YOUNGSTOWN — Mahoning County Treasurer Daniel Yemma, a Democratic incumbent since June 2011, squares off in the Nov. 5 general election against Republican Wade Calhoun.

Yemma, of Struthers, said his priorities include making the payment of real estate property taxes more convenient, investing the county’s investment portfolio to continue earning a profit and as chairman of the Mahoning County Land Bank, demolishing blighted structures and helping those in need of affordable homes obtain them.

Calhoun, of Canfield, said if elected, he would work to enhance reconciliation processes and timeliness — which was an issue in the 2021 and 2022 state audits — as well as aggressively pursue delinquent taxes and efficiently manage refunds, and strengthen financial transparency through customer service.

After serving four years as chief deputy treasurer, Yemma was appointed treasurer by the Mahoning County Democratic Party in June 2011 to replace Lisa Antonini, who resigned from the job after being charged and subsequently convicted of a felony count of honest services mail fraud for not reporting a $3,000 cash gift on a financial disclosure report.

Since then, Yemma was elected in 2012, and reelected in 2016 and 2020.

Yemma said his office is responsible for the effective collection of property taxes.

“We have continually implemented and upgraded methods, such as electronic payment solutions, by which taxpayers can access and pay taxes in an effort to make it as convenient as possible,” Yemma said. “The amount of taxes, which we have collected, both current and delinquent, has risen for the past five consecutive years compared to the same period the year before.”

Calhoun said he plans to “intensify efforts to collect overdue taxes by employing effective and fair collection strategies. This will help in improving revenue collection and reducing outstanding liabilities.”

Calhoun said he would “focus on streamlining the process for issuing refunds to ensure they are dispersed in a timely manner, which will enhance the overall financial stability of Mahoning County.”

Yemma said his office, working with an investment adviser and the county’s investment advisory committee, has increased the county’s financial portfolio from $82 million to $230 million and the portfolio would generate about $8 million in interest this year for the general fund. Also, an additional $1.3 million in interest on the county’s bank depositions and operating accounts would go this year to the general fund.

As chairman of the county land bank, Yemma said more than 2,000 vacant and tax delinquent structures have been demolished since 2011 with the properties turned over to responsible taxpayers.

The shift is now toward industrial, commercial and brownfield properties while a state grant is used to address affordable residential homes.

Calhoun said he wants to increase transparency in financial operations and make financial reports and statements more accessible and understandable to the public.

ISSUES

Calhoun said a priority, if elected, is to address issues raised in the 2021 and 2022 state audits that the treasurer’s office didn’t reconcile county accounting records with cash bank balances.

“I will implement robust tracking procedures and provide comprehensive training to staff, thereby reinforcing internal controls and reducing the risk of financial discrepancies,” he said.

In a response to the 2022 state audit, Yemma wrote that his office was in compliance and that issues in 2021 were caused by “staffing challenges presented during 2021 by the sudden and unexpected retirement of a key staff member and the COVID pandemic.”

Yemma’s office hired an accounting firm in September 2022 to assist because of issues raised in the audit.

The 2022 state audit said its staff was going to meet with Yemma on June 14, 2023, to discuss findings, but the meeting was concluded “due to less than professional behavior by” Yemma.

Yemma was also convicted in October 2022 to a reduced charge of failure to maintain physical control of a motor vehicle, a first-degree misdemeanor, after initially being charged with operating a vehicle while under the influence.

Yemma received a 180-day jail sentence with 177 days suspended and ordered to participate in a three-day driving safety program. He was placed on probation for a year, fined $1,000 and had his driver’s license suspended for a year.

On his Vindicator candidate questionnaire, Yemma checked the “no” box when asked if he’d ever been charged or convicted of a crime, and if yes, to provide the charge and details.

Since January 2023, Calhoun has worked as a management consultant for Local Gov Consultants LLC of Beavercreek. He was also a senior consultant for HD Growth Partners LLC of Youngstown from February 2023 until this past August and briefly worked for Robert Half Consulting in Canfield as a contract consultant after his forced resignation in October 2022 as Canfield city manager.

Calhoun was forced to resign as Canfield city manager, after more than four years on the job, along with Kristen Ansevin as assistant deputy director of finance, for what city officials said were violations of the city’s code of conduct after an investigation was done. The two “resigned in lieu of discipline,” Chuck Colucci, the city’s police chief and then-acting city manager said at the time.