Latest news with #R-Napoleon
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio Senate budget eyes flat income tax, $600M toward Cleveland Browns
Jun. 3—The Ohio Senate unveiled a plan this week that makes hundreds of tweaks to the state's proposed two-year spending plan, including measures to set a flat income tax rate and tweak how the state would help finance the Cleveland Browns' new stadium. The Senate-amended House Bill 96, released Tuesday, is the Senate's first swing at shaping the state's behemoth operating budget — a gargantuan piece of legislation that sets spending, taxes, and a wide range of other policy. "What we're unveiling today is a bold, transformative and balanced budget," Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, told reporters. "It's something we've spent an awful lot of time on in the last several weeks, something that we entered into knowing that it had to be a pro-growth, positive budget for the state of Ohio." The budget process starts with a draft from the governor (which is the office's biggest opportunity to create a legislative wish-list). That draft is then sent to the Ohio House, which amends the governor's draft and passes it along to the Senate. What the Senate received this year from the Ohio House contained some substantial proposals: A plan to sell $600 million in public bonds to help fund the Cleveland Browns' proposed stadium in Brook Park; a plan to refund property taxes by cutting down on many Ohio schools' financial reserves; a much-contested change to how Ohio funds its public libraries; a late switch from a multi-year funding formula for Ohio's K-12 public schools that has raised alarms for local school districts and much more. Some of the Senate changes would: — Create a flat, 2.75% income tax rate for all Ohioans who earn more than $26,050 annually. The proposal eliminates Ohio's highest tax bracket for earners pulling over $100,000 per year, eliminating over a billion in state tax revenue over a two-year period. — Expand access to Ohio's "homestead exemption" property tax relief program by increasing income threshold from $40,000 to $42,000 and allowing slightly more of a qualifying participants' home value to be tax exempt. — Grant county budget commissions the authority to reduce property tax millage "if the commission finds it reasonably necessary or prudent to avoid unnecessary, excessive, or unneeded property tax collections." — Eliminate replacement and substitute property tax levies. — Cap a school district's financial reserves at 50% of the prior year's operating expenses, as opposed to the House-proposed 30% carryover cap. General funds in excess of that 50% cap would then be portioned back out to the property taxpayers of that district. — Direct $600 million of the state's $3.7 billion in unclaimed funds to the Cleveland Browns new stadium project, instead of issuing public bonds. — Require school boards to obtain a 2/3 vote from members before putting a property tax levy on the ballot. — Add $633.9 million more to the state's K-12 public schools than the current biennium, phased in largely through new "performance-based" incentives that will reward high-performing and improving districts with more cash. — Establish a $100 million set-aside to potentially withhold from state universities that do not come under compliance of the newly-passed Senate Bill 1, which eliminates university-sanctioned diversity, equity and inclusion programs on public campuses. The bill now awaits further hearings before the Senate Finance Committee, which is expected to approve a slate of amendments to the bill in the coming weeks. Senate Democrats said the bill was unveiled to them only shortly before it was unveiled to the public, but that they already took issue with much of it. That includes the Senate's flat tax proposal, which Democrats framed as policy that puts an outsized tax burden on lower earners. "We talk about this every time we have a flat tax discussion," Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, D-Lakewood, said Tuesday. "They're inequitable in that they fall short of a 'flat' tax — actually what ends up happening is that they pay off the folks at the top of the income brackets and the folks at the lower end are the losers." Local testimony A variety of Dayton-area organizations and residents testified to senators in recent weeks about what they'd like to see in the state budget, particularly regarding education funding. For example, Dayton Early College Academy asked the Senate to maintain the House's provisions that would increase community school funding from $1,000 today to $1,500 per pupil over the biennium. The Senate's proposal lowered the proposed rate to $1,100 in 2026 and $1,200 in 2027. Meanwhile, the Clark Shawnee School District testified merely as an interested party, saying the district wanted the state to enact the third and final round of its so-called fair school funding plan, which would have pumped an additional $1.8 billion into public schools over 2026 and 2027 compared to the previous biennium. Springfield City School District, meanwhile, testified in opposition to the House's budget on the basis of the House's provision that would cap districts from carrying financial reserves greater than 30% of the district's operating cost in the previous year. Superintendent Bob Hill argued that the provision takes away schools' safety net and creates a system "penalizing fiscal responsibility rather than curbing waste." The Senate's proposed change from a 30% cap to a 50% cap would address much of Hill's concerns, but his district today is clocked with carrying a 66.6% year-over-year reserve and could therefore still be docked under the Senate's plan. Miami University encouraged the Senate to maintain House provisions that would route $14 million for the university to create the Ohio Institute for Quantum Computing Research, Talent, and Commercialization in partnership with the Cleveland Clinic. The two institutions will invest $70 million in the program over the next 10 years with the goal of making Ohio the "global epicenter of quantum computing medical research." The Senate eliminated the earmark entirely. ------ For more stories like this, sign up for our Ohio Politics newsletter. It's free, curated, and delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday evening. Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
