Conference Agenda

Time

Event

Location

Breakfast

Staying over the night before? We'll be providing breakfast and coffee for all registered attendees. Venture down from your sleeping room to grab a bite to eat and coffee before registration opens. Breakfast will be held in the Polaris Ballroom.

Polaris Ballroom A & D

Registration Opens/Badge Pick Up

Stop by the CTAO Registration table just outside the Polaris Ballroom to pick up your name badge and conference materials.

Polaris Ballroom Foyer

Regional Economic Outlook (1 hr CPIM)

Polaris B, C, E & F

Break/Visit Exhibitors

Gemini & Polaris Ballroom Foyers

Building AI Solutions with Trust, Transparency and Speed (1 hr AOS)

Presenters: Margo Keeler, Principal AI Solutions Lead, IBM; Gerald Anderson, State of Ohio - Technology Sales Leader, IBM

Artificial Intelligence, or AI, is all the rage right now from how it impacts businesses, education, and daily life. While many are excited about the possibilities for AI, others are concerned with the impact it may have, whether intentionally or unintentionally. This presentation will be about how IBM uses AI to enhance productivity while building solutions on ethical principles to foster trust and transparency. Treasurers will learn about how some of these solutions and best practices may be used in their offices to help them with their constituents and office communications.

Artificial Intelligence Session Slides

Polaris B, C, E & F

Escrow Payments & Financial Literacy Panel (1 hr CPIM)

Presenters: Ryan Coughlin, SVP, National Deposit Group, Huntington Bank; Chris McNeil, Director of Strategy and Business Management, NDG, Huntington Bank; Niko Spyridonos, CEO, AutoAgent; Michael Zuren, Lake County Treasurer

This panel discussion will focus on best practices and offerings available to give taxpayer options, and ways to provide transparency on collections. The panel will also examine how offering financial literacy instructions to taxpayers could hopefully reduce the amount of delinquencies that are occurring.

Download Session Slides

Polaris B, C, E & F

Delinquent Tax Collection (1 hr CPIM)

Presenters: Ric Wasserman, Athens County Treasurer, Angie Maki-Cliff, Ashtabula County Treasurer, Jeannie Zurmehly, Clermont County Treasurer, and Adam Jutte, Assistant County Prosecutor, Cuyahoga County.

Over the past several years, county treasurers across the state have seen an increase in the number of tax delinquencies in their counties. This panel will examine some of the reasons this is occurring, and what are some best practices county treasurers can adopt to work with taxpayers to prevent properties from moving to foreclosure. 

Download Session Slides

Polaris B, C, E & F

District Meetings

Gather with treasurers and staff from your geographic region to discuss the issues facing your offices and communities.

Look for posted signs for locations

Vendor - Member Mixer

Grab a bite to eat and a refreshing drink while getting to know our vendors and their products and services.

Ballroom Foyers

Star Lanes Bowling and Dinner

Nothing says Cleveland like bowling! Join fellow attendees for a fun-filled evening of bowling, food, and networking at Star Lanes. Take a break from the conference sessions to enjoy a delicious dinner while challenging your colleagues to some friendly competition on the lanes.

The venue is conveniently located within walking distance from the Hilton Polaris - just across the parking lot. Attire is fun and casual — bowling shirts encouraged! Come ready to strike up conversations and knock down pins!

Star Lanes Bowling Alley (8655 Lyra Dr.)

After-Hours Networking

Not ready to call it a night? The hotel restaurant and bar, 17 Arrows, will be open to our attendees for drinks and light snacks after our evening activities. Each attendee will receive three drink tokens each evening. Additional drinks are on your own tab.

17 Arrows
(Hotel bar)

Time

Event

Location

Ohio Cyber Programs & Resources (1 hr AOS)

Presenter: Mark Bell, Cyber Security Outreach Coordinator, Ohio Adjutant General's Office

All public officials, no matter what level of government you work in, must be constantly aware of Cyber Threats in your daily operations. Mr. Bell coordinates a wide range of cyber partners throughout Ohio, organized into the Ohio Cyber Collaboration Committee (OC3,) to improve the cyber security posture of the state through education and workforce development, the creation of the Ohio Cyber Range, the development of cyber response teams for Ohio, cyber exercises, and the sharing of best cyber practices and policies throughout the state. He will share his knowledge of the threats, types of attacks, what county treasurers can do to prevent them, protect your data, and steps to better protect your county from attacks.

Download Session Slides

Polaris Ballroom B, C, E & F

Property Tax Update (1 hr CPIM)

Presenters: Brian Perera and Steve Hall, ZHF Consulting LLC

Following up on their Fall Conference session "Concerns About Property Taxation From Taxpayers - and Possible Solutions," ZHF Consulting LLC will provide participants with the latest updates from the Ohio Statehouse on pending tax reform proposals. The 136th General Assembly has multiple bills and an operating budget that may significantly alter the property tax landscape in Ohio.

Download Session Slides

Polaris Ballroom B, C, E & F

Break/Visit Exhibits

Ballroom Foyers

Legislative Update & Bylaws Review

Presenters: Kevin Futryk, CTAO Executive Director, RJ Mancini, State Lobbyist, and Brad Cromes, President

2025 is shaping up to be a busy year with dozens of bills potentially impacting treasurer’s being introduced, and the state operation budget deliberation going on. This session will provide an overview of some of the key legislation & issues moving, and an overview of the many bills dealing with property tax reform pending. Brad Cromes will also provide an overview of the work of the CTAO Bylaws Committee, and their proposed updates to our association Bylaws.

