Week in Review 6-16-25

Week in Review > Week in Review 6-16-25

Posted by Buckeye Association of School Administrators on June 16th, 2025

FY24-25 BUDGET

Strong income tax collections drove state revenues $251 million past estimates in May, according to preliminary figures from the Office of Budget and Management (OBM). Income taxes came in $247.8 million or 30.3 percent ahead of expectations, and are up $501.2 million or 5.7 percent for the fiscal year so far. Above-estimate sales tax collections were mostly undercut by below-estimate Commercial Activity Tax (CAT) revenue. With just one month to go in the fiscal year, overall tax collections are $800 million or 3.1 percent ahead of estimates.

FY26-27 PROPOSED BUDGET

The week saw a flurry of activity around the proposed FY26-27 budget, concluding with the House and Senate naming their conferees on the budget bill, HB96 (Stewart), Thursday following the Senate’s passage of its version on Wednesday and the House’s subsequent rejection of the upper chamber’s changes. Conferees include Reps. Brian Stewart (R-Ashville), Mike Dovilla (R-Berea) and Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland) and Sens. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland), Brian Chavez (R-Marietta) and Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo). The first public meeting of the committee is set for Tuesday, June 17 at 9:30 a.m. in the House Finance Hearing Room to take testimony from both the Office of Budget and Management (OBM) and the Legislative Service Commission (LSC) on their respective Medicaid caseload projections – one of the critical budget calculations that will, in large measure, determine the amount of money the conference committee will ultimately have to work worth.

Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) told reporters that a vote on the conference report could come Wednesday, June 25, or Thursday, June 26.

Earlier, the House had voted 1-84 against concurrence with the Senate version of budget bill HB96 (Stewart), setting up the creation of a conference committee to work out the differences between the two chambers. Rep. Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) was the lone vote to concur with the Senate budget.

The Senate passed its version of biennial budget HB96 (Stewart) on a 23-10 vote Wednesday. Sen. Lou Blessing (R-Cincinnati) was the lone Republican to vote against the bill, joining all Democrats opposing it. It had been voted out of the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, with Senate Finance Chair Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland) noting, “After 40 hearings, hearing from over 1,000 Ohioans during our various testimony opportunities [to the six standing Senate committees and the finance committee] and reviewing over 4,200 amendments submitted by this chamber, we have delivered a fiscally responsible and supportive budget for the people of this great state.”

The House-passed budget’s language providing $10 million per fiscal year to fund a new “Drug Addiction Partnership” under the Ohio Department of Commerce (DOC) Division of Cannabis Control (DCC) was eliminated by the Senate in the latest version of HB96 (Stewart). That change was one of many included in the substitute version of HB96 accepted by the Senate Finance Committee.

The Ohio Elections Commission will cease to be under the Senate version of biennial budget HB96 (Stewart), but instead of putting the commission’s authority solely with county boards of elections and the secretary of state’s office as the House did, the Senate instead creates a new Ohio Election Integrity Commission. The Senate proposal follows much of Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s suggestions, who called not for abolishment of the elections commission, but substantive reform. The new five-member commission will be appointed by the secretary of state and leaders of the General Assembly. The Ohio Election Integrity Commission will not only have jurisdiction over the same campaign finance-related offenses as the elections commission, but it will also get jurisdiction over certain voting and petition-related offenses. The cash balance of the elections commission would transfer to the new Integrity Commission. The budget appropriates $250,000 for the new commission.

EDUCATION

State Board of Education (SBOE) Superintendent Paul Craft said Monday the funding included in the Senate’s current version of FY26-27 operating budget HB96 (Stewart) can keep the board providing the services it needs to, if with less staffing. Sub HB96 (Stewart), from the Senate, maintains the proposal in the House-passed version to shrink SBOE to five gubernatorial appointees from its current hybrid structure of 11 elected members and eight appointees.

Craft also said this time of year is especially busy for SBOE staff, who are issuing new licenses for recent college graduates as well as teachers who may have put off license renewal until the last minute before the start of next school year. Craft said by July’s meeting, he would be ready to report on SBOE investigations into teachers who encountered background check issues during their license renewal process.

The Senate Education Committee voted Tuesday in favor of Gov. Mike DeWine’s appointment of former Marysville Schools Superintendent Diane Allen as deputy director of primary and secondary education for the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (DEW). Lawmakers created two new deputy director positions at DEW overseeing primary-secondary education and career-technical education, respectively, as part of the new K-12 governance hierarchy enacted in 135-HB33 (Edwards). The Senate previously confirmed Jeremy Varner as the career-tech deputy director. The full Senate must now vote on Allen’s appointment.

