Week in Review 9-16-24

Week in Review > Week in Review 9-16-24

Posted by Buckeye Association of School Administrators on September 16th, 2024

FY24-25 BUDGET

Recently updated revenue forecasts for FY25 were pretty close to the mark in August, with tax collections netting about half a percent more than expected, according to preliminary data from the Office of Budget and Management (OBM). OBM recently decided to update revenue forecasts for the second half of the biennium, in part to account for a large variance in personal income tax collections tied to new federal guidance and state law on state and local tax (SALT) tax deductions for pass-through filers. August tax revenues reached $2.56 billion, up $16.5 million or 0.6 percent over estimates. Year-to-date tax revenues stand at $4.65 billion, 0.4 percent over estimates.

EDUCATION

The State Board of Education (SBOE) can likely continue into the next biennium at its present reduced staffing levels if lawmakers will provide direct funding for monitoring of licensee arrests and the Resident Educator Summative Assessment (RESA), Superintendent Paul Craft told board members Monday. Meanwhile, the board voted to amend its policies to require that at least one of its two leadership positions be held by an elected board member. Craft spent part of his monthly report to the board discussing plans for the FY26-27 budget request, due to the Office of Budget and Management (OBM) near the end of September. Now that it’s a smaller organization mostly focused on licensing, rather than part of a larger cabinet agency, the board’s budget submission will be simpler, Craft said. “What’s due from us by the 27th of this month is a mostly narrative explanation of what we’d like to see included in the executive budget proposal that goes forward to the Legislature,” he said.

Separate associations for public and private university teacher training programs just merged their monthly meeting schedules as they work together more closely to help prepare and grow the educator workforce, leaders of those groups told the SBOE this week. Superintendent Paul Craft turned over part of his monthly report to the board Monday to Dawn Shinew of Bowling Green State University (BGSU) and Melissa Aksren Edgehouse of the University of Mount Union, who respectively serve in leadership roles for the State University Education Deans (SUED) and the Ohio Association of Private Colleges for Teacher Education (OAPCTE). SBOE members had expressed an interest in hearing from educator preparation program (EPP) leaders at recent meetings.

Following the shooting at Apalachee High School in Georgia last week that killed four students, Gov. Mike DeWine sent a memo to superintendents throughout Ohio listing a number of different ways the state can assist in school safety through the Ohio School Safety Center (OSSC). It can assist all Ohio K-12 schools, higher education institutions and first responders in preventing, preparing for and responding to threats and acts of violence, including self-harm. Another free safety resource available to all Ohio schools is the Safer Ohio School Tip Line, an anonymous reporting system that accepts tips via call, text, webform and mobile app 24 hours a day. It can be reached by phone at 844-SaferOH (844-723-3764) while the Safer Ohio School Tip Line mobile app can be downloaded at https://app.saferohioschooltipline.com/.

A legal advocacy group and a Christian schools network are suing Columbus City Schools on behalf of a Columbus mother whose child lost busing when Columbus stopped transporting many private and charter school students this fall. The lawsuit filed in the Ohio Supreme Court by the Ohio Christian Education Network (OCEN) and the American Center for Law and Justice (ACLJ) follows one filed days earlier by Attorney General Dave Yost over the same issue. OCEN is affiliated with the Center for Christian Virtue. The new lawsuit names Marissa Siebold, whose child attends Tree of Life Christian School, as plaintiff. While the lawsuit asserts Columbus’ failure to provide busing for her child violates state student transportation laws, it also lists various injuries to Siebold’s family, including her need to cut back from 55 to 45 hours of work per week, extra wear and tear and fuel expenses for her vehicle, and lost time. Penalties the district can incur for failing to transport students and payments it can offer Siebold in lieu of transportation will not remedy her situation, the complaint states.

The Broadcast Educational Media Commission (BEMC) met Thursday, with commissioners discussing its FY26-27 operating budget submission and changes in their membership. Commission Vice Chair Geoffrey Andrews was recognized as he leaves the board after completing the two terms he is limited to, while new Commissioner Carl Raines was welcomed. It was also noted that Meira Zucker’s first term expired at the end of June and her potential reappointment is pending with the governor’s office. Kenneth Cookson will serve as the new vice chair, with a third member to be selected for the Executive Committee alongside Cookson and Chair Matt Dole at the November BEMC meeting. Cookson will also chair the Finance Committee, with Sandra Thompson remaining as Policy Committee chair and Jim Otte continuing to chair the Engineering and Broadcast Operations Committee.

