Voters to have say on new 2-mill police levy

by Melissa Martin

July 7 township trustees meeting

Hinckley Township voters will decide this fall whether to approve a new five-year property tax levy to fund police operations after township trustees unanimously voted to place the measure on the Nov. 3 general election ballot.

If approved, the 2-mill levy would cost homeowners $70 annually for every $100,000 of a property’s appraised value and generate an estimated $1.27 million per year, according to official certification received from the Medina County Auditor’s Office. The estimate is based on the township’s taxable value of $646.7 million.

Trustees elected to pursue a five-year renewable levy instead of opting for a permanent levy that would raise local taxes indefinitely. Should voters approve the levy in November, the township will have to return to the ballot every five years to extend the tax. This allows voters to decide whether the department is meeting the community’s expectations regarding the additional funding, township Fiscal Officer Richard Fay said earlier this year.

“We’re only going to ask for what we think we need to operate to the standard that the trustees demand of the police and what the voters demand of us,” Fay said.

Insurance costs

Township officials performed a thorough inventory of township property in recent months after its general liability commercial insurance premium shot up 28% in 2025. The goal, Fay said, was to lower the township’s liability insurance, which is currently set at $7 million, and to lower premiums by raising deductibles. Both avenues, he said, have been reviewed thoroughly both internally and by the township’s insurance carrier

Fay said the township’s insurance policy, which is held through the Ohio Township Association Risk Management Authority, was set to increase by more than $9,000 in 2026 to $125,000. He said the township’s broker immediately rejected the proposal, which cut $13,000 off the top. But to whittle down the costs even further, Fay said he spent two months working with the administration to tally the township’s inventory and explore additional purchases being considered for the next year. The township’s recent purchase of two new service department vehicles and other expenditures, including new fire hoses, he said, increased the township’s bottom line by $1.3 million.

“There was a lot of equipment that we felt was not covered as well as it should be,” Fay said, pointing to three of the five township fire vehicles which he believed were not insured for their full value. “These vehicles, if they have to be replaced, are hundreds of thousands in value. … So we worked with our broker to add quite a bit of insurance to make sure it was what we needed.”

Fay also told the board that raising the deductibles for collision and comprehensive insurance from the current $250 per incident to $2,500 per incident would result in additional savings for the township.

“The savings would amount to $7,000,” Fay said. “We would need quite a few accidents to substantiate that.”

As far as liability insurance is concerned, the township currently holds one of the highest values in the state at $7 million – an amount that is well above the $3-million minimum carried by 90% of OTARMA’s members, Fay said. Since large claims rarely exceed $4 million in the state, trustees elected to reduce the policy to $6 million in liability coverage for the next year.

With all the changes, Fay said the township’s policy for the coming year will be $17,497.

“That’s about $1,000 more than last year, with a more precise inventory, and significantly better coverage on our end,” he said.

The policy will be effective through May 2027.