Week In Review 3-10-25

Week in Review > Week In Review 3-10-25

Posted by Buckeye Association of School Administrators on March 10th, 2025

FY24-25 BUDGET

Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) revenue that was expected in February but instead booked in January contributed to a $94 million miss in total monthly tax collections, according to the Office of Budget and Management (OBM). Preliminary revenue figures for February released Thursday showed tax collections of $2.14 billion versus projections of $2.24 billion, a 4.2 percent variance. Of the $93.8 million miss on estimates, more than $53 million is from CAT revenues, which yielded $515.3 million versus expectations of $569 million, a variance of 9.4 percent.

FY26-27 BUDGET

The Ohio Hospital Association (OHA) and Ohio Children’s Hospital Association (OCHA) are fully behind Gov. Mike DeWine’s executive budget proposal, OHA Senior Vice President for Advocacy Scott Borgemenke and OCHA President and CEO Nick Lashtutka told the House Medicaid Committee Tuesday during proponent testimony on HB96 (Stewart). Borgemenke and Lashutka said both of their boards unanimously voted to support the executive budget proposal as a package. Borgemenke said many hospitals are struggling financially, and much of it is out of their control, pointing to the rates paid by Medicare and Medicaid. He also pointed to the issues with health care workforce.

The committee also heard from Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) Director Maureen Corcoran, who discussed the administration’s Medicaid cost containment measures, saying the proposal would save Medicaid approximately $3.6 billion over the biennium. Corcoran told lawmakers that excluding contract pharmacies from the 340B program will result in more rebates for Medicaid, noting it’s more difficult for the department to see transactions involving those entities. She said the single pharmacy benefit manager has allowed Medicaid to see a loss in rebates of about $323 million over the last couple years, and the administration is trying to end those losses.

More than 200 witnesses submitted testimony to the House Education Committee before Tuesday’s hearing on HB96 (Stewart), which recessed late in the afternoon and reconvened Wednesday morning. Paul Imhoff of the Buckeye Association of School Administrators (BASA) led several witnesses in mentioning the data HB96 uses to determine a school district’s base costs for calculating funding through the Fair School Funding Plan (FSFP). Imhoff said HB96 allows property valuation and resident income data to update each year in calculating school district funding while other formula components remain frozen. Imhoff said simulations from the Legislative Service Commission project 343 school districts (56 percent of Ohio districts) are projected to lose funding this year as a result of the formula in HB96, with 360 (59 percent) losing funding in the second year of the biennium. He added that while enrollment change does play a factor in state aid adjustments, roughly 20 percent of the districts receiving a cut in state funds are actually growing in enrollment compared to last year. He said the resulting imbalance in state and local share will result in an increased reliance on local taxes, further burdening local communities.

The Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) presented Tuesday to the Senate Education Committee on the laws governing how and when school districts are obligated to transport students — both their own and those at nearby private and charter schools. Jennie Stump, policy and legislative affairs chief, reviewed students’ eligibility for transportation and alternatives for when a district decides it can’t transport students, including payments to parents and use of local mass transit systems. Her presentation followed testimony from DEW Director Steve Dackin on the general priorities of the agency. In answer to a question from Sen. Andrew Brenner (R-Delaware), chair of the committee, Dackin suggested that it’s been a long time since anyone took a comprehensive look at the student transportation system.

CHILDREN/FAMILIES

Reps. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown) and Erika White (D-Toledo) are proposing increased state enforcement of child labor laws and educator reporting obligations of evidence of unsafe minor employment, saying exploitation of young people is not a solution to Ohio’s workforce issues. They said their legislation, labeled the “Clock Out Kids Act,” would push back against a trend spreading across states to roll back decades’ old protections for children in the workforce. McNally said the legislation represents proactive pushback against the type of policies proposed in SB50 and 135-SB30, which would allow youth under age 16 to work later in the day. She said the policies in their legislation were initially proposed as amendments to other legislation but were not accepted, sparking their move to introduce standalone legislation.

EDUCATION

The Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review (JCARR) Monday heard from representatives of the Department of Education and Workforce (DEW) on rules implementing the college, career, workforce and military readiness (CCWMR) measure on state report cards. JCARR Chair Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord) explained to the committee that the presentation is the result of a new provision enacted by the Legislature that requires DEW to come before JCARR any time it proposes changes to the state report cards. He said the committee will likely take action on the proposed rules at a future meeting. Presenting were DEW Chief Legal Counsel Tony Palmer and Chief Integration Officer Chris Woolard, who told the committee that the component was created by 134-HB82 (Cross-Jones), which included it in the six components to the state report cards. They said the CCWMR measure has not been rated in the last three years, but the data has been collected and released as DEW received it.

