Ohio Senate Passes Bold Budget Plan for Next Two Years

COLUMBUS—The Ohio Senate approved sweeping tax relief in the form of a flat income tax and significant property tax reforms while investing an additional $634 billion into K-12 public schools. The omnibus amendment, otherwise known as the Senate's final version of House Bill 96, maintained all of its key initiatives that were introduced last week during the Senate's news conference.

In addition to the 2.75% flat income tax to be phased-in during the second fiscal year (FY '27) of the budget, the Senate's budget would return Ohio's property tax system to the anti-inflationary measures originally intended under a law passed in 1976. Over the years, certain levies have been passed that bypass those protections.

The Senate's budget bans new emergency and new replacement levies, while expanding Ohio's Homestead Exemption. "There is no excuse for people to worry about potentially losing a home that was paid off years ago from the threat of jumps in their property taxes," said Senate Finance Chairman Jerry Cirino. "The Senate's plan will put the transparency and accountability back into the system."

Senator Cirino also championed a plan to utilize more than $4 billion in Ohio's Unclaimed Funds account that was basically inactive. $1.7 million would be reserved for a new performance grant program called the SCF, Sports and Culture Fund, that will leverage the economic development driver that is professional sports in Ohio.

$600 million will help fund the Brook Park-Cleveland Browns mixed use economic development stadium project, with strict guarantees built around the state receiving more money in tax revenue than attached to the project over 16 years. "This program protects the state's taxpayer dollars from paying interest payments on bonds to fund the project, and it lowers the overall risk to the state, because the money isn't coming from the General Revenue Fund," said Senator Cirino. "We also are making sure the team honors its commitment to play in the new stadium at Brook Park over the 16 year length of the terms under the performance grant."

The $600 million for the SCF comes from funds that have been in the Unclaimed Funds program for more than a decade, and Ohioans will have an additional ten years to make a claim on any of those funds for an additional decade.

The Senate also invests $30 million over the biennium into veterinary medicine at The Ohio State University. The money would be used only to increase enrollment of students from the State of Ohio.

Also the Senate's final version of the budget increases the H2Ohio Program by investing an additional $20 million over the biennium into the Department of Agriculture's efforts to protect water quality around the state.

The Senate Finance Committee listened to moving and emotional testimony by representatives from the deaf and blind who serve as "Navigators." The Senate provided an additional $200,000 in each fiscal year to fund the program that assigns a "navigator" to a deaf or blind Ohioan, to help them better navigate and live their day-to-day lives.

The Senate also increased the funding for Ohio's Suicide Crisis 988 Lifeline adding $500,000 to the program.

The budget now moves back to the House for further debate between the chambers.

The $60.23 billion budget is balanced, and represents responsible growth driven by the economy, while building on the Senate's history of reducing the overall tax burden on Ohio taxpayers.

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