Smith Condemns Senate Republican Budget

Today, state Senator Kent Smith (D-Euclid) voted against House Bill 96, the Senate Republicans' version of the state operating budget.

“The Ohio Senate GOP just passed the worst budget for public education in memory,” said Smith. “Not only did they not fully fund the Fair School Funding Plan, but they also made it more difficult for local communities to fix the problem that Columbus created.

“The Senate Republicans have again given a tax cut of $10,000 to the top 1% of income earners, who have an average income of $1.7 million. There is not a single millionaire in Ohio who needs a $10,000 tax cut. This budget also put health care at risk for 770,000 Ohioans while guaranteeing $600 million for a billionaire sports team owner who will then move his team from the City of Cleveland. 

“It is for these reasons and many more that no Democrat, of either chamber, cast a single affirmative vote for this out-of-balance budget – the first time that Democrats have been fully united in opposition to the majority party budget since 2001."

As passed by the Senate, House Bill 96 fails to address the needs of hardworking, everyday Ohioans. The Republican supermajorities in the legislature decimated many of the bipartisan provisions proposed by the governor that would have invested in our children and working families, and have decided to instead:

• Cut taxes for the wealthiest Ohioans by flattening the income tax to 2.75%;
• Underfund our public schools by using outdated inputs and tying performance to school funding, while continuing to invest historic amounts of public funds in vouchers for non-public, primarily religious schools;
• Give away $600 million of Ohioans’ unclaimed funds to the billionaire owners of the Cleveland Browns;
• Threaten health care coverage for 770,000 Ohioans and underfund crucial public health programs;
• Attack already marginalized groups by requiring libraries to censor materials related to “gender identity or sexual orientation” and codifying that the state only recognizes two biological sexes;
• Abandon the state’s partnership with local and county governments;
• Provide no meaningful property tax relief;
• Reduce funding for H2Ohio and lead abatement programs;
• Cut food bank funding; 
• Abolish the Ohio Elections Commission and transfer its duties to the Secretary of State’s office; and
• Politicize education by requiring party affiliation for State Board of Education and local school board races.

House Bill 96 now heads back to the Ohio House of Representatives for concurrence. If the House does not concur with the Senate’s changes, the bill will go to conference committee.