GAMING/GAMBLING

Ohio’s sportsbooks brought in $18.1 million more in revenue in July 2024 than they did in July 2023, according to data provided by the Ohio Casino Control Commission (OCCC). Sports betting operators reported $55.3 million in total taxable revenue in July 2024, compared to $37.2 million in July 2023. The handle was also up significantly year-over-year, as sports bettors placed $476.9 million in bets in July 2024, compared to $331.1 million in July 2023.

Ohio’s seven racinos brought in more revenue from video lottery terminals (VLTs) in August 2024 than they did in August 2023, according to data provided by the Ohio Lottery Commission. Racinos reported $118.4 million in revenues in August 2024, up from $112.5 million in August 2023. Operating transfers to the Lottery Profits Education Fund (LPEF) for August 2024 totaled $117 million, down from $126.2 million in August 2023.

HIGHER EDUCATION

The University of Toledo is finalizing preparations for its 21st annual International Human Trafficking & Social Justice Conference, to be held virtually Wednesday, Sept. 18 through Friday, Sept. 20. This year’s conference will feature more than 110 live webinar presentations and networking sessions ranging from trafficking survivors’ personal stories to discussions around the challenges and opportunities in artificial intelligence. A full schedule of events and registration information can be found at the conference’s website, www.traffickingconference.com.

Attorney General Dave Yost recently announced that the state has reached a $1.6 million settlement with three construction companies and a design firm over what he alleged were dangerous flaws in an 11-year-old building at Zane State College. Yost’s office had sued the three companies — Robertson Construction, SHP Leading Design and Quandel Construction Group — in October 2022 after mediation failed to resolve a dispute regarding the splitting and crumbling facade of the Advanced Sciences and Technology Center, completed in 2013 on Zane State’s campus.

JUDICIAL

The Ohio Constitution’s single subject rule would be pointless if HB68 (Click) is found to satisfy the requirement, American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Ohio attorney David Carey told a 10th District Court of Appeals panel on Wednesday. Judges Michael Mentel, Julia Dorrian and Carly Edelstein heard oral arguments in the case, which challenges provisions of the law that ban the use of puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones for gender-affirming care for minors. The law also prohibits transgender women and girls from participating in women’s and girls’ school sports. Franklin County Court of Common Pleas Judge Michael Holbrook recently ruled that HB68 didn’t violate the Ohio Constitution, and those challenging the law quickly appealed. Edelstein asked Carey to respond to the state’s argument that the single subject of HB68 is “the debate over transgenderism” and that the common purpose is “protecting youth and their families from the challenges of an increasingly pressing social trend.”

U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Morrison is now the chief judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, according to the court. In her new role as chief judge, Morrison will not only preside over cases and perform the other functions of an active federal judge, but also will act as the administrative judge and be responsible for overseeing the operations of the court and ensuring that the judges and court units (probation, pretrial services and the district court including the clerk’s office) fulfill their constitutional, operational, and administrative duties. Morrison takes over the responsibilities as chief judge from Judge Algenon L. Marbley, who served in that capacity for five years and had the court ranked as one of the most efficient in the country during his tenure. He also led the court through the coronavirus pandemic.

LIBRARIES

September is National Library Card Sign-up Month, and the Ohio Library Council (OLC) and Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library are teaming up to mark the occasion. The annual initiative coincides with the start of the school year. OLC notes that a library card “unlocks a world of possibilities,” from books to kindergarten readiness programs to homework help, WiFi, creative makerspaces and more. “Getting a library card is a transformative experience for children and families,” said Michelle Francis, executive director of the Ohio Library Council. “It opens a whole new world of education, entertainment, and enrichment. Libraries offer a cost effective way for parents and caregivers to access books for their children and read more frequently together. We appreciate Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library of Ohio for helping us spread the word about the power of public libraries.”

MENTAL HEALTH

As five Ohioans die by suicide each day and one young person dies by suicide every 34 hours, members of the Ohio Suicide Prevention Foundation (OSPF) gathered at the Statehouse Tuesday to call on the state of Ohio to break the stigma around mental health care and to talk about efforts to shift the conversation about suicide from a culture of silence to one of support. The discussion marked the recognition of Tuesday, Sept. 10 as World Suicide Prevention Day. OSPF Executive Director Tony Coder was joined by a group of suicide loss survivors he called “part of a club no one wants to be in” to discuss what the state is doing and can do additionally to address a statewide suicide rate that has resumed its steady climb since 2007 after a slight drop during 2020.

