With another week of back-to-back marathon hearings nearly behind them, members of the Ohio Senate Finance committee are getting ready to release their initial version of the biennial state budget Tuesday.
Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) has been mum on most of his caucus’s budget priorities and plans since the House sent House Bill 96 over in April.
One of the biggest additions to HB 96 then was House lawmakers’ creation of a ceiling on how much money public school districts could potentially carry over each year. Under it, if a district carryover balance exceeds 30%, county budget commissions would have to lower the taxes levied on homeowners for the following tax year, according to the Ohio Office of Budget and Management.
McColley has some reservations with that, he said.
“I think 30% is too low. I think it fails to account for some of the unforeseen circumstances that schools may have to deal with from a capital perspective—replacing a roof, replacing a boiler, or having emergency repairs in their building,” he said.
The Senate GOP caucus hadn’t reached a decision about eliminating or increasing it, McColley said Wednesday.
“If a school is carrying over very large amounts of money, is that really a good thing either?” he said.
The broader formula to fund public schools has triggered hot debate this budget cycle, since House lawmakers chose not to finish out the Fair School Funding Plan. That was a 2021 reform effort by the legislature putting money toward public schools based on actual costs associated with educating a student. The House, instead, allocated the state’s share through a line item, which some schools said would leave them underfunded.
The Senate doesn’t seem like it will deviate far from the House on that issue.
Questions about how the state funds future stadium construction, like in Cleveland, and whether the state moves to legalize online gambling remain relatively unanswered.
“Many of my (GOP) colleagues across the aisle are very enthusiastic about trying to figure out some way to finance the billionaire family in northeast Ohio that wants to move their stadium to a suburb,” Senate Minority Leader Nickie J. Antonio (D-Lakewood) said Wednesday. “I don't know where it's going to land, honestly.”
The Senate Finance committee is next scheduled to meet Tuesday afternoon. McColley said by June 12, he wants to hold a floor vote on HB 96, which is due to Gov. Mike DeWine by June 30.
