As the leaves start to turn and frosty mornings return to central Ohio, your Franklin County Auditor’s office is hard at work protecting consumers and homeowners from fraud.

This fall, the Auditor’s office will unveil a new tool to protect homeowners from home title theft: a Property eAlerts system that will notify homeowners who register of changes to their property records maintained by the office.

While title theft remains very rare, this new system will help ensure the legitimacy of the approximately 50,000 home title transfers that the office processes each year by empowering homeowners to more closely monitor any changes made to their property records. Homeowners will still need to be diligent, and check their property information on the Auditor’s office website to verify that everything is correct.

The Property eAlerts system is just one of many initiatives the office has taken to protect residents from fraud. At county gas stations outside the City of Columbus, our Weights and Measures staff are inspecting pumps and ensuring you get every ounce of gas you pay for. In addition, our inspectors check the pumps for skimmers, which criminals use to harvest credit card data. All pumps that pass inspection have Auditor's office stickers with QR codes that allow consumers to quickly use their phone to report any instances of fraud.

Finally, the office has established a Consumer Fraud Hotline that residents can call at (614) 525-SCAM to report fraudulent activity, even anonymously. If the alleged fraud is outside the jurisdiction of the Auditor’s office, staff will forward the report to the appropriate office.     

As your Franklin County Auditor, I continue to strive to find innovative and effective ways to protect the residents and consumers of Franklin County from instances of fraud. It’s an important part of making Franklin County the best place to live and work.        

As always, if you have suggestions, I encourage you to contact me at (614) 525-5700, or at AuditorStinziano@franklincountyohio.gov.  

Ballot Levy Estimator

Ahead of the November general election, the Auditor’s office has launched an updated online Levy Estimator tool to help residents understand how the levies and bond issues on their ballot will impact their property taxes.

Levies and bond issues are on the ballot in several jurisdictions across the county, including: Franklin Township, Minerva Park, Reynoldsburg City School District, Truro Township, Upper Arlington, and Valleyview. The Auditor’s Levy Estimator has been updated to reflect the potential tax impact of the passage of these issues.

To use the Levy Estimator, visit https://apps.franklincountyauditor.com/LevyEstimator. After entering your home’s address or parcel number, the Estimator will show both your current and estimated property taxes if a levy or bond issue in your jurisdiction passes in the November election.

Early and absentee voting begins Oct. 5, and election day is Nov. 2.

Auditor’s office to Hold “Shred Hunger” Event Offering Document Shredding and e-Recycling Services    

The Auditor’s office is partnering with the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) and the Hilliard Food Pantry to host a combination food drive, document shredding, and electronic recycling event at the pantry. The free “Shred Hunger” event will be held Saturday, October 16 at 1-4PM at the pantry, 4410 Cemetery Rd, in Hilliard.

County residents are encouraged to donate household and nonperishable food items to the pantry. Suggested donations include canned soup, oatmeal, cereal, condiments, toothpaste, shampoo, and laundry detergent. While making donations, residents can drop off documents, CDs and DVDs for shredding. The event will also feature electronic recycling, where residents can drop off electronic waste like computers, printers, tablets, stereos, LCD televisions, tube-style televisions, MP3 players, batteries, cables, keyboards, cell phones or other electronic equipment.  Household appliances, vacuum cleaners, lamps and lightbulbs are not accepted.

For more information on Shred Hunger, visit the Auditor's office Facebook event here: https://www.facebook.com/events/2971345309753747

Legacy Smokehouse wins September True Transactions Award

Legacy Smokehouse in Hilliard has won the September True Transactions Award for its perfect record of using accurate scales and scanners in its sales of Texas-style barbeque cuisine.

“Congratulations to the Legacy Smokehouse team for their great record of using accurate scales in service to their customers. Legacy works with Weights and Measures inspectors to ensure customers get what they pay for, a sign of a great restaurant,” Stinziano said.

Legacy Smokehouse serves central Texas-style barbeque cuisine including brisket, pulled pork, ribs, turkey, and smoked sausages. It is located at 3987 Main St. in Hilliard.

Community Hours

Franklin County Auditor Michael Stinziano continues to hold weekly Community Hours meetings where residents can stop by and visit, or join virtually via Facebook @mstinziano, and share firsthand their feedback and ideas about the Auditor’s office or any concerns they have.

Community Hours will be held at the dates and locations listed below.

Wednesday, October 6 – 11:30am ~ virtual

Featuring Tropical Nut & Fruit in Urbancrest

Tuesday, October 12 – 10:00am – 11:00am

Worthington City Hall (6550 N. High St. Worthington, OH 43085)

Monday, October 18 – 10:30am – 11:30am

Columbus Metropolitan Library, Dublin Branch (75 N. High St., Dublin, OH 43017)

Thursday, October 28 – 12:30pm ~ virtual

Featuring Accra African Market in Minerva Park