Polaris Ballroom B, C, E & F

Lunch

Polaris Ballroom A & D

The Ohio Ethics Law: Think Twice, Act Once (and those who didn't!) (1 hr AOS)

Presenter: Susan Willeke, Training & Communications Manager, Ohio Ethics Commission

This high-energy interactive course uses actual ethics investigations from across the United States to demonstrate potential ethical dilemmas that could occur under the Ohio Ethics Law. Attendees will discuss how Ohio’s statute could have been applied had that investigation occurred in our state. The course also provides useful information regarding how public employees and officials should legally respond in similar situations at their own public entity.

Slides available after conference

Polaris Ballroom B, C, E & F

Crisis Communications: Ways to Prepare and Respond to a Crisis in Your Office (1 hr AOS)

Presenter: Kelly Arledge, KWA Public Relations

As elected officials, county treasurers regularly communicate with constituents in person, by phone, and increasingly through social media. They are also responsible for overseeing staff interactions with the public. Sometimes, these communications can become challenging, leading to potential “communication crises.” Drawing on 40 years of strategic communications experience, Ms. Arledge will share valuable insights to help treasurers: recognize how crises develop; implement preventative measures; respond effectively during crises; manage media relations; navigate social media challenges; coordinate with staff; and implement post-crisis recovery strategies. Participants will gain practical tools for maintaining effective public communication even in difficult situations.

Download Session Slides

Polaris Ballroom B, C, E & F

Break/Visit Exhibits

Ballroom Foyer

A Primer on Manufactured Homes (1 hr CPIM)

Presenters: Tim Williams, Executive Director, Ohio Manufactured Homes Association; Angie Maki-Cliff, Ashtabula County Treasurer; Jane Spoerl, Wood County Treasurer

Manufactured homes are a growing form of housing across the state that provide affordable housing options for many Ohioans. However, like other housing, there are concerns and issues that county treasurers, and Manufactured Home Parks, are faced with. This session will provide county treasurers with an overview, by the Ohio Manufactured Homes Association, of what manufactured homes are, some of the issues the industry faces relative to abandoned, damaged, or destroyed homes, and how to return non-productive lots in manufactured home communities back to tax paying homes. There will also be a panel discussion by two county treasurers who have had to deal with a rather significant problem of collecting taxes on manufactured homes, and how they’ve developed some “Best Practices” to go about doing this.

Manufactured Homes Session Handouts

Manufactured Homes Slides

Polaris Ballroom B, C, E & F

Break

Take a bit of time for yourself to catch your breath before our evening's activities.

Cleveland-Themed Celebration & Entertainment

Cap off the conference with a lively Cleveland-themed dinner and entertainment extravaganza at the Hilton Polaris. Join CTAO President Brad Cromes in celebrating all things Cuyahoga County while enjoying regional favorites and great entertainment. The Route 161 Happy Wanderers polka trio will get the party started with traditional toe-tapping tunes, followed by an interactive dueling pianos performance that will have everyone singing along.

Polaris Ballroom

Dueling Pianos - Howl2Go



Following our Cleveland-themed dinner, experience the excitement of Howl2Go Dueling Pianos! This traveling version of the famous Howl at the Moon show features two talented pianists performing your requested songs across all genres and decades. Join fellow attendees for an interactive, high-energy musical experience where you help create the playlist. Get ready to sing along, make requests, and enjoy an unforgettable evening of entertainment that will have everyone talking long after the conference ends.

Polaris Ballroom

9:30 pm - 11:00 pm

After-Hours Hospitality & Networking

Not ready to call it a night? The hotel restaurant and bar, 17 Arrows, will be open to our attendees for drinks and light snacks after our evening activities. Each attendee will receive three drink tokens. Additional drinks are on your own tab.

17 Arrows
(Hotel Bar)

Time

Event

Location

Treasurer Roundtable Discussions (1 hour AOS)

Treasurers will gather based on county population to discuss issues facing their offices and share advice and best practices with their peers & colleagues. We will once again be offering the opportunity for similar sized counties to gather and discuss issues & topics of concern. We'll provide some questions for all groups to discuss.

Group 1 - 1-35,000 people, led by Jeff McIntosh
Group 2 - 35,001 - 55,000, led by Dave Wolters
Group 3 - 55,001 - 95,000, led by Bill Ogg
Group 4 - 95,001 - 200,000, led by John Burke
Group 5 - 200,000+, led by Dan Talarek

Various locations

Roundtable Recap

We'll gather back as a large group to discuss the key take-aways from each of the small groups and continue the discussion.

Polaris Ballroom

Grab & Go (or stay!) Lunches

The Deli buffet will allow guests to build their own to-go box or eat your lunch with colleagues before you travel home.

Ballroom Foyer

Arriving on Tuesday night? Nothing official is planned, but plan to meet at the hotel restaurant, 17 Arrows to meet up with friends and colleagues or plan a dinner together at one of the many restaurants nearby!