State Education News

State Budget Gap Plan

Governor Strickland announced on September 30, 2009 his administration’s plan to fill a $851 million budget gap created as a result of a recent Ohio Supreme Court decision regarding video lottery terminals (VLTs). The plan, which must be approved by the General Assembly, postpones a final 4.2% reduction in the personal income tax rates for 2009, freezing the tax rates at 2008 levels. A 21% reduction in the personal income tax rates (phased in over 5 years) was included in HB 66, which was approved in 2005. The last phased-in rate reduction took place in January 2009. If this final rate reduction is postponed, the tax rate reduction would amount to 16.8% compared to 2004 levels.

The administration’s plan to delay the income tax reduction through June 2011 could raise approximately $844 million ($418 million in FY10 and $426 million in FY11). During a press conference to explain his decision, the governor noted that other budget reductions may be needed to fully address the budget deficit. According to Governor Strickland, the VLT decision by the Supreme Court on September 21, 2009 made it practically impossible to go forward with the VLT plan included in Am. Sub. HB1. Other options proposed to reduce the FY10-11 state budget deficit, such as increasing the sales tax or making further cuts in the budgets of state agencies and departments, were dismissed in favor of the personal income tax option. The governor also stated that he will ask the Supreme Court for a declaratory judgment on the VLT provision.

The Supreme Court decision that led to this announcement was issued on September 21, 2009 in the case State ex rel. LetOhioVote.org v. Brunner. The court agreed with the plaintiff, LetOhioVote.org, that a provision included in Am. Sub. HB 1, the FY10-11 budget bill, regarding the installation of video lottery terminals (VLTs) at Ohio horse racing tracks by the Ohio Lottery Commission, is subject to referendum. Governor Strickland and lawmakers included the provision for VLTs in the state budget bill, Am. Sub. HB 1, to raise revenue to fund Ohio’s schools after reducing the state budget by more than $2 billion. The VLTs would be operated by the Ohio Lottery Commission and were expected to be installed at race tracks in May 2010.

Before the governor’s plan was announced, State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Deborah Delisle, informed school districts through her weekly newsletter on September 28, 2009 that Governor Strickland had requested information about what the impact would be on the Ohio Department of Education and school districts if the state’s education budget needed to be cut by $851 million as a result of the loss of revenue from the video lottery terminals. ODE reported two budget reduction scenarios that also account for the federal stimulus funds for schools included in the state’s biennial budget. The use of the federal stimulus funds complicates the budget reduction scenarios, because in order to use the federal funds, Ohio had to agree to maintain a certain level of state support for school districts. The first scenario calls for the state to request a waiver from the federal stimulus requirements. If the federal government granted the waiver, school districts could face reductions of more than 10.67% in FY11. If the waiver was not granted, the second scenario shows that school districts could lose 10.3% in FY10 and 15.74% in FY11.

The General Assembly must now take action on the governor’s proposed tax plan or adopt other options to close the $851 million budget gap.

• More information >

Ohio House Education Committee Hears Three Bills

The Ohio House Education Committee, chaired by Representative Brian Williams, met on October 6, 2009 and heard testimony on three bills. Representative Koziura presented sponsor testimony on HB161, which would require state universities to guarantee that a full-time undergraduate student with a declared major field of study could complete coursework for the program of study in a specified time period. Representative Koziura has introduced this bill three times before in previous General Assemblies. He reported that it is common for students to be closed out of required courses for graduation in their senior year of college/universities. As a result, students must stay longer than anticipated at a university and pay additional tuition to finish their degrees. During questioning Representative Koziura said that he is open to a variety of ways to address this problem, including allowing students to substitute other courses for the required course, or allowing students to complete online courses. Representative Koziura also reported that he is currently gathering data on the extent of the problem.

