OHH board adopts higher tax rate, Whitmire resigns

OHH board adopts higher tax rate, Whitmire resigns

The Olney Hamilton Hospital board of directors voted on Sept. 26 to accept the resignation of board member Randy Whitmire and to adopt a higher tax rate as advised by the board’s finance committee last month.

The hospital district will increase its tax rate to .445670 percent per $100 valuation from .193134 to cover the costs of servicing $27 million in bonds earmarked for a new hospital building.The vote was 7-1 with board member Lindsey Miller voting against the tax hike.

The rate is higher than the 19 cents per $100 valuation that the OHH board told community members the district would require to repay the bonds before voters went to the polls to approve $33 million in bond sales.

OHH administrator Mike Huff and the hospital’s financial advisors said money for the new hospital would come from taxes paid by the Young Wind Farm and the Plug Power hydrogen plant. However, the budget for the new hospital ballooned to $42 million less than six months later and the board voted to cut the size of the new hospital by 14,000 square feet and eliminate obstetrics services starting June 1, 2025..

The board now must raise the $2.1 million to cover payments on those bonds, and increase the maintenance and operations tax to cover higher costs resulting from inflation, Mr. Huff said.

Mr. Whitmire, who has served on the board since July of 2020, submitted a letter informing the board that he was resigning due to “unforeseen circumstances.”

His term was to expire in May 2026. The board plans to appoint an interim board member to fill Mr. Whitmire’s term at a later date.