President Donald Trump’s proposed cuts to the U.S. Department of Education (USDOE) are “basically robbing Peter to pay Elon,” American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten said Tuesday. “We are fighting to keep that funding for kids. And the effect of not having it — whether it’s going to a block grant or taken directly for tax cuts — means that, for a local school board or local school to keep it, they would have to increase property taxes,” Weingarten said during a Zoom press conference, joined by Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT) President Melissa Cropper, National Education Association (NEA) President Becky Pringle, and other education leaders. The speakers said Trump’s proposal would harm low-income children, children with disabilities and first-generation college students, English language learners, and others.

DEW leaders delved into detail Thursday on some of the policy proposals in Gov. Mike DeWine’s executive budget proposal, HB96 (Stewart), including a continued focus on the literacy topics that DeWine emphasized in his previous budget proposal. DEW convened its every-other-month public hearing Thursday, an outgrowth of its separation from the State Board of Education meant to provide transparency of operations. More of the agency’s decision-making on rules and policies had happened during public board meetings when the two were combined. Jennie Stump, chief of policy and legislative affairs for DEW, said the administration wants to require a common diagnostic assessment across school districts to track literacy progress.

DEW leaders also discussed their proposal to align Ohio’s technology learning standards for students with those of the International Society for Technology Education (ISTE). Sherry Birchem, administrator in the Office of Academic Success, said when the department was soliciting public feedback on updating the standards, 79 percent of comments expressed approval for adopting ISTE standards in Ohio.

ENERGY/UTILITIES

Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) member Lawrence Friedeman will remain in his seat for another five years, pending Ohio Senate confirmation, after Gov. Mike DeWine reappointed him Friday. Friedeman, a Democrat who first joined the commission in 2017 as an appointee of Gov. John Kasich and was re-appointed by DeWine in 2020, is an attorney with a background in energy and utility matters. Friedeman’s new term would begin Friday, April 11.

Ohio manufacturers double-clutched Tuesday as the Senate Energy Committee accepted a heavily amended version of SB2 (Reineke) that backtracks on customer refunds and adopts the three-year rate case and annual adjustments floated by utilities last week in lieu of the modified, existing five-year model of the introduced bill. The Office of Ohio Consumers’ Counsel (OCC) joined the Ohio Manufacturers’ Association (OMA) in opposing the substitute version and its return to “rider”-like charges originally targeted for repeal. The committee heard from eight witnesses including, among others, OMA, OCC, Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA), Ohio Energy Group (OEG), Ohio Energy Leadership Council (OELC) and Reliability First Corp., one of six regional entities with Federal Power Act authority delegated by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC). OMA Energy Counsel Kim Bojko of Carpenter Lipps LLP said she regretted to inform the Senate that, contrary to her submitted testimony, Ohio manufacturers could no longer support SB2. “We believe that words matter,” she said, instructing members to “ignore” her proponent remarks.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY/STATEHOUSE

School officials appeared before the Senate Ways and Means Committee Tuesday to oppose legislation that would change the calculation of a school district’s 20-mill floor, which they said raises significant legal concerns and would not bring any tax relief to a number of property owners in districts around the state. SB66 (O’Brien-Lang) would alter the 20-mill floor calculation by including income taxes, emergency levies, substitute levies, and all inside millage. Katie Johnson, executive director of the Ohio Association of School Business Officials (OASBO), told the committee that those revenue sources have historically been excluded from the 20-mill floor calculation “for sound constitutional and practical reasons.” She argued that the tax calculations would be applied retroactively to previously approved levies, and would reduce the benefit of voter approved levies, limit revenue growth that voters explicitly authorize, and force districts to return to voters sooner and more frequently for additional funds.

Senators Wednesday voted 29-3 to pass SB33 (Wilson), legislation allowing businesses to post labor law notices online. This applies to notices on the minor labor law, minimum wage law, civil rights law, prevailing wage law, workers’ compensation law, and the public employment risk reduction law. Currently, notices on these laws must be physically posted conspicuously in the employer’s facility. Sens. Catherine Ingram (D-Cincinnati), Beth Liston (D-Dublin) and Kent Smith (D-Euclid) voted against it.

In other action, the Senate unanimously passed SB27 (Johnson), which would designate March 20 as “Ameloblastoma Awareness Day.” The Senate also voted 32-0 to pass SB39 (Johnson-Craig), which requires the Department of Commerce (DOC) to create a veterans’ benefits and services poster. DOC would be required to provide an employer with a copy of the poster at the employer’s request, and allows the employer to display it on the employer’s premises.

