By Cindi Andrews
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Hamilton County's Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities board delayed deciding what size levy to request after raising concerns at a meeting Tuesday that politics - not clients' needs - were driving the discussion.

Superintendent Cheryl Phipps reluctantly recommended seeking a 4.33-mill levy in November to pay for the care and housing of the mentally retarded.

That's a 23 percent increase over the current levy and would raise the annual tax on a $100,000 home from $90 to $110.

But that increase would still require service cuts, Phipps said.

The number of people needing services grew 40 percent in the past five years, to 5,019, and the growth is expected to continue. Aging parents are increasingly turning to the agency to care for their mentally retarded children.

The current levy generates $53.2 million, accounting for 73 percent of the total budget.

Phipps rejected several cuts recommended by Maximus, an outside consultant hired to review the agency's books. She agreed to two service reductions, however:

• Cutting by 10 percent services to all adult clients not on Medicaid.

• Eliminating the preschool program, which costs about $30,000 a year per student.

"We've been told that we absolutely cannot get the levy we need to avoid cuts," Phipps said.

Commissioners - who ultimately decide whether to put a levy on the ballot, and at what rate - set a goal last year of holding tax increases to inflation, currently 2.1 percent a year.

"We seem to be forgetting what the clients need," board member Gregory Webb said.

The board did not vote on Phipps' recommendation, which was half the increase the agency first estimated it would need for the next five years. The board will meet again May 4 to decide the issue.

The board did unanimously reject Maximus' recommendation for a 15 percent levy increase.

Maximus officials "were under orders from the county not to increase any more than they did," Phipps said.

The levy request is due May 6 to the Tax Levy Review Committee.

E-mail candrews@enquirer.com