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Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Business
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What does the Ohio House property tax override mean?
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — The Ohio House pushed for property tax relief this week, but legislators disagree on whether removing some property tax authority will help Ohioans' pocketbooks. Gov. Mike DeWine signed Ohio's 2026-2027 budget into law on June 30, but vetoed 67 provisions within the several thousand page document. On Monday, the Ohio House held a rare out-of-season session to override one of the budget vetoes in an attempt to provide property tax relief. During the vote, politicians on both sides of the aisle said Ohio's tax system is too complex to be productive, so NBC4 is breaking this issue down. Olentangy coach resigns amid investigation into inappropriate text messages What happened? On Monday, 89 of the House's 99 members met and voted to override DeWine's veto on school district property tax levy restrictions. The move needed 60 votes, and it successfully passed 61-28. The House originally planned to vote on three overrides, but leaders said they did not think they had the votes due to absences. See previous coverage in the video player above. It is now up to the Senate to decide if they will also vote on the override, but they have not yet announced plans to vote. The override is not official unless 20 of Ohio's 33 Senators concur. What could change? If the Senate concurs the veto override, Ohio would change what type of property tax levies schools and other services could place on the ballot. The changes stop schools and political subdivisions, like fire departments or libraries, from introducing replacement and emergency levies. This change also stops school districts from asking for operating levies if it has too much money left over in their general funds. Replacement levies occur when a levy is expiring, and can either keep the same levy in place or, more commonly, replace it with a higher tax rate. Emergency levies are used when funding is crucial to keep operating, and they expire after a set number of years. These are all operating levies, meaning they are used to pay for daily necessities like supplies, utilities and salaries. These funds typically cannot be used for permanent improvement projects, like building a new high school or fire department. House members in favor of the changes said words like 'emergency' and 'replacement' can influence people to vote for property tax increases they may not want. They hope removing these levy options will promote transparency in levy requests. Bobcats, bald eagles and bears, oh my! Species seeing population growth in Ohio What does this mean for schools? This would limit how public school districts are allowed to ask for public money by removing several levy options. Schools would still be allowed to request other property tax levies. The Ohio Education Association (OAE) said these levies are crucial for school districts' long-term financial stability. Replacement levies are frequently used to help districts keep up with inflation, so having to always seek new levies brings a more complicated request to taxpayers. According to the OAE, this change could force Ohio schools to increase class sizes and cut programming. Schools will also no longer be allowed to ask for certain levies if they carry over more than 100% of their expenditures in their general funds from school year to school year. School districts say this is an important protection for long-term financial planning, as they cannot ask for more money even if they say they need more. House Republicans who voted in favor of the override said it will encourage districts to be more fiscally responsible. Proponents of the change say this is not taking money from schools, as voters will still have the opportunity to approve levies. Opponents, like Rep. Ismail Mohamed (D-Columbus), said the veto would limit the choices Ohioans have at the ballot. What does this mean for local services? Although the change affects school districts immensely, it also affects political subdivisions like local governments, fire departments, libraries and parks. All of these services rely on property taxes, and many of them use replacement levies to stay afloat. For instance, Franklin Township had two replacement levies fail in the past year, leading them to have to close one of their two fire stations. Legislators and advocates who disagree with the possible property tax change say examples like this prove Ohioans already have control over whether or not to pass a levy. Like local schools, this could make it more difficult to pass levies, or just complicate how these services are asking for funding. House Democrats say these services will have to choose between more frequent levy requests or making budget cuts. House Republicans largely say this will protect taxpayers from overreach and encourage local services to be better stewards of tax dollars. Three months later, still no updates in OSU investigation of hidden cameras in dorm bathroom What does this mean for my taxes? Even if the Senate concurs this veto override, this change does not guarantee a different property tax rate for Ohioans. The change reduces how many types of levies subdivisions can ask for, but fewer levies may not correlate with fewer levy requests. Proponents say this will help provide transparency at the ballot and prevent tax hikes that voters may not expect. The change would go into effect Jan. 1, 2026, so it would not change tax laws until after the November election. Proponents say this is a proactive change to help future overreach. Opponents say it is unlikely this will provide meaningful property tax relief because it does not address immediate pressures. They said it could even add financial pressure for taxpayers as local governments and schools try to find other revenue sources. Ohio leaders say property tax reform is coming, regardless of whether the override stands. Gov. Mike DeWine has tasked a property tax reform work group with analyzing concerns and generating solutions by Sept. 30. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Gov. DeWine vetoes measure that would have been ‘suicide' for Ohio pharmacies