After session, Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) told reporters that his caucus generally agrees that local governments should receive the tax revenue that voters approved as part of adult use marijuana legalization initiative Issue 2.

In the House, legislation allowing Ohio seniors to get their discounted hunting and fishing licenses one year earlier passed unanimously Wednesday. Under HB64 (D.Thomas-Deeter), the discounts would apply beginning at age 65 rather than 66. Rep. David Thomas (R-Jefferson), sponsor of the bill alongside Rep. Kellie Deeter (R-Norwalk), said a constituent contacted him on his first day in office after learning the discount did not apply to those age 65. Thomas said he looked into it and found that of the nine discounts afforded to Ohio seniors, eight apply at age 65, with this senior sportsman license being the exception.

Also passing the House unanimously Wednesday was HB13 (Pizzulli), which would recognize Nov. 5 as “Roy Rogers Day,” in honor of the Ohio native born in Cincinnati and raised in Portsmouth.

After the session, Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) addressed President Donald Trump’s comments during an address to the nation Tuesday night in which he called for repeal of the CHIPS Act, federal legislation that provided money toward Ohio’s major Intel development project. “If the CHIPS Act as it currently stands goes away, does that mean all the money? There’s not some other way to support this, support the effort? Obviously Intel’s very important to Ohio,” he said.

Regarding SB1 (Cirino), the sweeping higher education legislation that he had supported in the prior session as Senate president, Huffman said he foresees “fairly swift action” on the bill. On the other hand, he said, while the issues in SB1 have been debated for years at this point, he still has a couple dozen members he needs to bring up to speed on the subject. “I’ve been involved in this, they have not, so we’re doing a lot of educating … but I think this is something that’s going to happen fairly quickly,” he said.

As lawmakers consider various changes to the recently approved marijuana legalization initiated statute, Huffman expressed hesitancy to revise the distribution of revenue to local governments. “I think it’s difficult to change the rules in the middle of the game on the local governments,” he said. He said other elements of the revenue distribution are “egregious” and in need of change.

The Ohio Statehouse will feature a series of 60-minute presentations Tuesdays at noon in March in the Atrium in honor of Women’s History Month. Each session will include a Q&A with the speaker or performer. All programs are free and open to the public. The presentations, which will be livestreamed, include the following:

– March 11: The History of Women’s Basketball in Columbus presented by the Columbus Metropolitan Library.

– March 18: Florence Harding: First Lady of Consequence presented by Sherry Hall from the Warren G. Harding Presidential Sites.

– March 25: People, Stories, and Art: A Portrait of My Life and Work presented by artist Leslie Adams who reveals the inspiration behind her portraits displayed at the Ohio Statehouse, and shares the introspective nature of her monumental self-portraits.

The Ohio Legislative Black Caucus (OLBC) held a press conference this week to announce their priorities for the 136th General Assembly, with OLBC President Rep. Terrence Upchurch (D-Cleveland) saying those priorities are aimed at not only affecting the quality of life for the Black community, but all Ohioans he said who have been left behind and feel that they have not been heard by the Legislature. “We have a range of bills that encompass and address health disparities, criminal justice, housing and tax issues, health and safety, education, and several other concentrations,” Upchurch said.

Legislators this week reintroduced legislation that will ban arrest and ticket quotas for law enforcement officers, saying the quotas undermine public trust and hinder the primary goal of improving public safety. Reps. Bride Sweeney (D-Cleveland) and Kevin Miller (R-Newark) were joined at a Statehouse press conference by Sen. Tom Patton (R-Strongsville), who has introduced companion legislation SB114 (Patton) to HB131 (Sweeney-K. Miller). The bills are a reintroduction of 135-HB333 (Sweeney-K. Miller), though Sweeney said the effort to ban quotas has been around for the last six years. Patton said the legislation was brought to lawmakers by law enforcement.

The newly formed House Arts, Athletics and Tourism Committee is setting out to highlight the various cultural touchstones that invite people to visit and hopefully relocate to Ohio. In its first meeting on Tuesday, Chair Rep. Melanie Miller (R-Ashland) said the committee will not separate tourism and economic development as its members travel the state to learn more about the state’s arts, athletics and other tourist draws. Miller invited the committee’s members to think about the features in their home districts that they would like to highlight. The first witness was Sarah Wickman, state tourism director for the Ohio Department of Development and head of TourismOhio. Wickman reported that in 2023 alone, tourism in Ohio generated $56 billion in visitor spending, supporting 436,000 jobs and generating $4.6 billion in state and local tax revenue.

