5th general election ballot. Campaign committee chair Jeff Coleman said “We’re gathering tonight to kick off sharing our message with our friends and neighbors: the safety forces have our back every day, so we need to have theirs on November 5th by passing this fiscally responsible renewal which maintains services while lowering taxes.”
The proposed update and renewal levy lowers the tax rate by 20%, which thanks to Circleville’s growth and careful stewardship of the city’s budget will maintain our current safety forces. Pickaway County Republican Party Chairman Travis Ricketts told supporters “It’s critical we pass the safety levy renewal. I’m proud to endorse the levy alongside my fellow Circleville Republican Central Committee members. We will not be defunding the police and fire in Circleville in November. I want every voter to hear the good news: the renewal lowers the tax rate by 20% because Republican leaders like Mayor Blanton and City Council are delivering improved services for less money.”
President Dustin Smith of IAFF Local 1232, which represents Circleville’s firefighter/EMTs, said “The safety levy was originally passed in 2019 to hire enough firefighters and police officers to keep the city and first responders safe. It succeeded. I’m proud to serve here in Circleville, and I hope we’ve earned the support of our neighbors these last five years.” President Ryan Mays of the OPBA, which represents Circleville’s police officers, thanked supporters saying “Circleville deserves safe streets, fast response times, and better code enforcement. Renewing the safety levy will help us accomplish that as we move forward under our new Chief and Safety Director.”
The existing levy expires on December 31st. If an update and renewal is not passed, safety forces staff will need to be laid off and services reduced to balance the budget. Mayor Michelle Blanton said “Circleville voters have an important decision to make in November. Passing the safety levy will maintain the necessary services and staff to keep Circleville safe. If voters reject the levy, I’ll work closely with Council to keep us as safe as possible while making the difficult choices of which services to reduce in order to balance the city budget.”
Local business owners Tim & Suzie Reeves praised the levy proposal saying “We are pleased to support the levy, which will lower taxes on our employees and neighbors while keeping us all safe. Being a small business owner means stretching your budget as far as you can while still delivering a great product. We are happy to see city leaders applying those same principles to government.”
Voters are invited to learn more and get involved by visiting the committee’s facebook page, Citizens for a Safer City of Circleville, or by calling Travis Ricketts at (614) 601-1913.