The committee also heard sponsor testimony from Representative Driehaus on HB268. This bill would temporarily reduce the per pupil base-cost payments to community schools in academic watch or emergency and use approximately $70 million from the reduction to make supplemental payments for Auxiliary Services and Administrative Cost Reimbursement for nonpublic charter school students. Auxiliary Services include support for intervention specialists, school nurses, guidance counselors, textbooks, computers, and standardized testing in nonpublic schools. Administrative cost reimbursement funds provide funds for nonpublic schools to comply with local, state, and federal laws and rules, such as required reporting. This bill is in response to the $10 million in budget reductions made over the past year to Auxiliary Services and Administrative Cost Reimbursement to balance the state budget and the $59 million reduction made in these funds through in the FY10-11 state budget, Am. Sub. HB1. The intent of the bill is to re-establish “parity” for state funding for nonpublic schools. Community schools in academic watch and emergency would lose approximately $700 per student if the bill is approved.

Several committee members had questions concerning the proposal. Some questions related to how this proposal would affect student achievement in struggling community schools, especially schools that focus on certain groups of students, such as those serving dropouts or students with special needs. Representative Evans questioned the use of standardized test scores to determine school effectiveness when so many variables affect school quality. He requested that testing experts be brought before the committee to explain how schools are rated.

Three witnesses testified in support of HB253 (DeBose), leadership and character ethics in public schools and public institutions of higher education. Lucy Fontera, Executive Director of Ohio Partners in Character Education, and Chip Weiant, Senior Fellow at the Center for Civic Character at Sagamore Institute for Policy Research in Columbus, presented testimony together and Mary Alice Casalina testified on behalf of Stuart Muszynski, CEO of Project Love in Cleveland. Lucy Fontera and Chip Weiant spoke in support of a program called “Eureka,” which provides ethics training and professional development for educators. Stuart Muszynski’s testimony described how values and character education help to shape the culture and environment of the school, and support student success.

Back to top

Ohio Designated a Leadership State

Governor Strickland announced on October 22, 2009 that Ohio had been designated a “Leadership State” by the Partnership for 21st Century Skills (P21). P21 brings together the business community, education leaders, and policymakers “to define a powerful vision for 21st century education to ensure every child’s success as citizens and workers in the 21st century.” The Partnership encourages schools, districts, and states to advocate for the infusion of 21st century skills into education and provides tools and resources. Other 21st Century Skills Leadership States are Arizona, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, North Carolina, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and West Virginia.

• More information >

Back to top

Websites for Voting Information

Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner issued a press release on October 22, 2009 notifying the public that all county boards of elections have created websites with local information for voters. According to the press release, “Recent elections have shown an increasing trend of the public accessing election results online. All 88 county boards of elections will now be able to provide that timely information, including hours of operation, the location of board offices, information on board operations, and election results.”

• Links to all of the sites >

Back to top

HB 318: Income Tax Freeze Approved

On October 21, 2009 the Ohio House approved Am. HB 318 (Sykes), The Education Funding Protection Act, by a vote of 55 to 44. Two amendments were approved before the bill passed. Pending referral, this bill is scheduled for hearings this week in the Senate Finance and Financial Institutions Committee, chaired by Senator Carey. HB 318 includes the changes in Ohio’s tax system proposed by Governor Strickland to raise approximately $844 million to close a projected budget deficit of $851 million for this biennium. The remaining funds needed to balance the budget will be made through budget cuts, according to the governor.

The recently approved budget, Am. Sub. HB 1, now has a budget deficit, because of the loss of anticipated revenue from video lottery terminals (VLTs), which were to be installed at Ohio’s horse racing tracks in May 2010. The VLT provision was included in Am. Sub. HB 1, but was made impossible to implement after the Ohio Supreme Court issued a ruling on September 21, 2009 saying that the VLT provision was subject to referendum. To make up the revenue that would have come from the VLTs, Governor Strickland proposed a temporary freeze of the state personal income tax rates at 2008 levels, postponing the final 4.2% reduction in rates set forth in 126-HB66. The bill also includes another provision to reduce the salaries of lawmakers by 5%. The tax freeze would be effective through June 30, 2011.

