It is not just federal elected officials who have dropped the ball for their constituents as they got tired of pretending to work on our behalf before their holiday break. In Columbus, necessary change was avoided when Senate Bill 271 and House Bill 263 failed to advance, stalling the effort to reform property taxes.

Nearly everyone agrees something must be done to protect taxpayers. But that knowledge has not translated into any sense of urgency.

“I’ve talked to so many of our seniors, and sometimes crying over the phone, regarding this property tax issue,” state Sen. Hearcel Craig, D-15th, told WSYX-TV.

Craig introduced SB 271 back in May.

State Senate President Matt Huffman, R-12th, says he gets it.

“Clearly we’ve got a system that is outdated and needs to be reformed,” he told WSYX.

But here come the excuses:

“It’s a complex issue,” he said. “It’s a politically volatile issue, and that’s why it’s hard for people to come to some consensus.”

Bear in mind, several property tax reform bills are stalled in committee. To take just SB 271 as an example, it’s been approximately seven months since its introduction. That kind of stalling indicates more than simply difficulties in coming to a consensus.

School funding in Ohio is part of the problem.

“Many school districts are underfunded. Many are way overfunded,” Huffman said. “We have some school districts sitting on 100-150% of the money that they’ve been carrying over from year to year; well that money should go back to taxpayers. The suggestion that I just made is going to have people running for the hills. They’re going to hate that. But most people would say why are you holding onto my money.”

What is he waiting for?

Lawmakers are elected to represent us in Columbus by working through difficult problems about which there will be a wide range of opinions. It’s their job. When they get back to work in the 136th General Assembly, in January, let’s hope they remember.