ELECTIONS

Elections bills SB153 (Gavarone-Brenner) and HB233 (LaRe-Swearingen) would be “devastating” for voters, campaign volunteers and boards of elections (BOEs), according to League of Women Voters of Ohio (LWVO) Executive Director Jen Miller. Miller said her organization opposes many aspects of the legislation, but she and other voting rights advocates such as Common Cause Ohio Executive Director Catherine Turcer and Ohio Unity Coalition Executive Director Petee Talley wanted to focus on the petition gathering provisions during a press conference on Monday. “This isn’t only about statewide initiative petitions and referendums. They are taking power away from local governments and voters at the most basic level by erecting new barriers to placing local issues and local candidates on the ballot. We’re talking liquor permits, local zoning and county charter changes,” Miller said. Miller, Turcer and Talley all criticized the bills’ provisions requiring signature gatherers to wear a special badge if they receive any type of compensation, saying the policy would create unnecessary paperwork and could subject volunteers to intimidation and violence.

Secretary of State Frank LaRose Wednesday ordered county boards of elections to remove nearly 12,000 registrations from the rolls of voters who are inactive and who had registered to vote in another state. According to the secretary of state, the Office of Data Analytics and Archives, through multi-state data sharing agreements, has identified nearly 12,000 registrations belonging to individuals who registered and voted in another state in the 2024 general election, effectively rendering them ineligible to vote in Ohio. LaRose’s directive states that election officials must send these individuals a cancelation notice before they are formally removed from Ohio’s voter registration database, and any individual who believes their registration might have been flagged in error can appeal to the board of elections in their county of residence. The boards must begin the process within 10 days of receiving the list of voter registrations to be cancelled.

The Ohio Elections Commission continued a number of cases referred by the secretary of state’s office Thursday at the request of the office. Among the cases continued were cases against the campaign committees of Rep. Juanita Brent (D-Cincinnati), and the late Kris Jordan. In other action, the commission addressed a number of cases stemming from the wake of the criminal case against former Republican campaign treasurer William Curlis.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY/STATEHOUSE

The Senate released Friday a session schedule for the remainder of 2025 that follows exactly the House plan announced earlier this spring, with the potential for no floor votes before October or after Thanksgiving. Both chambers plan a run of Wednesday voting sessions from Oct. 1 through Nov. 19, with committee hearings the preceding Tuesdays. All remaining sessions are scheduled on an if-needed basis, set for Tuesday, Sept. 23, Tuesday, Sept. 30 and Wednesday, Dec. 10. House and Senate committee meetings are also planned for Tuesday, Sept. 16, Wednesday, Sept. 17, Wednesday, Sept. 24, Tuesday, Dec. 2, Wednesday, Dec. 3 and Tuesday, Dec. 9.

A total of eight individuals submitted documentation seeking appointment to the 95th House District seat for the rest of this General Assembly following the resignation of Rep. Don Jones (R-Freeport). Jones resigned last month to become the state executive director for the Ohio Farm Service Agency. A screening panel chaired by Speaker Pro Tempore Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville) met with the applicants this week, with the new member expected to be sworn in by the summer recess that begins at the end of this month. Those seeking the seat include the following:

– Jeffrey W. Carpenter, a former agricultural educator and manager of M&M Feed and Supply in New Concord and Carpenter’s Quarter Horses LLC in Barnesville.

– Kamron Chervenak, Belmont County Board of Elections deputy director.

– Edward D. Eberhart, realtor and senior minister of First Christian Church in Barnesville.

– Patrick Kovacs, owner of Cheffy Drugs in Barnesville.

– Morgan County Commissioner Heidi Maxwell.

– Noble County Commissioner Ty Moore.

– Tyce Patt, regional representative for U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH).

– Jonathan E. Robe, attorney, Robe Law Office in Athens.

In addition to passing the FY26-27 budget, HB96 (Stewart), the Senate Wednesday unanimously passed SB65 (Lang) to modify the law governing ancillary product protection contracts, vehicle value protection agreements, and uninsured drivers; and SB179 (Johnson), to verify the veteran status of imprisoned individuals and individuals facing imprisonment.

