The leaders of Ohio’s eight largest urban school districts are calling on the state legislature to not override Gov. Mike DeWine’s vetoes directed at restrictions on school levies and property taxes in the state budget.
The leaders of districts in Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Columbus, Dayton, Toledo, Cincinnati, Youngstown, joined in the statement this week by the Lorain City School District, said that the provisions DeWine vetoed in the budget meant less money for schools and more frequent school levies on ballots. The schools are part of the Ohio 8 Coalition, a group of superintendents and teachers union leaders that advocates for urban education.
“The core of traditional public-school districts, where over 90% of Ohio’s parents choose to send their children, will cease to exist if these vetoes are not preserved. The provisions that are being considered for a veto override will strip schools, cities, counties and communities of the funding they have already dedicated to local services, including public dollars dedicated by our own residents for public education,” said Jeff Talbert, Ohio 8 Coalition co-chair and superintendent of Canton City Schools.
But the Ohio Legislature has already said it will return to focus on overriding at least three property tax-related vetoes. Legislators are targeting the vetoes for the following sections the legislators had included in the state budget:
- A provision allowing county budget commissions to reduce money schools would receive from voter-approved levies if “reasonably necessary”
- A measure requiring emergency and several other kinds of levies to be used when calculating the 20-mill floor. This would effectively mean schools will receive less money when property taxes increase
- And a provision limiting districts’ power to ask for emergency levies
The joint statement from the urban schools asks the Legislature not to override those vetoes and to keep five other education-related vetoes in place:
- A measure establishing a 40% cap on school carryover balances
- A provision prohibiting school districts from paying for the employee share of state retirement agency contributions for superintendents, treasurers, and principals
- A provision that would have required school board candidates to have their political affiliation on the ballot
- A new education savings account program for non-chartered private schools, which essentially acts like a new school voucher for private schools which have fewer state regulations
- Restrictions on public library displays related to sexual orientation and gender
The joint statement from the Ohio 8 schools also expressed concerns about the “continued barrage of burdensome mandates” on public schools in the budget.
“Many of our veto requests address the foundation of increasingly punitive policies that dictate how we transport students, use our buildings, support our educators, and divert over a billion dollars to unaccountable charter and non-public schools,” said Pat Shipe, co-chair of the coalition and president of the Akron Education Association. “Ohio taxpayers need to understand that real property tax reform will begin only when legislators stop forcing citizens to fund two parallel school systems and instead commit to fairly and fully funding the public schools that serve over 90% of Ohio’s children.”
The state budget includes $2.44 billion for private-school vouchers over the next two fiscal years, even without the new education savings account DeWine vetoed. That’s a 17% increase compared to the budget over previous two fiscal years.
The Legislature is scheduled to meet on overriding the vetoes on July 21.
Canton superintendent Jeff Talbert said property tax reform should be achieved without harming schools.
"To suggest this is real tax reform is like trying to sell me a field of green grass knowing it’s just old worn out Astroturf," Talbert said in the release. "It’s fake. It’s not long lasting. It’s insulting and our communities deserve better."