Yahoo
19 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio Senate GOP budget increases school funding, gives Browns $600M grant, creates flat tax
Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, speaks at the Ohio Senate Republican Budget Press Conference. Sen. Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland, the chair of the Senate Finance Committee, stands in the background. Photo: Morgan Trau, WEWS The Ohio Senate has announced its version of the state budget, one that provides a slight increase in public school funding, gives a $600 million grant to the Cleveland Browns for their new stadium and creates a flat income tax of 2.75%. Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) and Finance Chair Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland) announced their proposed amendments to the state's biennial operating budget on Tuesday afternoon. House Bill 96, the number for the House's budget bill, passed in April. The senators increased the amount of money going to public schools compared to the House's proposal. The Senate budget gives public schools about $100 million more than the House. Although it follows most of the House's proposed budget – which only gives schools about $226 million for school funding, or $550 million total – the Senate changed the funding 'guarantee' amount. Right now, some districts have guarantees that a portion of their funding will not be reduced, even if their enrollment goes down. However, to be fully funded, based on statistics from the Fair School Funding Plan from 2021, schools would need an additional $666-800 million, compared to the $226 million given by the House. They also raised the House proposal's cap on districts' rainy day funds to 50%, instead of 30%. This would mean that the schools would have to refund anything above that back to the taxpayer in a method legislators want to use to provide property tax relief. The Senate's budget proposal still includes $600 million for a new Cleveland Browns stadium in Brook Park. However, the funding structure differs from what the Browns proposed and what the House approved earlier this year. The House proposed borrowing $600 million by issuing bonds and repaying the debt, with interest, over 25 years, at a cost of about $1 billion. The Senate is proposing a $600 million grant for the stadium using unclaimed funds. That money is property of Ohioans held by the state, things like forgotten bank accounts, rent or utility deposits or uncashed insurance policies. The Ohio Department of Commerce's website says the state is sitting on $4.8 billion in unclaimed funds. The Senate believes the state will more than recoup that investment through sales tax, income tax and commercial activity tax revenues from the 176-acre Brook Park stadium district. The budget also includes a 2.75% flat income tax. This mirrors a bill currently in the House, which would eliminate the separate brackets of the non-business income tax. People making more than $102,400 would have their taxes reduced from 3.5% to 3.125% in 2025 and then down to 2.75% in 2026. The lower bracket would stay at 2.75%. Now, the Senate and House leaders will enter a conference committee, a closed-door negotiation period to create a final budget. Once a decision is made, both chambers must pass the combined bill. If it passes through both sides, it will be sent to Gov. Mike DeWine for review. In the past, he issued dozens of line-item vetoes on operating budgets. Line-item vetoing is the ability for the governor to pick and choose which policies within a larger piece of legislation get to stay or must go. DeWine is adamantly against giving the bond package to the Browns, and we have asked repeatedly if he plans to veto it. He says he hopes it doesn't get to that point. The budget must be passed by the end of June. This is a developing story and will be updated. Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on Twitter and Facebook. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio Statehouse leaders appoint financial tech exec to teacher pension fund before influential vote
The entrance to the Ohio State Teachers Retirement System headquarters in Columbus. (Photo by Marty Schladen, Ohio Capital Journal.) Ohio Statehouse Republican leaders have appointed a financial tech executive to the retired teachers' pension fund ahead of the vote for a new executive director. Lynn Beal has been appointed to STRS Ohio by House Speaker Matt Huffman, R-Lima, and Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon. Beal is the vice president and head of implementation and customer success at Upstart, an AI platform that 'partners with banks and credit unions to provide consumer loans,' according to her LinkedIn profile. Having previously working at JP Morgan, she specializes in data science, analytics and insights. Askedwhy he chose Beal, McColley said she presents what he wants to see in a board member. 'When we look into an awful lot of what's happening with any board, really, not just the pension boards, it's important for us to understand what's going on because oftentimes we're the insurer of last resort,' McColley said. 'We've got to know what's going on with all of this stuff, to understand the decisions that the board is making, and frankly, as I pointed out before, it's not easy to find people who want to do this, and so we're thankful that people are willing to step up.' This position has remained vacant since Claudia Herrington finished her term in the winter. The decision comes at a time when lawmakers are going back and forth with STRS board members. In emails obtained by News 5, McColley, Huffman, Gov. Mike DeWine and Treasurer Robert Sprague asked the board not to move forward yet on a new director. 'We respectfully request that the Board hold on scheduling the vote for the new executive director until the June 11-13, 2025 meetings,' the leaders said in a joint letter on May 8. 'This will ensure that the legislative leaders can make their appointment and that individuals can have time to become acclimated before further leadership decisions are made.' This comes after a year of controversy in which elected educators are accused of participating in a $65 billion corruption scheme. The board chair denies all allegations, and some retired educators are accusing the Statehouse Republicans of trying to stop transparency. The board did not select an executive director during its last meeting, but it may make a decision in its upcoming meeting in June. The finalists are Steven Toole, former head of the North Carolina Retirement Systems and Greg Samoryski, the head of Iowa Public Employees' Retirement System. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Proposed Ohio law would require age verification before viewing porn
