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Hamilton County Commissioner Todd Portune(Photo: Enquirer file)Buy Photo

The board that helps decide which tax levies goon the ballot in Hamilton County got a bigoverhaul Wednesday, with Democratic appointees taking over for Republicans and tea party activists.

The move to revamp the Tax Levy Review Committee is one of the first significant policy changes in county government since Democrats won a majority of county commissioner seats inthe November election.

"Elections have consequences," Commissioner Todd Portune, a Democrat, said before commissioners voted on the changes. "And this election has consequences."

Thecommissioners then voted 2-1 along partisan lines to replace six of the review committee's nine appointed members.The major changes include the removal of Cincinnati Tea Party founder Mike Wilson and Republican Dan Unger in favor of liberal and Democratic activists, such asBishop Bobby Hilton, a preacher and civil rights advocate, and Bond Hill attorney Janaya Trotter.

The vote Wednesday immediately transformed a volunteer board that had consisted almost entirely of Republicans to one dominated by Democrats.

The changes did not go over well with the last remaining Republican commissioner, Chris Monzel, who complained he'd been left out of the selection process. In the past, Monzel said, selections to the committee werediscussed publicly and applicants' qualifications wereavailable on the county's website before the commissioners' voted.

That didn't happen this time. Monzel said his aides reached out to Portune's office weeks agoseeking input about the committee, but no one got back to him with names of proposed committee members until Tuesday, the day before the vote.

"This is nothing personal. This is about process," Monzel said before voting against the appointments. "This is far too important a board to be thrown together at the last minute. To me, this was a completely closed process."

The proposal to make the newappointments did not appear as a regular item on the commissioners' agenda Wednesday and wasinstead introduced by Portune as a late addition. "I was taken aback by the entire process," Monzel said after the vote.

The Tax Levy Review Board is influential because it studies and makes recommendations about all levy proposals that require approval of county commissioners before going on the ballot. Although the board doesn't have final say, its recommendations about the need for a levy and the appropriate tax levelcarry weight with the commissioners and often are adopted.

This year, the board will make recommendations about the senior services levy, the indigent care levy and the mental health levy, which together raise more than $90 million a year.

Portune, who was joined by Democrat Denise Driehaus in approving the new committee members, said changes were made because the committee needed to reflect better the diversity in the county. While the previous committee had seven men, two women and one African American member, the new committee will have five men, four women, four African Americans and one Asian American.

Just as important, Portune said, all of the members are qualified and bring strong skill sets to the group. They include attorneys, a physician and a business consultant.

"These are appointments we feel very strongly need to be made," Portune said.

Outgoing committee member Unger, who joined the committee in 2005 and was its longest-serving member,said he had hoped to stay on the job. He said he wasn't shocked the new majority wanted to make changes, but he was surprised by the last-minute notice.

"I got a call last night," Unger said Wednesday. "I'm very proud of our work. We always serve at the pleasure of the commissioners."

He said the committee never approved an increase in a levy on his watch, and he expects that to change with the committee's new makeup. "It was always my view that more people will own more homes if we keep property taxes at a reasonable level," Unger said.

Several of the new members said they don't expect big changes, though they promised to study the levies with fresh eyes.

"I look forward to taking a look at how the county is distributing funds to make sure we're taking care of the people who need taking care of," said Hilton, senior pastor of Word of Deliverance Ministries in Forest Park.

Three committee members will stay: Gwen McFarlin, John Silverman and Mark Quarry. The six new members are Hilton, Trotter, JenniferO'Donnell, Bob Furnier, Jeanette Hargreaves and Ed Herzig.

The departing members are Wilson, Unger, Ed Steiner, Eppa Rixey, Heather Harlow and Chris Habel.

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Tax board overhaul: Dems in, tea party out - Cincinnati Enquirer - Cincinnati.com