(Stock photo) Ohio pharmacists were worried that a measure inserted into the state budget would cause mass closures. Gov. Mike DeWine on Monday vetoed it, saying that lawmakers in the Ohio House and Senate asked him to. In his veto message, DeWine acknowledged that Ohio pharmacies are closing rapidly, and said he and Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel will keep working on the problem. Last year, Ohio lost 215 pharmacies and the total number dropped below 2,000 for the first time in memory, according to an online tracker launched by the Ohio Board of Pharmacy. Pharmacy owners have long complained that huge pharmacy middlemen with conflicted interests have used a non-transparent system to underpay them and drive them out of business. In response, legislation was introduced in the Ohio House earlier this year that would require the middlemen to reimburse pharmacies for drugs based on a public database compiled by the federal government. That would only allow pharmacies to break even on drugs. So the legislation also required the middlemen to pay a $10 per-prescription dispensing fee to cover pharmacies' overhead such as payroll, rent, taxes, and insurance. It's based on a statewide survey regularly conducted among pharmacies. Then the Ohio Chamber of Commerce got involved, telling state senators that the dispensing fees were a tax and that they should oppose them. The chamber made that claim even though the Ohio Department of Medicaid in 2022 adopted a similar system and saved $140 million in the process. Despite requests, the Ohio Chamber hasn't disclosed how much money it gets from the middlemen, known as pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs. The company that owns the biggest PBM, CVS Health, was a 'presenting sponsor' of the Chamber's 2024 Healthcare Summit, and an executive with the company delivered a keynote speech. The Ohio Senate attempted a compromise between the House legislation and the Ohio Chamber's demand for no dispensing fees. It would have required PBMs to reimburse pharmacies in a transparent system, but it would have eliminated minimum dispensing fees. The Ohio Pharmacists Association said that would be much worse for pharmacies than the current, inadequate setup. Pharmacies could only break even on their drugs, and they couldn't recoup their overhead, they said. 'It's any pharmacist's suicide bill,' Dave Burke, the organization's executive director, said last week. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX In vetoing it, DeWine agreed. 'This item was intended to strike a compromise between interested parties on how to best regulate the practice of pharmacy benefit managers in Ohio and the requirements for fair and transparent reimbursement for Ohio pharmacies,' the governor's veto message said. 'However, due to drafting errors, the language will not achieve the legislative intent of providing the needed oversight of pharmacy benefit manager practices. Subsequently, the language as written, may result in further detriment to Ohio pharmacies, especially those in small, rural communities, and could result in a reduction in health care access for many Ohioans.' The message explained that those who wrote the legislation into the state budget asked that it be pulled back. 'Due to the errors in drafting final language, the Ohio House of Representatives and Ohio Senate have requested this veto,' DeWine's veto message said. 'Therefore, a veto of this item is in the public interest.' In an interview Tuesday, Burke said he didn't think there was any ill intent on the part his former colleagues in the Ohio Senate. 'I think people are getting misinformation from the PBMs, who are trying to maintain their foothold and prevent a free and transparent market,' he said. Burke also said he didn't believe the Ohio Chamber was selling out its Ohio membership in favor of out-of-state, Fortune 15 health conglomerates that own the big-three PBMs. 'I don't think the Ohio Chamber is anti-pharmacy,' said Burke, who is himself a pharmacist. 'I think they just don't understand how their benefits are actually being administered.' But he added that every business in Ohio has an interest in a healthy network of pharmacies. 'I don't know what they're going to do when their employees can't get their prescription drugs where they live,' Burke said. 'That's happening now in real time. We have pharmacy deserts and they're getting worse every year.' Denise Conway, who in 2019 restored pharmacy services in Danville, said the veto is far from enough to solve the problems besetting Ohio pharmacies. 'It is a slight win for pharmacies across Ohio and I am grateful for the governor's vision to see that things aren't being addressed,' she said in a text message Tuesday. In his veto message, DeWine said more needs to be done. 'It is important to note that the DeWine-Tressel Administration is committed to further reforms of pharmacy benefit managers, as already demonstrated in improvements made in Ohio's Medicaid program through the adoption of the Single Pharmacy Benefit Manager,' it said, referring to the measure that saved taxpayers $140 million. 'This administration is committed to working with the Ohio General Assembly in the future to deliver a pharmacy-benefit-manager regulatory bill.' Burke said that he might be partly to blame for the PBM-aligned position taken by the Ohio Chamber. 'I have to think, knowing (Senior Vice President) Rick Carfagna and (President and CEO) Steve Stivers, that they're not ignorant and they're not bought and paid for,' Burke said. 'They're intelligent people. Maybe it's my fault for not stopping by and sitting down with them.' He added that he's ready to work with the Ohio Chamber or anybody else to shore up Ohio's dwindling network of pharmacies. 'We're in a bad place,' Burke said. The Ohio Pharmacists Association 'definitely has an open hand and an open mind for anyone who's willing to work with us on this issue. But we are running out of time.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
01-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine vetoes 67 state budget items. Will lawmakers override?