Apr. 23—The Ohio Senate will soon consider a House-passed initiative that would add Ohio to a growing list of states that require porn sites to either verify the age of their users or face legal consequences. If it becomes law, Ohioans would be subject to uploading photos of themselves or personal transaction data before accessing content on pornographic websites. Other states that have passed similar legislation have seen popular sites like PornHub suspend service within state borders. The House-passed provision was folded into the chamber's draft of the state's operating budget, which sets about $60 billion in state spending over the next two years and includes hundreds of separate legislative provisions. A House document explains that the provision would require any organization "that sells, delivers, furnishes, disseminates, provides, exhibits, or presents any material or performance that is obscene or harmful to juveniles" to use "reasonable" age verification methods before users can access content. "(It's) a policy that I think has wide support in the caucus," Ohio House Finance Chair Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, told reporters earlier this month. "I think, frankly, a lot of people believe that if you're going to have obscene material on the internet, we should at least make sure that those who are not legally allowed to view it are not viewing it." In practice, "reasonable" methods of age verification could include photo identification or private or public "transactional data," which could include mortgage, educational and employment records, according to the bill text. Stewart said the House's provision differs slightly from other proposals that have stalled in the Statehouse, mainly in that the law wouldn't create private rights of action. Instead, it would empower the Ohio Attorney General to step in. "If we have websites in the state of Ohio that are egregiously violating the law, we're going to give the attorney general the ability to file for injunctive relief," Stewart said. Similar proposals, including the House Bill 84 currently in committee, have garnered levels of bipartisan support from Ohio lawmakers. The Ohio Senate will consider the provision and the rest of the House's draft budget when it begins budget deliberations later this month. Senate President Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, has not yet commented on the age-verification plan. ------ For more stories like this, sign up for our Ohio Politics newsletter. It's free, curated, and delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday evening. Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Ohio judges, county, township officials may get annual 5% pay raises
Apr. 15—If the Ohio House gets its say, county and township officials, judges, and members of county boards of elections will soon get substantial pay bumps. The House amended and quickly passed the pay raises into its draft of the state's two-year operating budget, which House Finance Chair Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, said would give "all of our county and township officials" a raise. The provision takes an existing, automatic 1.75% yearly raise for those officials and bumps it to a 5% yearly raise through 2029. While Democrats voted unanimously against the House's draft last week, House Finance Ranking Member Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney, D-Westlake, told reporters that the pay raises weren't a sticking point for her. "A lot of local officials across the board have given real data to show that across other states, they're being underfunded," said Sweeney. "We want to make sure that we have good public servants. No one should be making more than whatever the equivalent in that job is, but oftentimes public servants are less, so I have no problem with making sure people are paid what they're worth." County commissioner pay varies by county population. Montgomery County commissioners are paid $115,431 this year. Pay drops to $102,043 for Butler County and $86,988 for Clark County. County commissioners attend weekly meetings; many, but not all, have other full-time jobs. Other county positions such as engineer, prosecutor and coroner have different pay rates depending on whether they have a private practice job. Township trustees are paid hourly based on the township budget, ranging from a maximum salary of $9,124 to $25,602. Trustees also often have other jobs. Ohio Association of County Commissioners Executive Director Cheryl Subler told this outlet that her organization is in favor of the House's proposal. Her organization and others representing county-level elected officials pushed for a higher year-over-year raise once it became clear that Ohio law wouldn't keep up with inflation. Subler said it's important for county pay rates to remain competitive with the private sector so that counties can still attract highly qualified candidates to fill positions such as county commissioners, engineers, recorders, clerks of court, auditors, coroners, prosecutors and more. The House's budget draft will soon be vetted by the Ohio Senate, whose President Sen. Rob McColley, R-Napoleon, has steered clear of commenting on the House's proposals. The House's draft also provides that the listed officials would receive annual salary adjustments beginning in 2030 to match inflation, with a 3% year-over-year cap. The pay raises, if approved, would not impact state lawmakers. In the waning weeks of the previous general assembly, there were discussions of raising pay for a full slate of elected officials, including lawmakers. Rep. Matt Huffman, a Lima Republican who was Senate president last session and leads the House now, told reporters that a lawmaker pay raise couldn't garner support among his chamber. ------ For more stories like this, sign up for our Ohio Politics newsletter. It's free, curated, and delivered straight to your inbox every Thursday evening. Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