Legislation aiming to improve school bus safety passed the House with a unanimous vote on Wednesday. Lawmakers voted 88-0 in favor of “School Bus Safety Act” HB3 (Willis), which establishes new measures to enhance school bus safety, increase penalties for violations and provide grant funding for schools to apply for safety equipment. In other floor action, the House voted 90-0 to pass HB31 (Humphrey-Stewart), which ensures that all full parole board hearings are electronically recorded and designated as public records, among other provisions. The House also voted unanimously to pass HB10 (Klopfenstein-Daniels), which regulates imitation meat and egg products.

Other bills approved by the House include the following:

– HB244 (Grim-Piccolantonio), which designates March as “Women’s History Month.” The bill passed 91-0.

– HB246 (Swearingen-Fischer), which requires certain construction industry employers to use E-verify and to sanction certain hiring practices in the industry. The bill passed 92-0.

– HCR7 (Ghanbari-J. Miller), which supports the work of the American Legion Buckeye Boys State and the American Legion Auxiliary Buckeye Girls State. The resolution was adopted 89-0.

– HCR8 (Williams), which urges Congress to make the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act permanent. The resolution was adopted 61-28.

– SB6 (Roegner), which makes changes to building inspections law. The bill passed 92-0.

– SB39 (Johnson-Craig), which requires the Ohio Department of Commerce to create a veterans’ benefits and services poster, and to provide the poster at the request of an employer. The employer is allowed to display it on the employer’s premises. The bill passed 91-0.

– SB147 (Reineke), which makes changes to the laws on the transfer and disposal of solid waste and construction/demolition debris. It also creates new procedures governing a county’s withdrawal from a joint solid waste management district. The bill passed 90-2.

House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington), who previously announced she intends to step down from leadership at the end of the month, said she anticipates a new minority leader will be selected in the last week before the House’s summer break. Speaking to reporters after the House Rules and Reference Committee meeting Wednesday, Russo added she wants to get through the leadership transition and budget before announcing any future plans.

Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) and House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) offered contrasting opinions on legislators holding campaign fundraisers during the budget process while talking to reporters, as well as the practice of one omnibus amendment being accepted to the budget bill instead of individually requested changes.

During the prayer at the beginning of Wednesday’s session, Rep. Gary Click (R-Vickery) mentioned that Rep. Diane Mullins (R-Hamilton) experienced a health scare recently, and was thankful that she was now recovering. Asked about Mullins after session, House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said Mullins “suffered a significant health event,” noting her husband called him while he was babysitting in Florida. “She was life-flighted to a hospital in Dayton, and actually had the procedure done before her husband could drive over to the hospital,” Huffman said. “She has made a nearly complete recovery, fortunately — the wonders of modern medicine, certainly.”

The Capitol Square Review and Advisory Board announced that the Capitol Cafe will temporarily close beginning Monday, June 9, due to mechanical upgrades in the Statehouse. It will reopen in July.

In other action, the House Transportation Committee reported out naming bills HB259 (Daniels-Roemer) and HB275 (McClain), the Senate Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee reported out HB65 (Klopfenstein-Peterson) which addresses agriculture-related day/week designations; the House Agriculture Committee reported out HB10 (Klopfenstein-Daniels) which regulates imitation meat and egg products; the House Children and Human Services Committee reported out SB138 (Johnson) which revises laws governing local ADAMH boards; the House Health Committee reported out HB207 (Lorenz-Rogers) which designates June as “Male Wellness Month”; the House Public Safety Committee reported out SB114 (Patton) regarding quotas for law enforcement; the House Ways and Means Committee reported out HB122 (Lamton-T. Hall) which deals with organ donation paid leave; and the Senate Transportation Committee reported out SB52 (Schaffer) which designates a portion of a highway for former U.S. Rep. David Hobson, and other naming bills SB119 (Brenner), SB85 (Smith-Craig), HB50 (King) and HB51 (Klopfenstein-King).

HIGHER EDUCATION

Ohio Department of Higher Education (ODHE) Chancellor Mike Duffey recently announced the renewal of the Collegiate Purple Star designation for 30 colleges and universities in recognition of their continuing efforts to support students with military backgrounds. The campuses were in the first cohort of Collegiate Purple Star awardees that received the designation in May 2022. Schools must apply for renewal after three years. Ohio was the first state in the nation to offer the Collegiate Purple Star designation when it was launched and it builds upon the work of the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce to award Purple Star designations to preK-12 schools that have worked to become military-friendly.

Barbara Ritter has been named as dean of the University of Toledo’s (UToledo) John B. and Lillian E. Neff College of Business and Innovation, the university announced recently. Ritter, who is currently serving as the dean of the Davis College of Business and Technology at Jacksonville University in Florida, will join UToledo on Monday, July 14.

