The Auditor issues several licenses and permits for the regulation and/or taxation of businesses. The Auditor may optionally, upon appointment by the appropriate state agency, issue licenses and registrations for motor vehicles and watercraft. The Auditor also issues registrations/licenses for dogs and kennels within the County.

The Vendor’s License forms the basis for two taxes. The first is the sales tax; the second is the tangible personal property tax. A copy of the license is forwarded to the Ohio Department of Taxation which sends the vendor a sales tax payment book. The vendor pays to the State the amount of sales due based on gross taxable sales. The State then forwards to the County its share of the permissive sales tax, if any. A portion of the sales tax is also included in the Local Government Fund, which is shared by the County, townships, and municipalities. The Auditor and Tax Commissioner also use the information on the license to determine if the vendor is filing the required tax returns. The Auditor uses the information on the license application to mail a tax return to the vendor. The Tax Commissioner uses the information to cross reference to the sales tax, personal property, and income tax returns. Some of the information contained on the application for the license is confidential under Federal law and cannot be disclosed to the public.

The Auditor registers all dogs and kennels and issues licenses for the same. A portion of the fees collected for the registrations goes to pay for claims made on animals destroyed or injured by dogs. Another portion is designated for the use of the County Dog Warden, who is responsible for the enforcement of the licensing and registering of dogs and kennels. The Auditor may appoint agents to assist in registering all dogs and kennels and issuing licenses. A fee is allowed for the agents on each license, to be paid in addition to the license fees set by the County Commissioners. These fees are required by law (§955.14) to be in the ratio of two dollars for a dog registration and ten dollars for a kennel registration.

The Auditor issues both the retail and wholesale Cigarette Dealer Licenses. The amount charged for these licenses is prorated over the course of the year, depending upon when the license is purchased. In the case of cigarette vending machines, a license must be purchased for each machine. Twice a year the Auditor settles with the Tax Commissioner and the several eligible local political subdivisions all taxes collected from the sale of the licenses.

When the Auditor acts as an agent for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources - Watercraft Division (ODNR) or as a Deputy Registrar for the Ohio Registrar of Motor Vehicles, additional security and safeguards must be implemented. All licenses and registrations must be kept in a secure area and not accessible by the general public. The Auditor must also post bond for the performance of these duties in addition to the statutory official bond. The Auditor is also personally accountable for all licenses consigned to the office.