HAMILTON — Butler County is one of 11 counties that will have to repay a combined $4 million in tax money improperly collected from an unnamed company, possibly a Texas company that built a pipeline across southern Ohio.

The $4 million will be split unequally among 11 counties; Butler, Fairfield, Fayette, Greene, Guernsey, Monroe, Muskingum, Noble, Perry, Pickaway and Warren, the Columbus Dispatch reported.

In addition, the state will repay $12 million from the dedicated Tax Refund Fund, said Office of Management and Budget spokesman Dave Pagnard.

Butler County repaid its portion in July when the state turned over tax revenues for the month minus $292,667.13, according to Pete Landrum.

Landrum said he assumes the adjustment is the county’s portion of the $4 million cited in media reports, but the state does not disclose the specific vendor.

The county was told the adjustment represented a sales/use tax refund and covered a two-year period.

“It hurts our outlook for the year,” Landrum said, but he noted even with the adjustment, sales tax revenue is 2.8 percent above 2010. Without the adjustment, July receipts would have exceeded 2010 by 3.1 percent.

Commissioner Don Dixon said anytime revenue is reduced it is “disappointing.”

“But we are still about three percent above last year,” Dixon said.

The money is being paid back because the unnamed company paid the $16 million in use tax on items that are tax exempt, according to the Dispatch. A use tax is paid on items that aren’t subject to a sales tax.

Taxpayer confidentiality laws allow for the company receiving the payback not to be named, according to Landrum.

The counties that are paying back the funds are roughly aligned with the layout of the Rockies Express Pipeline-East, a natural-gas pipeline built by energy company Kinder Morgan, based in Houston, the Dispatch reported.

Contact this reporter at (513) 820-2168 or lpack@coxohio.com.