By Erik Jones
A citizens group in Ohio has submitted a petition to the Ohio Attorney General’s Office proposing an amendment to the Ohio Constitution that would eliminate all property taxes on real estate in the state.
The petition was filed on May 1, 2025, by a group identified as the Committee to Eliminate Ohio’s Property Taxes. The proposed amendment is titled “Abolishment of Taxes on Real Property.” If it proceeds through all required steps and is ultimately approved by Ohio voters, it would add Section 14 to Article XII of the Ohio Constitution. The amendment states that “on or after January 1, 2026, no tax shall be levied upon real property in this state.”
The submission marks the beginning of a multi-stage process required for a citizen-initiated constitutional amendment in Ohio. The first step is a review by the Ohio Attorney General, who is responsible for determining whether the summary language provided on the petition is a fair and truthful representation of the proposed amendment text. The Attorney General has until May 9 to issue a certification decision.
If the summary is certified, the next step is review by the Ohio Ballot Board, which must determine whether the proposal contains a single constitutional amendment or multiple issues. State law requires that citizen-initiated amendments address only one subject.
If the Ballot Board certifies the petition, the group may begin collecting signatures. Under Ohio law, petitioners must gather a number of valid signatures from registered voters equal to at least 10 percent of the total votes cast in the last gubernatorial election. For the 2025 cycle, this threshold is approximately 413,487 signatures. Additionally, those signatures must be distributed across at least 44 of Ohio’s 88 counties, with each of those counties contributing signatures equal to at least 5 percent of that county’s gubernatorial vote total.
Only after all legal and procedural requirements are met can the proposed amendment appear on a statewide general election ballot. If a majority of Ohio voters approve the measure, it will become part of the state constitution.
The proposed amendment would apply to taxes levied on real property, including residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural land and structures. It would not apply to taxes on personal property, income, sales, or other forms of taxation.
Property taxes in Ohio are one of the primary funding mechanisms for public schools, county and municipal governments, townships, libraries, park districts, and emergency services such as police and fire departments. According to data from the Ohio Department of Taxation, more than $17 billion in property taxes were collected statewide in 2023.
The petition does not include a provision for replacing lost revenue from property taxes. Under Ohio law, the language of the petition must be limited to the proposed amendment itself and cannot prescribe or require legislative solutions unless those measures are explicitly included in the amendment text.
Supporters of the petition have cited rising property tax assessments across Ohio as a motivation for pursuing the amendment. In several counties, property revaluations have resulted in double-digit increases in tax bills. Various organizations and advocacy groups have raised concerns about the impact on elderly residents and households with fixed incomes. Some state lawmakers have proposed targeted reforms or relief measures in response to those concerns, including House Bill 28, which would eliminate replacement property tax levies.
Opponents of eliminating property taxes have argued that doing so without an alternative funding plan would jeopardize essential public services. In Ohio, the majority of school district funding is locally generated, with property taxes representing a significant share of that revenue.
The Ohio Attorney General maintains a public list of all submitted petitions for constitutional amendments, which is available online. That page will be updated to reflect the decision on whether this petition’s summary language is approved for circulation.
At the time of publication, the petition remains under review, and no signatures may be collected until the summary is certified and the Ballot Board confirms the proposal’s eligibility.