The Ohio State University (OSU) Department of Athletics and sports marketing company Learfield on Monday announced the formation of “Buckeye Sports Group,” a new initiative designed to support, streamline and enhance name, image and likeness (NIL) opportunities for OSU athletes. OSU Deputy Director of Athletics Carey Hoyt said, “By combining the power of our athletic brand with Learfield’s expansive network, we are creating an innovative, full-service approach to NIL that directly benefits our student-athletes.” Under the House v. NCAA settlement — which was signed and approved on Friday, June 6 and is scheduled to take effect on Tuesday, July 1 — schools will be permitted to directly compensate athletes for use of their NIL.

Student-athletes in four of Ohio State University’s (OSU) 36 sports will be eligible to receive direct compensation from the university for their name, image and likeness (NIL), OSU Athletics Director Ross Bjork announced Thursday. The four sports that will receive a portion of the $18 million available are football, men’s basketball, women’s basketball and women’s volleyball, Bjork said during a press conference at the Woody Hayes Athletic Center. “Those are the four sports that we start with. We hope we can grow that. We hope we can expand, and we’ll continue to work within that,” he said.

A new section of premium seating will be available in the south end zone of Ohio Stadium during the 2026 football season, the Ohio State University (OSU) Department of Athletics has announced. The section will feature nine elevated field-level suites with 12-person capacities located in front of the south stands and 400 chairback seats situated on top of this line of suites, OSU said.

PENSIONS

In a 6-5 vote Wednesday, the State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) Board of Trustees authorized hiring Steven Toole, former director of the Retirement Systems Division of North Carolina, as its next executive director. The decision followed a lengthy executive session that ran about an hour and a half more than scheduled. As of a day earlier, Toole had been the only one of three finalists for the job to file a 2024 financial disclosure form requested by the Ohio Ethics Commission. Voting in favor of Toole’s hiring were board Chair Rudy Fichtenbaum, Vice Chair Elizabeth Jones and members Pat Davidson, Michelle Flanigan, Michael Harkness and Julie Sellers – all elected members representing active or retired teachers.

Asked Thursday by Hannah News his response to Wednesday’s 6-5 vote by the STRS Board of Trustees to hire Toole, Ohio Retirement Study Council (ORSC) Chair Rep. Adam Bird (R-Cincinnati) commended the board for honoring legislative leaders’ request to delay the vote a month so they could fill a board vacancy. “As far as the vote, obviously there’s a disagreement between members of the board. I’m assuming that they’ve all done their due diligence and worked very hard. I think they met for a long time. We wish Director Toole all the success in the world as he begins,” Bird said.

STRS trustees also voted Thursday to approve a FY26 investment staff bonus policy projected to pay out $12 million, while also adding money to their annual operating budget to boost pay for those working elsewhere in the system. Bonuses, referred to in the policy as performance-based incentives, are to be paid out when investments outperform benchmarks over one- and five-year periods. Bonuses can be worth between 50 and 120 percent of an employee’s salary compensation, depending on the position. System leaders said over the past five years, investment staff outperformance of benchmarks has brought $2.3 billion in additional assets to the system, compared to the cost of $39 million in bonuses over that period. Board members said the additional portfolio value is important in their quest to restore some of the benefits curtailed during the 2012 pension reforms.

Senate Republicans’ budget includes the most significant change to Social Security coverage of Ohio public employees in 90 years and likely would have much broader effects than intended, staff of ORSC told members Thursday. Council senior researcher Jeff Bernard flagged a budget provision regarding School Employees Retirement System (SERS) participation for certain people, as part of an overall recommendation report on pension-related language in HB96 (Stewart). “The provisions in the ‘As Reported by Senate Finance’ version of HB96 would mark the most significant change to the coverage of Ohio’s state and local employees under Social Security since its enactment in 1935. Ohio and the ORSC have consistently opposed expanding Social Security coverage to state and local employees,” Bernard wrote. Under the Senate-passed version of the budget, excluded from SERS membership would be any person who is providing school health services to a child with a disability and who is employed and paid by an organization that has contracted with a school district to provide those services. Senators on the council shook their heads when Rep. Sean Brennan (D-Parma) asked if anyone knew the provenance of the SERS budget provision. Vice Chair Sen. Mark Romanchuk (R-Ontario) told Hannah News after the hearing he didn’t know the origin or rationale for the provision.