From the Desk of
County Auditor Carri Brown
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Although it's bittersweet to see it go, I am overjoyed in looking back at the wonderful month of July in our community. The Lancaster Festival and all of its events were nothing short of spectacular. Now, we look ahead to fall happenings and the refreshed energy that seems to coincide with the start of a new school year. If you are sending your children or grandchildren off this fall, I wish your family all the best and an invigorating school year of growth and new milestones.
We have several updates to share with you in this newsletter, including the ACFR/PAFR report releases, a new lodging tax webpage, a breakdown of revenues by source from a county-wide lens, a recap of the Tax Review Council and more.
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If you missed a previous issue of our newsletter, you will find all of them posted online. We encourage you to visit our websites for ongoing updates and important information:
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Carri Brown, PhD, MBA, CGFM
County Auditor
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News From the Auditor's Office | |
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The Auditor’s Office is pleased to announce the release of the 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report and 2023 Popular Annual Financial Report.
The financial information within the Popular Annual Financial Report (PAFR) has been taken from the 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) for Fairfield County. While PAFR is relatively brief, the ACFR consists of more than 300 pages of detailed financial statements, notes, schedules, and statistical tables.
The covers of these reports feature Fairfield County parks and landmarks. The cover of the PAFR has historically featured a project of the Fairfield County Parks District. The most recent feature is Two Glaciers Park, which was first acquired in three parcels with support of Clean Ohio grant funds. The ACFR features a picture of the Foster the Future mural located at the Records Center.
Find both reports here.
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Did you know the Auditor administers the county lodging tax? Fairfield County has a 4.5% lodging tax that is distributed to the Fairfield County Visitors and Convention Bureau (3%) and the Decorative Arts Center (1.5%). Our lodging tax website has been updated to include how to register and pay; tax due dates; and several frequently asked questions.
This website was designed by Mesina Clark and Kayla Speakman from our Finance Team. You can view the updated site here.
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Revenues by Source - Governmental Activities & Expenditures from a County-wide Perspective | |
The top three revenue sources of county-wide governmental activities in 2023 were, in order of significance:
- Operating grants
- Property taxes
- Sales taxes
From a broad perspective, charges for services are also significant resources. These include real estate transfer fees; property tax collection fees; judicial fines, forfeitures, and settlements; and licenses and permits.
The primary government expenses presented here are reported in the 2023 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report’s government-wide statement of activities. The top three expenditure levels relate to human services, health, and public safety functions.
| 2023 Expenses by Function: A County-Wide Perspective |
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Tax Incentive Review Council | |
As of July 25, 2024, all Tax Incentive Review Council (TIRC) Meetings for Fairfield County have been held. There were five meetings held this year for multiple TIRCs for the following entities: Fairfield County, City of Canal Winchester, City of Lancaster, City of Pickerington, and the City of Reynoldsburg.
State and local governments use a variety of tax incentives to attract and retain business investments, create jobs, reduce blight, and pursue other goals. These incentives are used with the expectation that each granted incentive results in increased property value, investment, employment, payroll activity, and/or other economic development benefit. The TIRCs, chaired by the County Auditor, monitor the tax incentives and agreements and make recommendations to local municipalities about continuing the agreements.
Once the TIRCs make recommendations, they are presented to the municipality’s legislative body for acceptance, rejection, or modification. The legislative body must vote on the TIRC’s recommendations within 60 days of that municipality’s TIRC meeting. This year, all recommendations were to accept the reports and continue the incentives.
“The County Auditor’s website includes a summary of terms and definitions about Tax Incentive Review Councils, as well as minutes and agendas for each TIRC meeting as they are available,” stated Dr. Carri Brown, County Auditor. She added that some entities seeking grants have appreciated the ready access to the TIRC materials.
View more information on each TIRC, including membership, meeting details, and agendas and minutes.
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Map of the Month - Coffee Shops in Downtown Lancaster | Our August Map of the Month highlights coffee shops in Downtown Lancaster. A larger version of the map can be viewed here. Visit our social media accounts to let us know your must stop coffee shop! Thank you, Clayton, for putting this together! Learn more about Clayton in the employee highlight below. | |
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Mark your calendars and get out those school supply lists! Ohio's Sales Tax Holiday is 10 days long this year! Purchases of items under $500 are sales tax-free! This year's holiday lasts from Tuesday, July 30 through Thursday, August 8.
