The Senate has released its version of the House budget, which included some big changes. Senators needed to trim around $170 million more from the spending plan than the House did. The Senate cut spending for state agencies and trimmed spending in other areas. A vote on the Senate budget is expected next week. That’ll trigger a conference committee, which needs to work out the differences with the House version.
As we found out last week, Ohio’s tax revenues are $841 million below estimates for this fiscal year. While there are many factors involved, one big reason is Ohio’s population is getting older. And as Buckeyes face their golden years, many with limited incomes, where will the state get the tax money they once generated? Statehouse correspondent Jo Ingles examines that question.
A study from a pro-charter school group shows that open enrollment in public schools helped students – in one population, their grades dramatically improved. The Fordham Institute tracked 70,000 students who transferred from their home public schools to schools that admitted them through open enrollment. But he practice has cost some districts that have lost students more than a million dollars in state funding, and can result in some districts over-extending to take in more students. Talking about the report is its co-author, Chad Aldis with the Fordham Institute, along with Stephen Dyer, a former Democratic state lawmaker who runs the Know Your Charter site with the progressive research group Innovation Ohio and the Ohio Education Association – which is an underwriter of this program.