When it comes to spending bills, the governor gets the power to strike out parts of the legislation without vetoing the entire bill – an authority that Republican Mike DeWine used 67 times on the new state budget. He rejected lawmakers' plans on property taxes, school elections, culture war items and more. Now, legislative leaders are poring over the 67 vetoes and strategizing which ones, if any, they want to override. Already, Republican state representatives took to social media to express support for overriding the DeWine vetoes. State Rep. Dave Thomas, R-Jefferson, said on X that he believes legislators will override DeWine's four vetoes on property tax changes. Vivek Ramaswamy, a Republican running for governor, said on X: "Ohioans are clamoring for property tax relief. They deserve to get it." State Rep. Gary Click, R-Vickery, simply posted "#OneBigBeautifulOverride." Over the past seven years, lawmakers have overridden DeWine's vetoes several times, including on a bill that block gender-affirming care for transgender minors. This budget marked the largest number of vetoes DeWine has issued since becoming governor in 2019. His previous record was 44 vetoes in 2023. A veto override vote must start in the chamber where the bill originated. In the case of the state budget bill, that's the Ohio House. Each override vote must have at least a three-fifths majority vote in the House and Senate. That means 60 votes in the House and 20 in the Senate. Legislators can take an override vote on any veto at any time during the current two-year legislative session, which ends Dec. 31, 2026. State government reporter Laura Bischoff can be reached at lbischoff@ and @lbischoff on X. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Mike DeWine vetoes 67 items in the state budget bill. What comes next?
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
$60 billion Ohio budget set to pass next week
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Ohio lawmakers must pass the state's $60 billion state budget by the end of the month and details are still being hashed out and negotiated behind the scenes between the House and Senate. Among those items is $600 million to the Cleveland Browns to help the team build a new stadium. The House and Senate put different proposals in the budget to get that money to the Browns. Right now, the budget uses the state's unclaimed funds program to fund it. 'Both chambers have recognized that this is a historic project and a real win for the state of Ohio,' Ohio House Finance Chair Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) said. 'I think if all we have to do in the next week is hash out technical differences of how we do it, I think it's a pretty good start.' Kroger plans to close 60 stores over 18 months There are also talks about tax cuts in the budget. For example, Ohio Senate Republicans are looking to create a flat state income tax rate, saving Ohioans in what is currently the top tax bracket a combined $1.4 billion. But House members on both sides of the aisle are not entirely keen on the idea. 'This is not the time to wipe out $1.4 billion of our revenue,' Ohio House Finance Ranking Member Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Westlake) said. 'I am very concerned about the future of Ohio and our budget that is not preparing us to be the most fiscally responsible, the most prepared to take care of the people of Ohio.' 'Most [Republicans] have voted for income tax cuts before, we would like to see some income tax relief,' Stewart said. 'I don't know if we have the same view today that we need to get there entirely in this budget.' A big piece of the budget will also be property tax relief. The House and Senate agree something needs to get done but have taken different approaches to the issue. 'We want to have immediate, meaningful property tax relief and I think that a lot of those ideas that we've been kicking around the last six months are certainly candidates,' Stewart said. Most recently house members introduced a bill that would do things like eliminate inside millage usage, which helps fund police, fire and schools, but would save Ohioans billions of dollars. Backers of the bill are eyeing the state budget to get that through. 'We've heard concerns from local governments, primarily aimed at inside millage, and what the elimination of inside millage would do to local governments who are reliant on inside millage,' Ohio Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) said. 'I would say the inside millage is not likely to make it inside the final version, at least, we would fight against that.' But some budget considerations from earlier on in the budget debate are likely being left by the wayside, like legalizing online casino games and lottery. 'I think it is highly unlikely there will be any gambling expansion,' Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said. The budget must pass by the end of June. Lawmakers are on track to pass it next week, likely on Wednesday. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio lawmakers pass $60 billion budget. Here's what's inside.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) — Ohio lawmakers sent the state's $60 billion operating budget to the governor's desk on Wednesday. The budget bill spends billions of dollars, creates tax cuts and includes policy items. Gov. Mike DeWine does have the authority to line item veto any provision in the budget. The budget passed on party lines without any Democratic support. Senate Democratic Leader Nickie J. Antonio (D-Lakewood) said it's the first time since 2001 that all Senate Democrats voted against the state operating budget. Here are some highlights. One of the focal points of the budget debate has been an income tax cut. It phases the state income tax down to a flat tax over two years. The state income tax reduction is estimated to save Ohioans who make over $100,000 about $1.7 billion. 'The house is agreeing with the Senate to rescind a lot of small income and sales tax exemptions,' Ohio House Finance Chair Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) said. 