During the 2 days of hearings on HB 318 held on October 19-20, 2009 before the House Finance and Appropriations Committee chaired by Representative Sykes, committee members debated other ways to raise state revenue to cover the $851 million deficit, such as proposals to consolidate and streamline state government included in HB 25 (Adams) and HB 240 (Sears) Medicaid Reforms. Committee members also debated whether or not the proposal was a tax increase, and at one point Chairman Sykes queried, “If it’s not a tax cut, and it’s not a tax increase, it must be a tax freeze.”

Testifying in support of the bill in the Finance Committee were J. Pari Sabety, Director of the Office of Budget and Management; Rich Levin, Director of the Ohio Department of Taxation; Gayle Channing Tenenbaum from the Campaign to Protect Ohio’s Future; Jerry Collamore, legislative director for Ohio Job and Family Services Association, Lisa Hamler-Fugitt from the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Food Banks, and submitting written testimony, John Honneck from the Center for Community Solutions. No one testified against the bill.

Several committee members responded sympathetically to the testimony presented by Lisa Hamler-Fugitt, who described the impact of the economic crisis and the recent budget cuts on Ohio families. According to her testimony poverty and hunger are increasing in Ohio, and the tax freeze is just one of several steps that should be taken to increase state revenue overall and rebuild a safety net for Ohio families. These steps include the following:

• Reconvene and appoint a new Welfare Reform Oversight Committee to hold field hearings and county evaluations on the impact of HB 1 and prior year budget reductions.
• Convene the House Ways and Means Committee to examine the impact of HB 66 on the reduction of the personal income tax and the CAT tax rates on the state’s competitiveness and job creation assertions.
• Suspend and scrutinize all tax loopholes and credits to ensure that Ohio’s tax system is equitable, fair, and balanced between individuals and business interests.
• Provide adequate funding to ensure government services are available and accessible in a time of economic recession and/or depression.
• Levy sales tax on lobbying, public relations services, and debt collection.
• Implement a temporary sales tax increase to fund vital health and human services to ensure our neediest citizens' basic needs are met.
• Roll back the personal income tax rates across the board to 2005 levels.

Back to top

Partial Settlement in 16-Year-Old Special Education Lawsuit

Federal Judge John D. Holschuh of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division, ruled on October 20, 2009 that a consent order in a partial settlement of Doe v. State of Ohio was fair, reasonable, and adequate. The settlement was negotiated in response to a class action lawsuit brought by Ohio Legal Rights Services (OLRS) to ensure that children with disabilities in Ohio receive a free appropriate public education (FAPE) under the federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). A second claim regarding the inequities in Ohio’s school funding scheme for special education will continue to trial.

The OLRS became involved in this case in 1993, when plaintiffs asked to intervene in one of the lawsuits challenging Ohio’s system for funding schools originally filed by school districts and the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding. The original school district plaintiffs withdrew from the case following the DeRolph school funding decision in Perry County.

According to an OLRS press release, the consent order in Doe v. State affects over 250,000 children with disabilities, and will bring the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) into compliance with federal regulations regarding granting waivers, monitoring school districts for compliance with IDEA, and investigating complaints filed by parents or students. The settlement requires the ODE to do the following:

• Ensure public access to information from the state’s monitoring activities and to publicly post local school district compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) requirements.
• Provide oversight when waivers are requested to bypass specific special education service delivery ratios (class size, provider to student ratios, etc.). Parents whose children with disabilities may be affected by these waivers must be given notice of such requests before a decision is made on the waiver request.
• Provide additional notice to parents/guardians about the complaint process and information about advocacy resources after a state-level complaint is filed.
• Conduct a more thorough investigation of complaints about claimed violations of rights under the IDEA and ensure that violations of the law are corrected in a timely manner.
• Deny complaint timeline extensions (except in extraordinary circumstances) unless the request is agreed to by both the parent/guardian and the school district.