PENSIONS

The Ohio Retirement Study Council voted Thursday to award a contract for the decennial actuarial audit of the School Employees Retirement System (SERS) to the consulting team of PTA/KMS/Bolton at a cost not to exceed $129,000 for the audit, which is required by law for each system at least once every 10 years. The team was hired by lawmakers more than a decade ago to advise in the pension reform deliberations that resulted in passage of five overhaul bills in 2012, one for each system. ORSC has since hired them for other work. In addition, former Rep. Gary Scherer joined the council Thursday as a gubernatorial appointee.

REDISTRICTING/REAPPORTIONMENT

Ohio Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Brunner rejected a request from Attorney General Dave Yost’s office for her to recuse herself from a lawsuit against Secretary of State Frank LaRose and the Ohio Ballot Board over the adopted ballot language for redistricting constitutional amendment Issue 1. Yost’s office filed the demand for Brunner to recuse, noting that Brunner is a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit against LaRose over a law that requires candidates for Ohio appeals courts and the Ohio Supreme Court to appear on the ballot with party designation that was passed as part of 134-SB80. However, Brunner responded Monday, saying she finds the request “without merit and will continue to participate in this case.” She noted that in Issue 1 case, LaRose is named as a defendant in his official capacity for his role in “determining the forms of ballot and prescribing the ballot title for constitutional amendments submitted to the electors,” while in the federal case, LaRose is named in his official capacity pursuant to his duties “for prescribing the ballots of the state regarding judicial candidacies.”

Meanwhile, legislative Democrats, led by House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) and Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood), filed an amicus brief with the Ohio Supreme Court, arguing that majority Republicans “have rigged the system to put forward a misleading and dishonest ballot summary of the Citizens Not Politicians (‘CNP’) proposed constitutional amendment. Ironically, it was a desire to put an end to that type of self-serving behavior that led hundreds of thousands of Ohioans to work tirelessly to get an independent redistricting proposal on the ballot.” They argued that the Ballot Board should be reconvened to draft and adopt an unbiased, accurate, and truthful summary of Issue 1.

Ohioans should vote against the Citizens Not Politicians redistricting constitutional amendment, former Rep. John Barnes (D-Cleveland) said Monday. “The process now has some flaws, but this is not the right answer,” Barnes said during a press conference at the Lincoln Cafe in Columbus with other supporters of his new organization, the Black Equity and Redistricting Fund. “The current system is not perfect. No one said it is,” Barnes said. “But what it does, effectively, is it’s based on the count of all citizens in the state of Ohio. What this amendment would do is unilaterally transfer power to the few, as opposed to everyone in the state of Ohio.” The Black Equity and Redistricting Fund recently filed an amicus brief supporting the ballot language adopted by the Ohio Ballot Board for Issue 1.

STATE GOVERNMENT

The Controlling Board Monday approved releasing the funds for the secretary of state’s office to advertise the ballot language and arguments for and against Issue 1, despite the objections of Democrats on the panel who said the action should be delayed while a court challenge to the ballot language is ongoing. The request transferred $404,982 in funds to the secretary of state’s office to meet the requirement under the Ohio Constitution to advertise the ballot language and arguments of state issues for the final three weeks before the election in the largest newspapers in each of Ohio’s 88 counties.

WORKERS’ COMPENSATION

During a special meeting on Thursday, the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) Board of Directors voted to terminate its contract with Western Asset Management Company (WAMCO) as the business faces increased scrutiny from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). WAMCO had served as a manager of BWC’s long credit strategy in the State Insurance Fund, overseeing about $750 million in BWC assets, BWC Chief Investment Officer Rob Palmeri said during the special BWC Investment Committee meeting, which was held prior to the special BWC Board meeting. Investment consultants RVK and Meketa Investment Group both sent memos to BWC recommending the termination of the contract with WAMCO.

WORKFORCE

Lt. Gov. Jon Husted recently announced that nearly 1,000 Ohio high school students had taken part in the 2024 High School Tech Internship program, while also noting the application process for 2025 program intermediaries has opened. The tech internship program provides high school students with “real-world” experience, according to the DeWine administration. “This is how we keep our young talent in Ohio, by connecting them to employers and career paths before they leave high school,” Husted said. “When we started, many employers were skeptical that high school students were up to the task but given the fact that this year we hit a record number of intern requests shows employers and students see the value of the program.” Positions in the program include software development, data, cloud and IT infrastructure, cybersecurity, and broadband/5G related roles. The number of students this year was almost twice that in 2023, and they attend over 250 schools.