12/30/2025
Governor DeWine’s tax bill changes:
Ohio’s $3 billion property tax overhaul is designed to lower some bills, change how taxes are calculated and stop the sharp spikes that have frustrated homeowners in recent years.
But you won’t see all the savings right away. The catch is that these changes roll out over several years.
Here’s how the rollout works — and how to figure out what these new laws could mean for your bill, and when.
Changes coming in your 2026 tax bill
School property taxes are the biggest portion of most homeowners’ property tax bills, and House Bill 186 overhauled how they are calculated. It changed the rules for the 20-mill floor, the minimum amount a school district must raise from residents.
For example, if your home value rose by 50%, your school taxes in a floor district would rise by 50%. HB 186 will limit those increases to the rate of inflation.
House Bill 186 would change how much schools get in taxes when property values rise, and it would lower taxes for owners in certain districts.
You will see this credit on your second half tax bill in 2026. (See Photo)
Changes coming in 2027 or later
Another part of HB 186 won’t show up until property tax bills mailed in 2027 (for tax year 2026) and later.
This change shifted tax credits away from landlords and toward people who live in their homes.
Right now, the state pays 10% of every residential property’s tax bill through the non-business tax credit. Homeowners who live in their homes also get an additional 2.5% owner-occupied credit.
HB 186 gradually eliminates the non-business credit, moving those dollars to owner-occupied homes instead.
Here’s how that change will affect your tax bills beginning in 2027:
Tax year 2026/payable in 2027: Nonbusiness credit drops to 7.5%, and the owner-occupied credit rises to 5.70%
Tax year 2027/payable in 2028: Nonbusiness credit drops to 5%, and owner-occupied credit rises to 8.92%
Tax year 2028/payable in 2029: Nonbusiness credit drops to 2.5, and owner-occupied credit rises to 12.15%
Tax year 2029/payable in 2030: Nonbusiness credit drops to 0%, and owner-occupied credit reaches 15.38%
House Bill 335 also takes effect in tax year 2026, which means homeowners won’t see its impact until 2027.
The law limits how much inside millage — taxes local governments collect without voter approval — can grow when property values rise. Instead of rising dollar-for-dollar with home values, those taxes will be slowed, limited to the rate of inflation.
This is not a tax cut. Instead, it limits how much your taxes can increase in the future.
House Bill 129 is designed to push school districts off the 20-mill floor.
For decades, only certain levies counted toward the floor. HB 129 puts an end to that by counting more existing levies toward the floor
Other changes that might save you money:
House Bill 309 takes effect in 2026, but it does not guarantee lower property taxes.
Instead, it gives county budget commissions more power to reduce certain property tax rates if they decide a school district or local government is collecting more than it needs.
A county budget commission is a small panel that includes the county auditor, county treasurer, and either a county commissioner or the county prosecutor.
These commissions review local tax budgets and approve property tax rates each year. Under the new law, they will be able to lower those rates if they determine the collections are unnecessary or excessive.
Under a change passed in the state budget, school districts and local governments can no longer ask voters to approve emergency, substitute or replacement levies.
Fixed-sum levies will be allowed, but only in limited cases, including for districts in fiscal trouble or those affected by a state or federal disaster.