• More information >

Back to top

Governor Announces Appointments

Governor Strickland announced on October 30, 2009 appointments to several boards and commissions, including the State Board of Education, the Ohio Arts Council, and the Ohio School Funding Advisory Council.

State Board of Education. The Governor has appointed Juanita Sanchez to the State Board of Education. This appointment will fill one of two vacancies on the board stemming from the resignations of Jennifer Sheets and Carl Wick several months ago. The board has 11 elected members and 8 appointed members and creates policy and makes recommendations for K-12 education in Ohio. Ms. Sanchez is a graduate of the University of Findlay and is a paraprofessional bilingual aide for Fremont City Schools.

Ohio Arts Council. Governor Strickland reappointed Barbara Gould and appointed Sarah Vance and Jacquelyn Nance to the council. Barbara Gould (Cincinnati) has served in the fashion, interior design, and music industries before retiring and currently serves on numerous cultural arts boards in the Cincinnati area. Sarah Vance (Cincinnati) is the owner of SMV Media and currently serves on the board of directors for the Cincinnati Art Museum and the Neuberger Museum of Art. Jacquelyn Nance (Moreland Hills) is president of Philanthropic Solutions and is currently on the board of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and Museum and on the Charter One Bank & Fox 8 News “Champions in Action” Selection Committee.

Ohio School Funding Advisory Council. The 28-member council was established in Am. Sub. HB 1. The council is to submit biennial recommendations for revising the components of the new evidence-based model (EBM) for funding schools. The Superintendent of Public Instruction, or designee, will serve as the chair of the council, which includes the following members:

• Governor, or designee
• Chancellor of the Board of Regents, or designee
• Governor Appointments
  • Two teachers
  • Two nonteaching nonadministrative school employees
  • One parent public schools
  • One rep. community schools
  • One rep. early childhood providers
• House Speaker Appointments
  • One principal
  • One Treasurer
  • One rep. from college of education
  • One rep. philanthropic organizations
  • One rep. educational service centers
  • One rep. fiscal officer community schools
  • One rep. charter nonpublic schools
  • Two people, one recommended by the minority leader
• Senate President Appointments
  • One Superintendent
  • One School Board member
  • One member business community
  • One rep. Ohio Academy of Sciences
  • One rep. General Public
  • One rep. operators of community schools
  • Two people, one recommended by the minority leader

The appointments from the House Speaker and Senate President have not been announced as yet. The Governor has made the following appointments to the council:

• Nathan DeRolph (Newark) has been appointed as a parent representative. He is the father of two children, ages 6 and 1. In 1991, DeRolph and his parents filed a lawsuit against the State of Ohio for failing to provide adequate funding to educate the state’s students. This action resulted in four Ohio Supreme Court rulings and a finding that the system of funding K-12 schools was unconstitutional. Mr. DeRolph received a bachelor’s degree in finance from the Ohio State University in 1999 and works at Fifth-Third Bank.
• Robyn Essman (Dayton) has been appointed as a community school representative. She has served as the executive of budget and financial management for the Columbus City Schools since 2008.
• Sue Taylor (Cincinnati) has been appointed as a teacher representative. She serves as the president of the Ohio Federation of Teachers and has been an educator in the Cincinnati Public School system for the past 23 years.
• William Leibensperger (Upper Arlington) has been appointed as a teacher representative. He serves as the vice president of the Ohio Education Association and as a teacher at Westland High School.
• James McClure (Painesville) has been appointed as a nonteacher, nonadministrator representative. He serves as a material handler for the Mentor Public Schools.
• JoAnn Johntony (Girard) has been appointed as a nonteacher, nonadministrator representative. She serves as a custodian for the Girard City Schools and as the president for the Ohio Association of Public School Employees.
• Dayvenia Chesney (Dayton) has been appointed as the early child representative. She currently serves as the CEO for the Miami Valley Child Development Centers.

• More information >

Back to top