For the purpose of paying the costs of enforcing and administering the tax provided for in this section; and for planning, constructing, improving, maintaining, and repairing public roads, highways, and streets; maintaining and repairing bridges and viaducts; paying the county's portion of the costs and expenses of cooperating with the department of transportation in the planning, improvement, and construction of state highways; paying the county's portion of the compensation, damages, cost, and expenses of planning, constructing, reconstructing, improving, maintaining, and repairing roads; paying any costs apportioned to the county under section 4907.47 of the Revised Code; paying debt service charges on notes or bonds of the county issued for such purposes; paying all or part of the costs and expenses of municipal corporations in planning, constructing, reconstructing, improving, maintaining, and repairing highways, roads, and streets designated as necessary or conducive to the orderly and efficient flow of traffic within and through the county pursuant to section 4504.03 of the Revised Code; purchasing, erecting, and maintaining street and traffic signs and markers; purchasing, erecting, and maintaining traffic lights and signals; and to supplement revenue already available for such purposes, any county by resolution adopted by its board of county commissioners may levy an annual license tax, in addition to the tax levied by sections 4503.02, 4503.07, and 4503.18 of the Revised Code, upon the operation of motor vehicles on the public roads or highways. Such tax shall be at the rate of five dollars per motor vehicle on all motor vehicles the district of registration of which, as defined in section 4503.10 of the Revised Code, is located in the county levying the tax and shall be in addition to the taxes at the rates specified in sections 4503.04 and 4503.16 of the Revised Code, subject to reductions in the manner provided in section 4503.11 of the Revised Code and the exemptions provided in sections 4503.16, 4503.17, 4503.171, 4503.173, 4503.41, 4503.43, and 4503.46 of the Revised Code.

Prior to the adoption of any resolution under this section, the board of county commissioners shall conduct two public hearings thereon, the second hearing to be not less than three nor more than ten days after the first. Notice of the date, time, and place of such hearings shall be given by publication in a newspaper of general circulation in the county or as provided in section 7.16 of the Revised Code, once a week on the same day of the week for two consecutive weeks, the second publication being not less than ten nor more than thirty days prior to the first hearing.

No resolution under this section shall become effective sooner than thirty days following its adoption, and such resolution is subject to a referendum as provided in sections 305.31 to 305.41 of the Revised Code, unless such resolution is adopted as an emergency measure necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, in which case it shall go into immediate effect. Such emergency measure must receive an affirmative vote of all of the members of the board of county commissioners, and shall state the reasons for such necessity. A resolution may direct the board of elections to submit the question of levying the tax to the electors of the county at the next primary or general election in the county occurring not less than seventy-five days after such resolution is certified to the board; no such resolution shall go into effect unless approved by a majority of those voting upon it.

Amended by 129th General AssemblyFile No.28, HB 153, §101.01, eff. 9/29/2011.

Effective Date: 06-27-1988; 03-29-2005