Xenia sued for misusing taxpayer money by commissioner candidate

Suit claims the city cannot spend money to promote tax levy

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By Christopher Magan, Staff Writer Updated 5:00 PM Tuesday, March 2, 2010

XENIA — A Republican primary candidate for the Greene County Commission, who said he identifies with the anti-tax Tea Party movement, has sued Xenia, its city council and city manager to get a proposed tax increase removed from the May ballot.

Virgil Vaduva, of June Drive, Xenia, filed a civil lawsuit in Common Pleas Court on Tuesday, March 2, alleging the seven-member council and City Manager Jim Percival acted fraudulently and misappropriated funds as they prepared to place a 0.5 percent income tax increase before voters May 4.

In his lawsuit, Vaduva claims Xenia officials should not have used taxpayer dollars to hire Columbus-based Avakian Consulting to help improve Xenia’s image as part of the city’s tax request or paid $4,000 to Wright State University for a survey that helps support it. He is asking the court to stop officials from placing the issue on the ballot.

“They’re skirting elections law as far as I’m concerned, using public funds to promote a tax increase,” Vaduva said in an interview. He also takes credit for creating the web log stopxeniatax.blogspot.com.

Vaduva is challenging Alan Anderson, a first-term county commissioner, in the Republican primary. He claims not to be part of the party system that he said controls all the countywide elected offices.

Percival said he had not seen the lawsuit and declined to comment on Vaduva’s allegations. “It appears this gentleman is trying to use the city of Xenia to further his own political aspirations,” Percival said.

Percival said the council agreed to hire Avakian Consulting after WSU’s community survey found 52 percent of residents polled felt the city had an image problem. City officials have also used survey results to support the need to seek more revenue to continue to provide current police, fire and road services.

John Mahoney, deputy director of the Ohio Municipal League, said there is a lot “grey area” over how municipalities can use public money to improve a city’s image or support a ballot issue.

“I don’t know that it is unusual,” Mahoney said. “It’s probably not unusual to be sued over it either, and there is not a lot of case law.”

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2342 or cmagan@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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