WICKLIFFE, Ohio — Laketran is giving millions of dollars back to Lake County taxpayers over the next year due to a surplus of $22 million of COVID-19 relief money.
According to the agency, $12 million of its COVID-19 relief funds will be returned to taxpayer's wallets by temporarily pausing the agency's quarter of 1% sales tax, which was approved by Lake County voters in 2019. Starting in July sales tax in Lake County will go from 7.25% down to 7%.
“The COVID funds were just a little more than we needed and so to be responsible our board said let's give this back,” said Ben Capelle, Laketran CEO.
Capelle said the COVID-19 relief funds given in 2020 and 2021 were more than enough to continue smoothly running operations.
“It's not a small amount of money and good government you don't want to just have money sitting in a bank account,” Capelle said. “So, the board said the right thing to do is give it back to the community.”
Ken Jevec has lived in Lake County for 65 years and said it's been tough making ends meet lately.
“It's a shame to see the cost of living go up so high it doesn't have to be that way,” Jevec said.
Jevec thinks the temporary sales tax decrease will be helpful.
“Anything that comes back to the taxpayers is a good thing because we actually overpay to begin with,” said Jevec. “To have it come back to us is more than fair.”
The levy passed in 2019 will expire in 2029. Capelle said the levy will be back on the ballot for a renewal but there will be no additional taxes added.
