Three issues on the May 5 primary ballot may affect voters in Oxford and surrounding townships

While many issues may appear on the primary election ballot on May 5 for voters across Butler County, there are three that may affect residents of Oxford and nearby townships.

If passed, one would provide continued operation of community programs and services at the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities, while the other two would provide funding for township fire departments.

Information on early voting, polling places and times for individual voters may be found at elections.bcohio.gov.

Issue 3

One levy all Butler County voters will have the opportunity to vote on in the upcoming primary election will be the third issue on the ballot.

This levy, if passed by voters, would be an additional levy to continue the operation of community programs and services at the Butler County Board of Developmental Disabilities. 

According to the Butler County Board of Elections website, this levy, if passed, would collect at a rate of 2 mills, or $2 per $1,000 of a property’s assessed value, continually. This would amount to $70 for each $100,000 of the Butler County Auditor’s market value of a property for a continuing period beginning in 2026 and first collected in 2027. 

According to the ballot language, it would generate an estimated $26,081,455 annually. Patricia Dawson, public relations coordinator at the Board of Developmental Disabilities, said this funding would protect existing supports, rather than expand or add new services. 

Dawson said the board currently has two continuous levies, which were passed in 2000 and 2004 to support services, although the amounts collected on these levies do not increase as property values increase. This means the board is still collecting the same rates on homes according to what they were valued at over a decade ago.

“Our revenues have stayed stagnant, and then at the same time, our financial obligations have increased significantly,” Dawson said.

Back in 2004, Dawson said 250 people were enrolled in Medicaid waiver-funded supports through the board. Today, over 1,200 people are enrolled in those supports without the board collecting any additional tax revenue.

At the same time, the cost for Medicaid waiver-funded supports has increased by 38%.

In 2025, the board provided services to around 4,300 individuals overall.

For individuals 3 or younger, this includes direct support providing physical therapists, speech pathologists and developmental specialists who may visit clients’ homes and work with parents or guardians to ensure continued support. After the age of 3, this includes case management through a team of service and support administrators who connect people with Medicaid-funded supports.

According to Dawson, expenses are “far exceeding” revenues at the Board of Developmental Disabilities, and if the levy on the May 5 ballot does not pass, the result would be direct cuts to services. Dawson said the most immediate department to experience cuts would be in early intervention.

“It would be a critical loss to a lot of people in our community,” Dawson said.

Issue 6

Voters living within Hanover Township will have the opportunity to vote on the sixth ballot issue to support the Hanover Township Fire District.

This levy is an additional levy that would collect at a rate not exceeding 5 mills, or $175 for each $100,000 of the Butler County Auditor’s market value assessment of a property for a period of five years beginning in 2026 and first collecting in 2027. 

According to ballot language provided by Hanover Township Administrator Bruce Henry, the county auditor estimates the levy would collect $1,639,327 annually for the Hanover Township Fire District. 

This levy, if passed, would provide and maintain fire equipment, buildings and sites for Hanover Township, pay for part-time and volunteer firefighting, communications and emergency medical service personnel and other resources.

This is the last collection year for the fire district’s most recent levy that was based on property valuations from 2016. The new levy, if passed, would collect an increased amount of funding based on newer valuations. 

This levy would support 98% of the Hanover Township Fire Department budget, according to Henry. 

The Hanover Township Fire District submitted another levy for the Nov. 4, 2025, general election ballot, although it failed by 142 votes. 

Since then, the fire department has been using some carryover funds from last year’s budget to maintain services, and the Hanover Township Board of Trustees voted to divert $300,000 from the general fund to the fire fund during a regular meeting on April 15. 

But Henry said if the new levy does not pass on May 5, there will be no alternative but to cut back on services. He said the department would begin by cutting back on personnel and the ability to respond to calls 24/7.

Paulette Johnson, Hanover Trustee Douglas Johnson’s wife, has been a resident of Hanover Township for 37 years and is currently helping to run the campaign to pass the Hanover Township Fire District levy. 

She said the levy is important for her to feel safe.

“If I needed to call somebody, I would hope that they would be there in a few minutes,” Paulette Johnson said. “If we don’t vote this in, we’re going to have to rely on other districts to help us, other townships to help us, and the response time will be longer.”

Issue 7

Voters living within Milford Township will have the opportunity to vote on the seventh issue on the ballot, which would be used to maintain the Milford Township Fire Department, including its equipment and paying volunteers.

The additional levy would be collected at a rate of 2 mills, amounting to about $70 for each $100,000 of the county auditor’s market value. The county auditor estimates the levy would collect $284,957 annually for a continuing period of time beginning in 2026 and first collected in 2027.

The Milford Township Fire Department’s current 5-year levy, collected at 2 mills and amounting to around $172,000 per year, expires at the end of this year.

The fire department has three other continuing levies from 1984, 1985 and 1987, which are all collected at the rates at which properties were assessed nearly 40 years ago and make up around $95,000 total.

According to information provided by Milford Township Fiscal Officer Mollie Hansel, the annual budget of the fire department is approximately $300,000 per year. Hansel said the reason for the new levy is not only to uphold the fire department’s budget once the current 5-year levy expires, but also to replace aging equipment, including a fire truck.

Hansel said the purchase of a new fire truck, which she estimated would cost over $1 million, would require a loan, which could not be paid back over the course of another 5-year levy. This means a continual levy is the only solution.

“We are hoping that the community supports this levy, but if it does not pass, our options are limited and we surely won’t be able to replace needed aging equipment,” Hansel said in a written statement.