Click here for more information and to view the few items exempt from the sales tax holiday.
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Mod: Visual, Social, Cultural Renaissance for the 1960s
The current exhibit at the Decorative Arts Center is a blast from the past! Take a journey back to the iconic 1960s. Mod: Visual, Social, Cultural Renaissance of the 1960s showcases the decade’s influential social revolutions, which continue to shape our visual, societal and cultural landscapes today.
The exhibition features a variety of art mediums that include prints, record albums, furniture, housewares, media, décor, jewelry and clothing that reflect the conflicts and creative spirit of a transformative society. Here are a few glimpses of the exhibit, shared by the Decorative Arts Center on their Facebook page!
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Little Library - Under Construction | |
Our Little Library is currently under construction. Patrick, son of Nick, our GIS and Map Room Manager, is renovating the Little Library as part of his 4H project. We are grateful for Patrick’s work on this project and can’t wait to see the result.
In the meantime, the Little Library can be found inside the first set of doors (located off the alley) at our Real Estate Offices at 108 North High Street in Lancaster.
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Save the Date: Real Estate Summit - Serving Those Who Have Served | |
The Real Estate Summit is quickly approaching. Look for more information in our August newsletter.
We will be hosting a Real Estate Summit on Thursday, September 26, 2024, at the Fairfield Center in Pickerington. This event is geared towards those in the community who serve veterans. Topics include benefits and Ohio’s Homestead Program; the VA loan process; conveyance of property procedures; the mass appraisal process and Auditor’s real estate assessment webpages; and housing options for Veterans in Fairfield County.
This event is free and counts as 2.5 hours of continuing education for real estate and professional licensing.
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Summer Intern
We welcomed Bobby Fagrell as our intern for the month of July. Bobby will be starting his senior year at The Ohio State University this fall. He is majoring in GIS.
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Corn Hole Tournament
Auditor Brown hosted the annual office corn hole tournament at her home this past month. The teams came up with corny names and had a blast! Bev Anders (a retired employee) even returned for the day to participate in the fun. Our team looks forward to this event every year!
This year’s winners were:
1st Place – The Baggers and Braggers (Noel and Josh)
2nd Place – The Bag Bandits (Dave and Clayton)
3rd Place – Starchy and Husk (Crystal and Curt)
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Wherever You (Lo)Go
Our latest initiative is for take team members take photos while they are at various meetings or on vacations.
Kit traveled to Maui and took our logo with her! The record for furthest traveled with the logo is currently held by Kit!
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Getting to Know Clayton Finley
How we know he knows what he’s doing:
Clayton has 3.5 years of experience doing mass appraisal/new construction in 17 different Ohio counties. He has been working within residential construction since he was 13 years old.
Furthering his professional development, Clayton is involved with:
- NaCo High Performance Leadership Academy
- ESRI online training for general GIS knowledge and the use of ArcGIS Pro
What is your favorite aspect of your job?
Being part of a team that feels like family. And, learning how to use new systems and providing information to people to help them understand the information and what it is used for.
How would you spend your perfect day?
My perfect day would start with a walk first thing in the morning, followed by playing games and hanging out with friends and family. The cherry on top would be eating some delicious grilled food.
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1 - Heidi
11 - Joanna
22 - Patrick
25 - Clayton
27 - Makala
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Did you know we have over 4,275 followers across our four social media platforms? If you’re not one of those 4,275, you should join and follow!
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The mode response time for public records requests to the County Auditor’s Office is within one day. If you have a request, please contact Rachel Elsea at rachel.elsea@fairfieldcountyohio.gov.
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Frequently Used Forms
Most of the County Auditor forms can be found on our website. Special thanks go out to Angel Horn, Deputy Auditor, for updating our vendor forms.
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August Dates of Interest
5 – County Budget Commission Meeting
27 - State of the County
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September 26 – Real Estate Summit – Serving Those Who Have Served | | | |
Fairfield County Auditor's Office | Website
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