Lakewood Finance Committee Meeting – February 25, 2026
Lakewood Finance Committee Meeting – February 25, 2026
Note on date: The raw transcript references a February 9, 2026 committee meeting, but the meeting is specified as occurring on February 25, 2026. The summary uses the provided date while reflecting the content of the transcript. No minutes were available.
The Finance Committee reviewed two main agenda items: establishing a Host Community Cannabis Fund (Ordinance 15‑2026) and repealing or revising the Audit Committee (Ordinance 27‑2025). Both items were deferred for further refinement.
Consent Calendar
- The minutes of the February 9, 2026 Finance Committee meeting were approved without objection.
Discussion Items
1. Host Community Cannabis Fund (Ordinance 15‑2026)
- Council President Kepple and Vice President Baker introduced a communication to create a dedicated fund for cannabis tax revenues. Ohio voters approved Issue 2 in November 2023 with over 81% support in Lakewood. The state imposes a 10% tax on adult‑use cannabis, with 3.6% directed to host communities. Lakewood has received $743,407.77 to date and expects around $500,000 annually.
- Finance Director Mahoney explained that the ordinance would establish the fund but not authorize spending; a separate appropriation ordinance would be needed.
- Councilmember Strebig proposed expanding authorized expenditures from “public safety” to “public health and safety,” including the Lakewood Community Health Needs Assessment and adding “wellness” to capital improvements related to accessibility, equity, and wellness.
- Human Services Director Barry testified about recent cuts to the county’s community‑based services contract: a 24.4% reduction equating to $158,000. Over the past 2.5 years, her department worked with 227 unique Lakewood families (and nearly 1,000 families in the region). Referrals have increased by about 195% compared to previous years. She expressed support for using cannabis funds to stabilize human services.
- Councilmember Bullock raised questions about the fund’s technical language and advocated using these funds for new, innovative initiatives rather than absorbing existing operations.
- Councilmember Hamilton Steiner supported including health and human services and urged integrating equity metrics into budget decisions.
- The committee agreed to defer the ordinance so that language could be revised to allow both capital and operating expenditures and to incorporate health, human services, and flexibility for future needs.
2. Audit Committee (Ordinance 27‑2025)
- Finance Director Mahoney proposed repealing Chapter 160 (Audit Committee) and having the Finance Committee review the annual audit, noting that the separate committee had become inactive and that the city has received clean audits (including the Ohio Certificate of Achievement for Financial Reporting, awarded to only 4% of Ohio cities).
- Councilmember Baker offered a substitute proposal: keep Chapter 160 but amend membership to solely consist of the Finance Committee, require an annual public meeting with the independent auditor, and delete quarterly meeting and term provisions.
- Councilmember Bullock argued that a citizen audit committee had brought valuable professional expertise in the past and suggested retaining some external involvement.
- Councilmember Hamilton Steiner proposed a hybrid model with citizen advisors attending the Finance Committee’s audit review.
- Council President Kepple supported the Finance Committee approach, noting that public access would be greater than the previous noon‑time Zoom meetings.
- The committee deferred the ordinance to allow formalization of the substitute language and further discussion.
Key Outcomes
- Ordinance 15‑2026 (Cannabis Fund): Deferred. The committee will receive revised language from Councilmember Strebig and Finance Director Mahoney, expanding authorized use to health, human services, and both capital and operational expenses. A substitute ordinance will be presented at the next Finance Committee meeting.
- Ordinance 27‑2025 (Audit Committee): Deferred. Councilmember Baker will prepare a substitute ordinance that retains Chapter 160 but makes the Finance Committee the audit committee, requires an annual public meeting with the auditor, and removes quarterly meeting and term requirements. Further amendments may be considered before the next meeting.
- Both items are scheduled for further discussion at the next Finance Committee meeting (date not specified).
Meeting Transcript
I will go ahead and call the February 9th Finance Committee meeting to order at 602. First order of business is the review and approval of the February 9, 2026 Finance Committee meeting without objection, I will move approval. I guess. Without objection, they're approved. Great. Moving on to the next item. A Lakewood Host Community Cannabis Fund. We talked about it a little bit on at the full council meeting, I believe, a couple weeks ago, where the City of Lakewood has received finally after a little bit of a delay. And so we sought to enact basically to put those funds aside into a fund that can be created under our codified ordinances. So this ordinance before us is to establish the fund and set out the purpose of the fund. I believe in some of my conversations with Director Mahoney, there will need to be further appropriation ordinance that will allocate those funds, which is separate from the establishment of the fund. Would you uh walk us through that, Director Mahoney, kind of the difference between those things and what is necessary to follow? Sure. So this ordinance would just create the fund and like Councilman Baker said, the anticipated uses of the money, but it doesn't establish the ability to actually spend the money. So we would have to do an amended appropriation ordinance, which I said once this passes, I can gladly uh get that going. Uh and Director Money, and uh we talked about this before, but I would like to just confirm on the record of for the committee is that uh as far as the way this ordinance is drafted and the establishment of the fund, do you think it's appropriate? It it is, but um I will have to send it down to Columbus for them to um to authorize it. They always have to have their stamp on it. So is that does that tip process-wise, is that typically happen after the ordinance that creates the after it's passed, yes. Right. Thank you. Doesn't really make sense because it's passed. Uh sometimes state government doesn't make sense. Um I don't see a problem with it though. Great, thank you. Um the other thing is is um, you know, we in in the draft ordinance uh there's the the authorized expenditures are highlighted. Uh so that's was you know our best guess as as the kind of how to bucket those funds. Now, as with anything else, we can transfer funds but between funds, you know, uh through a higher level, but this kind of essentially parks it there until it's appropriated through an operating or capital budget. Um it kind of segregates the funds as opposed to the general fund, whereas the larger bucket that we spend funds from as a city. So is there any discussion amongst the committee members about um the authorized expenditures uh conspiration street big? Thank you. Um first of all, thank you to uh to both you and Council President Keppel for this work. This is fantastic. And Director Mahoney, thank you for um weighing in on the appropriateness of this. Um I would like to see um health added to the safety here. Um I I I'd like it to say to use only for the expense of public health and safety related issues within the city of Lakewood, including complete streets, comma, 88 transition plan implementations, comma, and the Lakewood Community Health Needs Assessment. Um because I I do think in and then going on um and other capital improvements related to accessibility, equity, and wellness. I think that that to put safety in there without putting health. I think we miss some opportunities there, especially when we're looking at funding from a drug and possibly some some mental health needs for a community that may not be covered under safety. It's a really good point. Um other comments from members of the committee? Mr. Chair? Yes. If I could just add to that, I think that's a great point, and that's actually why I'm Director Barry here as well. Due to the recent cuts at the county, that is impacting our human services budget. We are okay for this year, but in future years, assuming those cuts continue, we may not. So I would advocate for human services in general. And then Director Barry's here if you have any specific questions related to how those cuts are affecting the city. Thank you.
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