The end of 2009 was a flurry of activity relative to the state budget. Action in the General Assembly and the courts have important short-term ramifications for the current biennium.
An agreement was finally reached to fix an $851 million budget hole. The legislature met late into the night on December 17 as five Republican Senators (Senate President Bill Harris (Ashland), Sen. John Carey (Wellston), Sen. David Goodman (New Albany), Sen. Tom Niehaus (New Richmond), and Sen. Mark Wagoner (Toledo)) joined Senate Democrats to pass a proposal (House Bill 318) that includes:
• A delay in the last year of a five-year income tax cut that was scheduled for 2009. The 4.2% tax break is now scheduled to take effect in 2011.
• Allows public schools to opt-out of the all-day kindergarten mandate scheduled for the 2010-11 school year.
• Implements a state construction reform pilot at three higher education sites to be run by the Board of Regents.
• Corrects House Bill 1 drafting errors in funding amounts for the State Employment Relations Board and the Department of Mental Health. Mental health, which has seen large cuts throughout the budget process, receives an additional $14.7 million over the biennium that was originally intended to be included in the final version of the state budget passed in early July.
The House concurred with two Republicans (Representative Matt Dolan (Novelty) and Representative Ross McGregor (Springfield)) joining House Democrats to vote for HB 318. The Governor subsequently signed the legislation with no vetoes.
The good news for the DD field is that this agreement avoids significant funding cuts that were being discussed as an alternative. Major challenges are on the horizon for the future state budget, but for now please take some time to thank those in the legislature who helped avoid cuts to DD funding.
Additionally, good news came on December 31 when the 10th District Court of Appeals unanimously ruled in favor of the state in upholding a $230 million transfer of tobacco settlement funds planned for use in the current biennium. The decision reversed a previous ruling in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. The tobacco funds are slated to be used for Medicaid Optional Services for adults, SCHIP coverage for children up to 300% of poverty, Children's Medicaid Buy-In, Breast and Cervical Cancer screenings, and child welfare funding. The American Legacy Fund, an organization seeking control of the funds, is expected to make a decision soon whether they will choose to appeal to the Ohio Supreme Court.
