Supreme Court of Ohio. (2015). Cincinnati v. Testa, 143 Ohio St.3d 371, 2015-Ohio-1775.
Case brief introduction:
"This appeal addresses a claim of exemption from real-property tax for several golf courses owned by appellee, the city of Cincinnati, and operated under a management contract by a private, for-profit contractor, Billy Casper Golf Management, Inc. (“Golf Management”). Paul Macke, a private golf-course operator who owns taxable real property in Hamilton County, challenged the ongoing exemption of the courses as public property used exclusively for a public purpose. After reviewing Macke’s complaints, appellant, the Ohio tax commissioner, determined that the exemption should be revoked and that the golf courses should be subject to real-property tax. Cincinnati appealed to the Board of Tax Appeals (“BTA”), which reversed the commissioner’s determination and allowed the exemption."