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Will Franklin County tax cigarettes to fund arts and culture projects?
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — A few Ohio counties will soon be allowed to levy a cigarette tax to pay for local arts and culture programming.
Signed by Gov. Mike DeWine last month, the next two-year, $60 billion operating budget allows Ohio counties with charter governments or populations of more than 800,000 to ask voters to approve a local cigarette tax benefiting arts and culture projects, like for local theaters, art institutes, orchestras, festivals, sports facilities, dance studios, farmers markets, and more.
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The measure applies to Franklin, Summit and Hamilton counties, while other Ohio counties aren't home to populations that are large enough. Delaware County, for example, has a population of about 242,000 and will not be eligible. Still, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners has yet to decide if such a tax will be explored in the county.
'While we have been following the Ohio state budgeting process closely, we have not yet had any discussions about permissive authority in the budget for counties to levy a cigarette tax if approved by voters,' the board said in a statement. 'We will be reviewing this once the county budget process begins in the fall for fiscal year 2026.'
The budget expands a funding tool used in Cuyahoga County for nearly 20 years. Voters passed the 10-year cigarette tax in 2006, renewed it for another decade in 2015, then expanded it in 2024. Since then, the tax has generated more than $260 million.
The Cuyahoga Arts & Culture organization manages these funds and is solely operated by the tax on cigarettes sold in the county. The organization has distributed 95% of the funding, more than $257 million, to other county groups, companies, nonprofits and more through about 4,000 grants supporting arts and culture.
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Like in Cuyahoga, the budget does not impose a direct tax. Instead, it allows Franklin, Summit and Hamilton county commissioners to place a tax proposal on the ballot. If approved by voters, the revenue must be used specifically for local arts and cultural programs. Each county would be responsible for establishing a group to oversee the funds, like Cuyahoga Arts & Culture.
The governor had also called for an additional cigarette tax to be included in the budget, funding the state's child tax credit. However, the proposal, which would have increased statewide taxes on cigarettes from $1.60 to $3.10 per pack, never advanced after Statehouse Republicans argued the tax would be an unreliable source of revenue.
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