Weinstein Condemns Senate Republican Budget

Today, state Senator Casey Weinstein (D-Hudson) voted against House Bill 96, the Senate Republicans' version of the state operating budget.

“At the end of the day, this is a budget that disproportionately prioritizes the interests of Ohio’s wealthiest residents over the needs of the vast majority of Ohioans," said Weinstein. "It underfunds our public schools, food banks, libraries, and even pediatric cancer research at a time when demand for these essential services is higher than ever. And yet, in the same budget, we’ve granted hundreds of millions of dollars for a new professional sports stadium. That choice raises serious questions about our priorities. I have a hard time believing this is the kind of budget Ohioans elected us to create. They sent us here to invest in their futures, not to give handouts to billionaires while undercutting the programs working families count on every single day.”

As passed by the Senate, House Bill 96 fails to address the needs of hardworking, everyday Ohioans. The Republican supermajorities in the legislature decimated many of the bipartisan provisions proposed by the governor that would have invested in our children and working families, and have decided to instead:

• Cut taxes for the wealthiest Ohioans by flattening the income tax to 2.75%;
• Underfund our public schools by using outdated inputs and tying performance to school funding, while continuing to invest historic amounts of public funds in vouchers for non-public, primarily religious schools;
• Give away $600 million of Ohioans’ unclaimed funds to the billionaire owners of the Cleveland Browns;
• Threaten health care coverage for 770,000 Ohioans and underfund crucial public health programs;
• Attack already marginalized groups by requiring libraries to censor materials related to “gender identity or sexual orientation” and codifying that the state only recognizes two biological sexes;
• Abandon the state’s partnership with local and county governments;
• Provide no meaningful property tax relief;
• Reduce funding for H2Ohio and lead abatement programs;
• Cut food bank funding; 
• Abolish the Ohio Elections Commission and transfer its duties to the Secretary of State’s office; and
• Politicize education by requiring party affiliation for State Board of Education and local school board races.

House Bill 96 now heads back to the Ohio House of Representatives for concurrence. If the House does not concur with the Senate’s changes, the bill will go to conference committee.