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LISBON -- Columbiana County's share of a state settlement over price discrepancies by Dollar General will go to food pantries in the county.
According to a press release by the county Auditor's Office, each county auditor in the state was asked by Ohio Attorney General David Yost to pick a food bank to benefit from the settlement funds.
Columbiana County Auditor Nancy Milliken decided the county's share of $14,226.77 would be divided equally among the county's food pantries. She worked with Mahoning Valley Second Harvest Food Bank, who advocates for hunger-relief organizations in Mahoning, Columbiana, and Trumbull counties, to distribute the funds.
Second Harvest keeps none of Columbiana County's money, with 100% of the funding being dispersed as grants to 24 food pantries in the county, with each receiving $592.78 and one receiving an extra 5 cents for rounding.
The settlement is the result of a lawsuit filed by Yost against the Tennessee-based Dollar General after he worked with weights and measures inspectors in county auditor's offices across the state in 2022 over the price discrepancies at the stores.
In 2023, a settlement was reached for $1 million, with $750,000 going to the office of the Ohio Attorney General and $250,000 to cover penalty and investigative costs. Yost had the $750,000 disbursed to each county based on the number of Dollar General stores located in their county.
According to the press release, Dollar General admitted to no wrong doing, but under the settlement, the company agreed to provide enough staffing coverage to keep shelf prices up to date. For customers who find an item that costs more than the shelf price, the company has to honor the shelf price and fix the incorrect price within 24 hours. District managers also have to conduct random price checks.
A list of county food pantries can be viewed on the auditor's website:
https://oh-columbiana-auditor.publicaccessnow.com/.
Click on links to find the list.
Milliken advised consumers to always be aware and on guard as to how much they are actually being charged for goods, no matter where they are shopping.