Policy Matters proposes state budget priorities for a better future
In coming weeks, Gov. Mike DeWine will send his 2022-2023 budget proposal to the Ohio General Assembly for consideration. In a new report, “A budget for everyone” Policy Matters Ohio outlines steps lawmakers can take to get Ohioans through the pandemic and recession while building a better future for everyone. “Ohio does best when we […]
Ohio needs a corporate profits tax
Beneficiaries of the pandemic should pay up Ohio is one of just six states with no state-level corporate profits tax. This means that corporations that are profiting immensely from the pandemic are not contributing commensurately to public services funded by the state. That needs to change, Policy Matters Ohio said in a report released today. […]
Policy Matters Ohio’s response to white supremacist violence in the Capitol
Our government is our best tool for doing the big work of building a better future for Americans of all races. That’s why racist mobs attacked Congress yesterday. It’s why they were encouraged by certain politicians, clinging to power by embracing the worst elements of our national character. It’s why institutions of power that bring […]
Minimum wage gets inflation adjustment January 1
$8.80-per-hour still not enough to make ends meet Next month, Ohio’s minimum wage gets a 10-cent adjustment to $8.80 per hour to keep up with rising prices. Last January’s change kept the wages of 84,000 Ohioans from losing value. This year, the recession disproportionately harmed people who work in sectors that pay low wages. Those […]
Welcome COVID relief still falls short of what Ohio needs
Late Sunday night, Congressional leaders finally reached an agreement on a $900 billion COVID aid package. Details of the deal are emerging, and the bill language is not yet available. Policy Matters Ohio Executive Director Hannah Halbert released the following statement: “When the pandemic began, our leaders told us we’re all in this together. We […]
Ohio students and public higher education institutions need state support
As COVID-19 cases climb, a new report from Policy Matters Ohio and the Ohio Student Association (OSA) shows that the pandemic is driving down enrollment at Ohio colleges and universities, straining institutions’ budgets and dramatically reshaping campus life. The situation is made worse by insufficient state support and the failure of federal leaders to pass […]
Report: Ohio teachers make 15.2% less than similarly qualified professionals
Teachers in Ohio earn, on average, 15.2% less in wages each week than non-teachers with similar education and experience levels in the state, according to a report from the Economic Policy Institute (EPI). That so-called wage penalty continues to deter college-bound students from entering the teaching profession and leads to major difficulties keeping highly qualified […]
Major Ohio CEOs make 306 times more than typical employee
Fifty-four of Ohio’s largest employers paid their CEOs a median of 306 times what they paid the typical employee in 2019, according to data reported under the Dodd-Frank Act. The federal law requires publicly traded companies provide the ratio of CEO pay to the median employee — the person whose pay falls in the middle […]
Lawmakers to vote on massive tax break expansion
Members of the House Ways and Means Committee meet today to consider Senate Bill 95 which, as passed in the Senate, would double state and local tax breaks for “megaprojects” and their suppliers from 15 to 30 years — among other perks. Riders picked up in the House include a $6 million sales-tax break for […]
After payday reform, lenders find new ways to bilk Ohioans
A 2018 law has helped protect Ohioans who turn to certain kinds of short-term loans to get through an emergency. However, unethical financial corporations found new ways to profit by trapping borrowers in a cycle of debt, a new Policy Matters Ohio report shows. “Everyone deserves the chance to pursue a better future, no matter […]
Policy Matters issues guide to the state budget process
State policymakers make decisions that affect the quality of schools attended by our children, the safety of the water we drink and whether elderly people can safely age in place in their own homes. In anticipation of Gov. DeWine’s 2022-23 budget proposal, Policy Matters Ohio is releasing a guide to the state budget for advocates […]
Ohio shortchanges children and their kinship caregivers
As the drug epidemic drives more children into Ohio’s child welfare system, state lawmakers must provide more resources to help relatives and family friends take care of children who have been separated from their biological parents, according to a new report by Policy Matters Ohio. Currently, Ohio provides less support to kinship caregivers than to […]