286K: Number of Ohio students who received special education or related services in the 2023-24 school year. In far too many cases, it takes tireless advocacy by parents and educators to make sure Ohio’s kids get the support they need. Federal threats to special education will only make it harder. So will a House-proposed state budget that funds schools as if every student is identical. That plan shortchanges public schools by $2.75B while funneling more public money to private schools that can turn away students they don’t want to accommodate. But few parents advocate as tenaciously and effectively as the parents of kids with IEPs. That’s why we’re hosting a Special Education Town Hall, to talk through what’s at stake, and what you can do to protect special education in Ohio.
$480M: Total funding Ohio will lose as a result of National Institutes of Health cuts, along with over 2000 jobs. Kathryn Poe’s latest brief explores the devastating blow these cuts deal to cancer research, international vaccination efforts, mental health support, and more. State lawmakers would cut even deeper: the House budget proposal includes trigger language that gives the state permission to decrease, pause, or eliminate programs funded with federal dollars if Congress changes funding to any federal program.
17%: Share of EdChoice Expansion private-school voucher recipients that qualified as low-income, compared to 67% the previous year. Yet Ohio’s top politicians want to spend an additional $432 million on private school tuition over the next two years, including a new voucher for unregulated religious schools. Piet van Lier highlights the state’s out-of-control voucher spending in Even more public money for private schools.
$263M: Total federal funding in 2023 for Ohio’s Home Energy Assistance Program (HEAP). That funding helps Ohioans meet their energy needs, reduce their energy burdens, stay warm in the winter, and keep food cold year-round. The Trump administration just laid off the entire staff of the federal program that administers these funds: LIHEAP. Check out this new brief from Molly Bryden that explains how LIHEAP dollars make their way to Ohioans who need them, and this one, which describes the federal threats to this critical program.
PMO History: In honor of International Workers Day, we remember way back in the winter of 2019, when Policy Matters staff organized with the Chicago & Midwest Regional Joint Board of Workers United, a union that traces its history back to the International Ladies’ Garment Workers’ Union: one of the first U.S. unions to have a primarily female membership, and a key player in the labor history of the 1920s and ’30s. The announcement was met with unanimous approval by the board — and at least one “What took you so long?” Our first collective bargaining agreement took effect in March 2021. In 2022, the PMO unit joined with unionized labor at the Ohio Environmental Councial and Kentuckians For The Commonwealth to form Local 2843, strengthening worker power across organizations.
Action Items
Register here for our Special Education Town Hall.
Join our friends at the CEO Project to demand living wages for childcare providers, an equitable childcare system built on racial justice, and affordable childcare for all families at the 4th Annual Day Without Child Care. Monday, May 12, 9am – 5pm, at the Statehouse.
Tell your state legislators to protect public education for all our kids!
Add your name to the call for a People’s Budget, and let our leaders know what we demand from them.
Follow r/OhioBudget to keep up with all the latest state budget news.
TODAY IN CLEVELAND: International Worker’s Day (May Day) Mobilization at Willard Park (The Free Stamp), Saturday May 3rd, 11am-3pm
TODAY IN COLUMBUS: May Day / Día del Trabajo at King Arts Complex, Saturday May 3rd, 1pm-3pm
Follow the Ohio Medicaid Matters coalition on Facebook, Instagram, and/or Twitter. You can also share how Medicaid has made a difference in your life.
Lame duck is an opportunity for legislators to act on data centers (and more)