Personal Property Tax
General Information About Personal Property
Personal property is every tangible thing which is owned, except real property. Tangible personal property used in business was taxed. These items included machinery and equipment, furniture and fixtures, small tools, supplies and inventory held for manufacture or resale.
With the passage of Ohio House Bill 66 in 2005, the gradual phase out of personal property tax began for general business filing on machinery, equipment, furniture and fixtures. The bill wrote into law that no annual or new taxpayer returns, either form 920 or 945, are required to be filed starting in 2009 since the listing percentage was reduced to zero. Exceptions to the phase out include those who failed to file previously to 2009.
Telephone and inter-exchange telecommunication companies, as well as entities leasing property to those telephone and inter-exchange telecommunication companies were phased out in 2010.
After 2010, there will only be corrections from audits and continued assessment of penalties/interest on unpaid delinquent accounts. Unpaid delinquent accounts will continue to be billed for taxes owed.
In order to reimburse schools and local governments for the loss of tax revenue by the elimination of the personal property tax, the state provided funds through the commercial activity tax (CAT). Personal Property Reimbursements to local governments are set to decline in fiscal year 2012. Replacement payments to schools are set to decline in fiscal year 2014.
All questions, form inquires, and concerns regarding the personal property tax should be addressed to the Ohio Department of Taxation.
Ohio Department of Taxation
P.O. Box 530
Columbus, Ohio 43216-0530
(888) 405-4039
Impact of Personal Property Reimbursements to the Local Communities
The Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) collected by the State of Ohio provided funds to the local communities in the form of Personal Property Reimbursements. The decline of Personal Property Reimbursements and also Local Government Funds (LGF) will have an impact on each taxing entity. The reduction in revenue could force some entities to dissolve, merge or raise taxes so that they can continue to provide the services that taxpayers expect.
The impact of the elimination of the Personal Property Reimbursements to Allen County is 2% of the total revenue budget. LGF funds are 7% of the total General Fund Revenue for Allen County.