House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) told the Ohio Oil and Gas Association’s (OOGA) annual meeting Thursday that budget bill HB96 (Stewart) will be on the House floor during its Wednesday, April 9 session, and indicated that they will be removing proposed tax increases on cigarettes and gambling from the bill. Huffman spoke for about 15 minutes, thanking attendees for helping to defeat redistricting Issue 1 last fall. Huffman spent much of his remarks discussing energy bill HB15 (Klopfenstein). He said the bill is designed to increase energy production in the state, adding that there are those who are going to want to build a gas-powered electric generation plant in the near future, potentially to service a data center or other large energy users.

In other actions, the Senate Armed Services, Veterans Affairs and Public Safety Committee reported out SR22 (Schaffer) which urges the federal government to take prompt action on processing veterans claims.

HIGHER EDUCATION

Ohio State University’s (OSU) Office of Diversity and Inclusion (ODI) and some of its services were eliminated on Friday, OSU President Ted Carter announced in a message to students, faculty and staff. Carter said the university took the action due to policy developments at the federal and state levels, as Republicans seek to dismantle diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs in higher education. The Senate recently passed SB1 (Cirino), which would significantly alter the operations of Ohio’s higher education institutions, including by prohibiting DEI policies. Attorney General Dave Yost, a Republican gubernatorial candidate, discussed his views on DEI during a recent House Finance Committee meeting.

Administrators at Ohio’s 14 public universities should do more to protect diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs on campus, the Ohio Student Association (OSA) wrote in a letter to the state’s university presidents and boards of trustees. “Anticipatory and gratuitous compliance to unjust politicized mandates is cowardly and morally reprehensible,” OSA said. “Higher education is under attack. We call on you to stand up and fight back.” The group said Ohio’s public universities should commit to equitable access for students of color, LGBTQ+ students, women students, veteran students, students with disabilities, first-generation students, international students and other students who are underrepresented. “By undoing the programs that have allowed all students to thrive, our universities are choosing to appease politicians at the cost of their students’ dignity and wellbeing,” OSA said.

The House Workforce and Higher Education Committee Tuesday began hearings on Sen. Jerry Cirino’s (R-Kirtland) long-debated higher education reform bill, SB1 (Cirino). While the controversial legislation went through nearly a dozen iterations before ultimately dying in the House during the 135th General Assembly, Cirino signaled he may not be as open to changes this time around. Near the end of the at-times contentious committee hearing, Ranking Member Rep. Beryl Piccolantonio (D-Gahanna) asked if Cirino is still open to modifications to the bill. Cirino did not respond directly, but voiced his frustration with the process during the last General Assembly. “We had a dash 11 version of this bill, it sat in the House for over a year, and other than the chairman and I talking about the bill there was no feedback on the bill,” he said. “We will endeavor to make some things more clear in response to the chair’s office, but, you know, this bill is long-in-the-tooth already, and it’s been out there for two and a half years.”

Ohio State University is joining 14 other leading research institutions in a partnership with OpenAI to advance research and education in AI. “Ohio State is at the forefront of a multidisciplinary approach to the benefits of AI, significantly impacting both research and education,” said Peter Mohler, Ohio State’s executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge. “We are excited to join OpenAI and this elite research partnership, which will enable us to drive even more groundbreaking discoveries and advancements in medicine, manufacturing, computing, and beyond.” According to Brad Lightcap, OpenAI chief operating officer, “NextGenAI will accelerate research progress and catalyze a new generation of institutions equipped to harness the transformative power of AI.” NextGenAI’s mission is to support the next generation of research breakthroughs, the next generation of leaders and the next generation of universities with AI.

INTEL

Intel’s Ohio operations, initially projected to come online this year but since delayed for various reasons, now are projected to start producing computer chips in the next decade. Intel’s Naga Chandrasekaran, executive vice president and general manager of Intel Foundry Manufacturing, sent a message Friday to Ohio Intel employees laying out a new timeline. According to the message, the first of two New Albany facilities is now expected to finish construction in 2030 and begin producing chips that year or the next. The second facility is expected to complete construction in 2031 and start production in 2032.

The Senate Democratic Caucus sent a letter to Gov. Mike DeWine Thursday urging him “to continue your steadfast support of the CHIPS and Science Act,” following comments made by President Donald Trump in his Tuesday address to Congress where he said the CHIPS Act should be eliminated. Trump called the act “a horrible, horrible thing” and told U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), “You should get rid of the CHIP Act.” Ohio’s Senate Democrats cited those comments in their letter, requesting DeWine clarify his past and future steps “to ensure the successful realization of this vital project.” Columbus Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Derrick Clay also issued a statement of support for the CHIPS Act Thursday, saying it represents “a transformational opportunity” for the region and would strengthen the economy, bolster national security and create thousands of “high-quality” jobs.