'Individually, it's not that much money at issue, but when you put them all cumulatively together, it's a sizable amount of money that we're going to return to the state.' '[Republicans] are choosing to serve a sliver of the state and it's the sliver that needs the least support,' Ohio House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn (D-Cincinnati) said. 'And so, it is possible to have a bipartisan budget if we serve the majority of the people in Ohio. But when we serve such a small sliver of the state, it lends itself to a partisan line vote.' The budget will phase down the state income tax to the flat rate of 2.75% over two years. For tax year 2025, it reduces the top bracket from 3.5% to 3.125%. For tax year 2026, everyone reaches the 2.75% rate. Lawmakers have been at odds about property tax relief during this budget cycle too. The budget creates a 'carry-over cap' for school districts. Under the bill, schools can only carry over 40% of their budget, otherwise it will be returned to the property tax payer. It is estimated to save property owners billions of dollars. Isaacsohn called it 'fake property tax relief.' 'What we need is real property tax relief where the state shoulders the burden. The state is the entity that can afford to the provide the relief, the responsibility should be on the state,' he said. 'So, any policy or proposal that doesn't have the state providing direct tax relief to the people of Ohio is just not going to cut it.' 'I think people lose track of the fact that state government gets zero dollars in property taxes,' Stewart said. 'And so, when we're trying to talk about where relief is going to come from, it's going to come from the local level.' While the budget makes cuts, it also spends big. For example, the budget spends $53,600,000 in both fiscal year 2026 and 2027 on the H2Ohio program. The program was created by DeWine's administration and is run by three state agencies to achieve one goal: ensuring Ohioans have access to clean and safe water. The governor was asking for more money in the program, but lawmakers fell short of appropriating that extra money. 'This has been a program that we believe is, is, is very important. Clean water in the state of Ohio is essential to us,' DeWine said. 'H2Ohio has been expanded beyond a focus on Lake Erie, continues to have a major focus on Lake Erie, but it also has a focus on all clean water throughout the state. If you look at the big picture about water, you certainly have to have to include the lead pipes that we have in the state of Ohio.' The budget also allocates a one-time $10 million for school bus safety efforts in the state. The Ohio Deaf and Blind Education Services is also seeing an investment of more than $65 million over two years. A highly debated portion of the bill has been whether the state should give the Cleveland Browns $600 million to help the team by a new stadium. And if so, how? Ultimately, state lawmakers ended on a proposal that will get the $600 million to the Browns through the state's unclaimed funds program. Right now, the state has $3.7 billion in unclaimed funds. $1.7 billion of that will be taken out now, to be used for the 'Ohio Cultural and Sports Facility' fund. Under this budget, $1 billion will be put into the fund: $600 million for the Cleveland Browns and $400 million to be used on other projects. The proposal, if signed into law by DeWine, is already facing a lawsuit. DannLaw plans to file class action lawsuit challenging the provision if it does take effect. 'The Ohio Supreme Court has been crystal clear: unclaimed funds are not state property — it's private property,' attorney and former state representative Jeffrey Crossman said. 'This case is about protecting Ohioans' constitutional rights and stopping the legislature from liquidating private property and turning it into a billionaire's building fund. Ohioans shouldn't have to race the clock to reclaim what's already theirs.' A provision known as the 'fair school funding plan' will not fully be phased in under this budget. School funding for public schools has been a contentious part of this budget. While Ohio public schools may see an increase in fiscal years '26 and '27, advocate worry that abandoning the fair school funding plan will only hurt schools in the long run. 'This budget makes a choice not to deliver,' Ohio House Finance Ranking Member Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Westlake) said. According to Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima), if the fair school funding plan was fully phased in, schools would have seen a $1.8 billion increase. But Huffman said that 'pretty much would've wiped out other funding we did for daycare, a whole number of other things.' The budget also asks schools to update their funding data, which, due to rising property values, some argued might make local governments look wealthier than they may actually be. The budget also creates new laws in the state, despite no price tag being attached. Here are a few: The budget bill 'establishes state policy recognizing only two sexes, male and female, which are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.' Previously, Ohio House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said this simply lays out guiding policy in the state. 'This simply ends the discussion in the state of Ohio which I think most voters, most citizens of Ohio agree with, and it also prevents us from having months and months and weeks of arguments if we do it in a bill or otherwise,' Huffman said. The bill also prohibits a government entity from placing menstrual products in the men's restroom of a public building. Previously, Chairman Stewart said a provision like this is just 'common sense.' The bill also includes restrictions on what SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, can be spent on. The state's operating budget requires Ohio's director of job and family services to submit a request to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) for a waiver to restrict SNAP benefits from being used to buy 'sugar-sweetened beverages' in Ohio. If the wavier is not approved, then the state is directed to resubmit for the waiver each year until it is. Stewart said the measure solely impacts soda pop; he said drinks like milk, juice or Pedialyte will not be impacted by the waiver should the state receive it. The governor must enact the budget by July 1. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
