Cleveland Public Library v. Cuyahoga County Budget Comm.

261 N.E.2d 117, 23 Ohio St. 2d 27, 52 Ohio Op. 2d 83, 1970 Ohio LEXIS 368
CourtOhio Supreme Court
DecidedJuly 15, 1970
DocketNos. 70-237 and 70-240
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 261 N.E.2d 117 (Cleveland Public Library v. Cuyahoga County Budget Comm.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Ohio Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Cleveland Public Library v. Cuyahoga County Budget Comm., 261 N.E.2d 117, 23 Ohio St. 2d 27, 52 Ohio Op. 2d 83, 1970 Ohio LEXIS 368 (Ohio 1970).

Opinion

Per Curiam.

All parties agree that the amount of money available for distribution in Cuyahoga County under R. C. 5705.32 for 1970 is $14,500,000. There are nine public libraries in Cuyahoga County which are qualified under R. C. 5705.28 to participate in the proceeds of classified property taxes collected by the county.

If the “needs” of those libraries exceed the total proceeds of classified property taxes collected within the county, all of it must be distributed to the libraries, and none may be distributed to political subdivisions which, otherwise, might share in such distribution. R. C. 5705.32; County of Montgomery v. Budget Comm. (1953), 160 Ohio St. 263; Board of Trustees of Ross County District Library v. Budget Comm. (1958), 168 Ohio St. 108.

The Budget Commission allocated a total of $14,316,-996 to the nine libraries, $735 to Cuyahoga County and $183,004 divided among 36 cities and 21 villages within the county. The Board of Tax Appeals allocated all the available monies to the nine libraries, concluding that the ‘ ‘ actual needs” of the nine libraries for funds from the classified property taxes amounted to $15,356,965. The individual allocations to the nine libraries were then computed by applying the percentage ratio necessary to reduce the total to $14,500,000.

No appeal has been taken by Cuyahoga County or by any of the municipalities; nor have they filed briefs herein. Thus, all of the actively participating parties before this court are libraries, either as appellants or as appellees. All apparently agree that the total of the “needs” of such libraries exceeds the sum available for distribution. Each appellant asserts the right to a larger portion of the available funds, which claim, if granted, would reduce the monies available for distribution to the other eight libraries.

In their notices of appeal to this court, Cleveland Public Library (Cleveland) has complained of error in nine respects, and Cuyahoga County Public Library (Cuyahoga) has complained of error in seven respects. These claims culminate in the assertion by Cleveland that the board [29]*29erred in ordering distribution to it of “$7,468,340, whereas the board should have determined that the amount needed, and the amount distributable to it from the tax fund was $9,511,470;” and in the assertion by Cuyahoga that the board erred in finding that the total actual needs of Cuya-hoga are $4,450,495 instead of $5,420,306, as requested by Cuyahoga and in making its allocation to Cuyahoga on the basis of the smaller amount. These requests of Cleveland and Cuyahoga alone total more than the monies available for distribution.

The determination of the many claims of error advanced herein would require an independent evaluation by this court of the respective “needs” of those here competing for shares in the distribution of available funds. Some of counsel apparently seek to have this court weigh the evidence as to the comparative value to the public of the various library services provided by each, establish thereby a specific order of priority of “needs,” and then allocate payment in the order of such priority until the fund is depleted.

To the extent that such would involve consideration of the weight of the evidence, we stated in paragraph one of the syllabus of Ace Steel Baling v. Porterfield (1969), 19 Ohio St. 2d 137:

“Where it is claimed that a decision of the Board of Tax Appeals is against the weight of the evidence, the Court of Appeals is the appropriate court to consider that question, which involves a review of the whole record.”

As stated in Hercules Galion Products v. Bowers (1960), 171 Ohio St. 176, “it was certainly not its [General Assembly’s] intention to make this court a ‘super’ Board of Tax Appeals.”

An allocation of the nature here in question involves a factual determination and the exercise of sound judgment. Initially, the law imposes the duty upon the Budget Commission. R. C. 5705.32. Its powers of allocation “are broad and discretionary in nature.” State, ex rel. Cleveland Heights, v. Davis (1936), 131 Ohio St. 380.

[30]*30Upon appeal to the Board of Tax Appeals, its finding in this respect is substituted for that of the budget commission. R. C. 5705.37. Russell v. Akron (1940), 136 Ohio St. 566; Board of County Commrs. of Clark Co. v. Budget Comm. (1946), 146 Ohio St. 636; Lake County Budget Comm. v. Village of Willoughby Hills (1967), 9 Ohio St. 2d 108; Board of County Commrs. v. Willoughby Hills (1967), 12 Ohio St. 2d 1. Thus, the board hears and considers the controversy de novo. Budget Comm. of Lorain County v. Oberlin (1964), 176 Ohio St. 99; Brooklyn v. Cuyahoga County Budget Comm. (1965), 2 Ohio St. 2d 181.

Upon appeal from the Board of Tax Appeals to this court, however, another full scale examination is not provided. At this stage of the proceedings, the issue is simply whether the decision of the board is unreasonable or unlawful. R. C. 5717.04; Stritch v. Budget Comm. of Clark Co. (1942), 140 Ohio St. 495; County of Montgomery v. Budget Comm. (1953), 160 Ohio St. 263; City of Shaker Heights v. Budget Comm. (1955), 162 Ohio St. 545. In County of Montgomery v. Budget Comm., supra, at page 265, we stated:

“What ‘the needs of’ a library are is a question of fact upon which each library has the burden of proof. In the first instance, the trier of the facts is the budget commission. Where a hearing de novo is held by the Board of Tax Appeals, it then becomes the trier of the facts. Unless its determination of the fact of ‘the needs of’ a particular library is unreasonable, this court will not disturb such determination.”

The statement by this court as to distribution of the local government fund among eligible political subdivisions of a county in Bd. of Co. Commrs. v. Willoughby Hills (1968), 14 Ohio St. 2d 163, is equally applicable to the allocation of classified property tax funds among eligible public libraries within a county. We said there:

“There is just so much money in the undivided local government fund for distribution among the eligible political subdivisions of a county. It is difficult to attain absolute accuracy in allocating that fund. If the division made [31]*31by the Board of Tax Appeals is fair and impartial and is determined npon the basis of actnal need as established by the evidence, a reviewing conrt may not disturb the allocation. It is only when it is apparent that the board has proceeded in an unreasonable or unlawful manner that a court may intervene.”

From an examination of the record herein, except for apparent errors of tabulation and computation therefrom which will be discussed hereafter we do not conclude that the decision of the board was unreasonable or unlawful.

The decision of the board noted “* * * that libraries have a priority in the allocation of the classified property tax fund but that there is no priority between or among libraries in the allocation and that each allocation must be based on ‘actual needs’.”

Upon the basis of that statement, Cleveland asserts that the board erred as a matter of law. We do not agree.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Board of Trustees v. Williams County Budget Commission
75 Ohio St. 3d 520 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1996)
Cleveland Public Library v. Cuyahoga County Budget Commission
504 N.E.2d 421 (Ohio Supreme Court, 1986)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
261 N.E.2d 117, 23 Ohio St. 2d 27, 52 Ohio Op. 2d 83, 1970 Ohio LEXIS 368, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/cleveland-public-library-v-cuyahoga-county-budget-comm-ohio-1970.