MENTAL HEALTH

A suicide prevention model used in K-12 schools nationwide, including 84 schools in Ohio, has been found to reduce suicide attempts by 29 percent, according to a study released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The Sources of Strength model was designed to build peer social networks to create healthy norms and culture to prevent suicide, violence, bullying and substance misuse. The program trains diverse student opinion leaders in a multidimensional framework for healthy coping, along with skills to disseminate those coping norms and practices through their social networks. The results of the CDC study show the program’s effectiveness for teens from diverse backgrounds, including different genders, races and ethnicities. A cautious interpretation of the study, however, suggests the Sources of Strength model may not prevent suicide attempts among students who have recently experienced sexual violence, highlighting the need for additional intervention support for those high-risk individuals.

OHIO HISTORY

Lt. Gov. Jim Tressel joined students, faculty and staff of Dublin City Schools’ Grizzell Middle School on Monday to celebrate Ohio’s 222nd birthday. Tressel toured the school, spoke with students, and participated in various activities organized by eighth-grade history teacher Shawn Kaeser — even getting an Ohio flag painted on his face at one of the stations in the school library. “You know what, being around young people is the greatest thing in the world. It just reminded me of why I got into education 50 years ago,” Tressel told reporters during the event. “It’s great having them learn about Ohio. We’re so blessed here. If you’re young and you’ve never really been taught these wonderful things and the diversity of the state, the landmarks, and things we’re famous for — it’s just fun to watch kids learn about our great state.” Tressel said he hopes students gain a deeper understanding of the state, and the sacrifices that many people made to move Ohio forward.

The late Sen. Kirk Schuring (R-Canton) is the winner of the 2025 Ohio History Leadership Award, Ohio History Connection Executive Director and CEO Megan Wood announced Wednesday. “[Schuring] is someone who dedicated his life to public service, and played a vital role in the promotion of historic preservation all throughout Ohio. The state lost a true champion for history when he passed away in November,” Wood said during the Statehood Day event at the Statehouse.

House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said Schuring’s Historic Preservation Tax Credits are particularly important to him, pointing to their effect on Lima. “Lima was founded in 1842. There aren’t many 1842 buildings left, but there are a lot of 100 and 130-year-old buildings left. My law office is a 120-year-old building,” Huffman said. “To the extent that this historic tax credit is really … saving our culture in Ohio into perpetuity, is very important.”

Tressel also spoke at the event, discussing the importance of higher education institutions in Ohio’s history. “As the state was being settled, one of the things that people in certain areas really worked hard to do, was to attract colleges. There was a competition to get those small — in most cases liberal arts, and sometimes church-related — colleges to settle in their little village. They knew if a college settled there, there was a good chance that a vibrant community would be built around it,” Tressel said. He said he played football at Baldwin Wallace University, noting that allowed him to travel to Marietta College, Ohio Northern University, Heidelberg University, Capital University, Ohio Wesleyan University, Otterbein University and Wilmington College, among others. He also praised former Gov. James Rhodes for his work on establishing more public colleges and universities around the state to ensure all Ohio students were relatively close to a public institution of higher education.

PENSIONS

Sen. Mark Romanchuk (R-Ontario) is looking to set stronger standards for pension fund health and is asking the five Ohio public retirement systems for the tools they’d need to meet those standards. Romanchuk recently introduced SB69, which now simply includes placeholder language declaring the General Assembly’s intent to enact pension reform. The longstanding statutory requirement is that Ohio systems be on track to pay down their unfunded accrued liabilities within 30 years. Romanchuk said he’d prefer something closer to 20 or 15 years, an option the Ohio Retirement Study Council has discussed recently.

Ohio retirees with time in both public and private sector employment should soon start seeing changes to their Social Security benefits following last year’s repeal of federal laws that reduced those benefits for people earning public pensions. The U.S. Social Security Administration said that starting last week, it began to pay retroactive benefits to those due them. Under the Social Security Fairness Act, signed by former President Joe Biden at the tail end of his administration, the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO) were repealed. The new law was retroactive to the beginning of 2024, meaning some Social Security beneficiaries are due retroactive payments. Because Social Security benefits are paid a month behind, the administration said beneficiaries will begin receiving their newly adjusted amounts in April for their March benefits.