On April 21, the Ohio House passed the state operating budget bill by a vote of 70-27 with bipartisan votes both for and against the bill.
The highest dollar change made in the House from the Governor’s proposed budget was the inclusion of a new school funding formula to be phased in over six years. House Bill 1 was inserted into the budget bill as a more permanent fix for Ohio’s current failed school funding formula that has been deemed unconstitutional since 1997.
The bill also includes a 2% income tax cut across all tax brackets but does not include any funds from the American Rescue Plan. Ohio is expected to receive billions of dollars from the package to continue to mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on K-12 education, local governments, housing and rental assistance, food assistance, child care, and many additional purposes.