CEOs at major Ohio companies make 200 times typical employee
Thirty-five of Ohio’s largest employers paid their CEOs more than 200 times what they paid the typical employee in 2018, according to data reported by companies 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 […]
Court ruling threatens Ohioans’ health care
Policy Matters Ohio condemns today’s 5th U.S. Circuit Court ruling declaring the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate unconstitutional and remanding the law back to the judge who first struck it down. The Affordable Care Act (ACA) protects millions of Ohioans from denial of coverage because of pre-existing conditions and from unfair, discriminatory pricing. The Medicaid […]
Minimum wage adjustment covers 84,000 workers
Cost of living increases keep workers from getting pay cut Next month, Ohio’s minimum wage gets a 15-cent bump to $8.70 to keep pace with rising prices. The change will benefit 84,000 of Ohio’s lowest paid working people, two-thirds of whom are adults. Yet even with the inflation increase, Ohio’s minimum wage is less than […]
Proliferating tax breaks threaten basic services
Better targeting would help families, protect revenues Ohio legislators are considering adding a slew of costly new tax breaks, which would not only siphon resources from crucial public services that benefit all Ohioans, but also further skew the tax code in favor of the wealthy and special interests. Ohioans would be better served if lawmakers […]
Ohio 2020-21 budget shortchanges kids, families
In Ohio, high-quality child care is too expensive for many working families. Six of Ohio’s 10 most common jobs pay so little that a single parent would have to spend over one-third of their income for infant care. State lawmakers increased funding to improve the quality of Ohio’s child care system by $10 million over […]
Ohio budget underfunds schools, transit, local government
Policy Matters releases new analysis of 2020-21 state budget Ohio lawmakers appropriated $48.8 billion in state dollars in the 2020-21 General Revenue Fund, an increase of $3.7 billion over the previous two-year budget. New analysis from Policy Matters Ohio shows the increase will benefit certain programs, especially ones that serve at-risk children, but many crucial […]
Medicaid expansion saved 1,452 Ohioans’ lives
Medicaid expansion could save as many lives as seatbelts, groundbreaking new research shows The Affordable Care Act’s (ACA) expansion of Medicaid has prevented over 19,000 premature deaths, according to landmark new research. Conversely, 15,600 older adults died prematurely because of state decisions not to expand Medicaid. Ohio’s decision to expand Medicaid in 2014 saved the […]
Amy Hanauer to take helm of Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy
Policy Matters will launch national search for new director After 20 years, Policy Matters Ohio founding executive director Amy Hanauer is taking a new position running the Washington D.C.-based Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy and its advocacy arm Citizens for Tax Justice. Hanauer will leave Policy Matters in January, 2020. Former Secretary Treasurer of […]
UAW-GM deal highlights need for policies to help displaced workers
The agreement reached today between General Motors and 48,000 United Autoworkers who have been on strike since September 15th will make some workers’ jobs more secure. It is now time for the state to invest in the working families GM left behind. The UAW strike pushed GM to finally reform its use of long-term temp […]
Fresh Start Act could clear pathways to work
Policy Matters calls for lawmakers to strengthen HB 263 More than 850 laws and administrative rules limit access to work for Ohioans with a criminal record. The Fresh Start Act, House Bill 263, takes aim at the 630 that limit job opportunities through occupational licensing. Policy Matters Ohio Researcher Michael Shields submitted testimony in favor […]
Policy Matters names Jasmine Ayres policy liaison
Jasmine Ayres has joined Policy Matters Ohio as the organization’s new policy liaison. In her role, Ayres will work to connect the group’s research and analysis with state policymakers, allies and the general public. She will especially focus her efforts on reforming Ohio’s upside-down tax code which favors the wealthy and powerful while failing to […]
Facebook and Google weaken local news, help spread disinformation
Facebook and Google take in the majority of digital ad revenues, at the expense of newspapers. At the same time, studies show they are filling the void they helped create with disinformation. Appearing before a Senate Judiciary Committee field hearing in Cleveland today, Policy Matters Ohio Communications Director Caitlin Johnson told lawmakers they should take […]