FREMONT

Sandusky County Commissioners received mixed reactions from residents last week after they proposed an emergency 0.25 percent increase in the sales tax.

The hike would take the county's sales tax from 6.75 percent to 7 percent, starting in January. It would generate an estimated $1.3 million a year and automatically expire after three years.

Commissioners said without the increase, they'll have to cut $1.5 million from the 2011 budget. That will mean large-scale cutbacks and layoffs in many departments -- especially the Sandusky County Sheriff's Office.

Commissioners pitched the tax increase to residents at two public meetings on July 12 and July 16, explaining how the county's revenues have slipped since 2006.

Commissioner Dan Polter said the largest revenue shortfall is in investment income, which plummeted from $2 million a year to a little more than $200,000.

To fill the gap without wide-spread layoffs this past year, the commissioners took $1 million from a savings account and also instituted cuts across all departments.

The sheriff's budget is the largest draw on the general fund, but it also took the largest hit among all county departments.

Sheriff Kyle Overmyer had to lay off four employees and hasn't filled another four vacant positions. Road patrols are now down to two deputies per shift.

"It's kind of a tough decision," Polter said. "You hate to raise taxes but we've cut quite a bit and we feel we can't do any more cutting."

Some departments are down to bare bones, so there's nothing left to trim, Polter said.

Dipping into savings to get through 2011 isn't an option because the county needs to maintain a 10-percent carryover to keep its good credit rating. A high credit rating helps the county get low rates on borrowing for infrastructure projects, which saves taxpayers money in the long run.

"We've tried to bring it down as much as we can," commissioner Terry Thatcher said. "It's a sad way of going. The only way we can raise money is by raising taxes."

Without raising revenues, there's no way the county can maintain services, Thatcher said.

The reactions from residents at the public meetings ranged from somewhat supportive of the tax increase to emphatic opposition.

Retirees said they're living on a fixed income and can't afford another tax. Others said they understood the math behind the increase, but asked commissioners to keep in mind that everyone is strapped for cash these days.

The tax increase would generate an additional 25 cents on every $100 purchase. The state collects a 5.5-percent sales tax, so that would increase the county's take from 1 percent to 1.25 percent.

The last time the sales tax increased was 1989, when the county added a 0.5-percent tax to raise money to build the county jail.

Commissioners said the emergency measure will help them prepare for unexpected additional expenses that could be shifted to Ohio's counties when state legislators hash out the next state budget.

Currently, 9 percent of Sandusky County's general fund comes from the state's Local Government Fund. That fund, however, could be slashed as the state grapples with its own massive deficit.

Commissioners plan to approve the sales-tax increase soon so the county can count on it for 2011, Polter said.