MANSFIELD — Richland County has added a fourth bank to hold public funds.
During its meeting Thursday, the Richland County Board of Commissioners awarded depository agreements to Civista Bank, Mechanics Bank, Park National Bank and Huntington Bank.
Those were the only four banks the county received applications from by the Oct. 10 deadline, according to Bart Hamilton, the county treasurer.
In August, commissioners approved a 15-page application process that financial institutions can utilize when applying to be a depository.
Applications were sent to all eligible institutions with at least one office in Richland County.
Stacey Crall, senior clerk for the commissioners, said one bank declined the county’s offer to submit an application and the other recipients did not respond.
A public depository is defined by state law as “an institution which receives or holds any public deposits.” Ultimately, the county treasurer is responsible for the recommendation and commissioners have the legal authority to make the decision, such as they did Thursday.
Civista, Mechanics and Park National have each previously been banks for the county, according to Hamilton.
The treasurer’s recommendation to commissioners included a few “self-imposed” caps for the amount of funds each bank may possess:
- Park National Bank is not to exceed $250 million.
- Huntington Bank is not to exceed $250 million.
- Civista Bank is not to exceed $20 million.
- Mechanics Bank is not to exceed $15 million.
In a letter attached to the application, Hamilton estimated active funds available at any one time during the ensuing four-year period is not to exceed $250 million.
“Those were there (banks) responses to our offering them to be a depository,” Hamilton said.
Andy McGinty, chief deputy of the Richland County Treasurer’s Office, said each bank specified the maximum amount they would prefer not to exceed in their submitted applications.
Ohio Revised Code Section 135.33 outlines that commissioners should meet every four years for the purpose of designating its public depositories of active moneys for the next succeeding four-year period.
ORC makes it clear that a competitive application process — similar to the competitive bidding process when commissioners appropriate/utilize public dollars — is required for commissioners to designate a public depository.
