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Dayton
Daily News…
State budget’s impact
starts to sink in
Despite
the proposed cuts, there were some who saw things to like in Kasich’s
plan.
By Laura A. Bischoff, Columbus Bureau
Thursday, March 17, 2011
COLUMBUS — Some workers were told their jobs would be eliminated
Wednesday, one day after Gov. John Kasich submitted his two-year $55.5
billion budget that proposes cuts to local governments, school
districts and colleges and universities and privatizes some functions
of state government to generate revenue.
Tax Commissioner Joe Testa told 99 employees in seven regional Taxpayer
Service Centers, including one in Dayton, that their jobs were being
eliminated. Those workers will be able to bump to other jobs, Testa
said. But eventually, the state Department of Taxation plans to operate
with 171 fewer full-time workers, which represents about 12 percent of
the agency’s staff.
Other layoffs are expected as the cuts hit home. Some jurisdictions,
including the city of Dayton, are also considering tax hikes.
There were some winners in Kasich’s plan, particularly charter school
advocates who like the proposal to double school vouchers and eliminate
the cap on the number of community schools. Advocates for the elderly
also like the idea of shifting more money toward in-home care programs.
Ohio’s 2.1 million Medicaid recipients will not see eligibility rules
restricted and optional services such as dental coverage won’t be cut.
The biggest losers appear to be local governments and school districts.
The state’s Local Government Fund will drop 49 percent between 2011 and
2013, falling off from $665 million this year to $339 million. K-12
funding will fall from $11.5 billion in 2011 to $9.7 billion in 2013,
which amounts to a 15.6 percent drop.
Kasich has said local governments must find new, more efficient ways to
operate, including collaboration and service consolidation.
Even before the budget was released, 16 Dayton-area school districts
and cities planned to put issues on the May 3 ballot in an effort to
avoid layoffs and cuts in services. Among the school districts asking
for tax increases this spring are Huber Heights, Trotwood-Madison,
Beavercreek, Fairborn and Lebanon.
One day after Kasich’s budget proposal was released, State Budget
Director Tim Keen blamed the cuts on the disappearance of federal
stimulus money that was used to prop up the last two-year state budget.
“This should be no surprise to anyone,” Keen said Wednesday.
Local governments and schools stand to lose another $1.3 billion during
two years under Kasich’s plan to accelerate changes involving public
utility and tangible personal property taxes, according to the County
Commissioners Association of Ohio.
Other losers in Kasich’s budget plan:
• Federally qualified Health Centers will lose all state funding — $2.7
million. Ohio has 36 such centers serving nearly 500,000 low-income
patients.
• Ohio Consumers’ Counsel, which represents 4.5 million residential
utility customers, will see its $8.5 million annual budget cut in half.
• The state earmark for instruction of gifted K-12 students will drop
to $8.1 million a year, down 88.4 percent from $69.9 million.
• Public employees will have to pick up more of their pension
contributions: 12 percent of payroll instead of 10 percent.
• The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will see an 11.8 percent
funding cut, or $25 million, in fiscal year 2012 compared with 2011.
• And the state child protection allocation, which is used to pay for
case workers investigating 116,000 reports of child abuse and neglect,
will be cut by 10 percent.
The Republican-controlled Legislature must approve the budget plan by
June 30. GOP leaders in each chamber welcomed Kasich’s proposal on
Wednesday.
Senate President Tom Niehaus said he likes the plan, especially
Medicaid and education reforms, and that lawmakers and state leaders
have tough decisions ahead.
House Speaker William Batchelder said he supports requiring university
faculty to teach an extra class every two years, though believes there
should be exceptions for those doing research.
Read it at the Dayton Daily News
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