Delaware County disabilities levy passes with 58% of vote

Delaware County voters approved a levy for the Board of Developmental Disabilities (DCBDD) on Tuesday, Nov. 3, securing about $25.4 million a year for services that support more than 2,400 people and their families.

The 1.8-mill additional levy passed with 57.57% of the vote, according to unofficial results from the Delaware County Board of Elections, according to the Delaware Gazette.

Status: Unofficial results | Source: Delaware County Board of Elections | Reported: Nov. 4, 2026

The result reverses a stinging May defeat. That was the first time a DCBDD levy had ever failed, according to Board President Louis Borowicz, who spoke with NBC4 in October.

The stakes were high. The DCBDD's previous 2.0-mill levy expired Dec. 31, 2025, with final collections ending Dec. 31, 2026, according to the board's newsletter. Without a replacement, roughly 90% of the board's property-tax funding would have disappeared, according to a WOSU interview with Adam Herman, CEO of the Ohio Association of County Boards in October.

The November levy is smaller than the one voters rejected in May. That measure was a 2.7-mill renewal and increase that would have generated about $27.1 million a year, the Delaware Gazette reported at the time. The new levy costs homeowners $63 a year per $100,000 in property value.

DCBDD Superintendent Kris Hodge issued a statement after the results, thanking voters "for their continued trust and support," the Delaware Gazette reported.

The levy funds services including Early Intervention therapies for children from birth until their third birthday, family support such as specialized camps and home modifications, and Medicaid waiver programs that help with daily living skills, transportation and employment, according to the Delaware Gazette.

Hodge also clarified that the new Shared Services Building is a Delaware County project. DCBDD levy funds are not involved in its construction or maintenance.

The May loss by just 1.44% prompted families and board members to ramp up outreach. Lorrie Diaz, whose 21-year-old daughter Lauren has received DCBDD support for 12 years, told NBC4 in October that the defeat was personal. Lauren relies on a ramp and other equipment at home to manage a severe brain abnormality diagnosed when she was six months old.

"We wouldn't have any of those things," Diaz said. "It would be very difficult, if not impossible to provide care for Lauren in our home without the support and services they provide."

Borowicz told NBC4 the board had taken past levy success for granted. Prior to May, a DCBDD levy had never failed, and the board itself had not been directly involved in campaign efforts.

Eleven other Ohio counties had developmental-disabilities levies on the November ballot, according to WOSU.