Ohio Senate should limit $500 million tax break
The Ohio House of Representatives missed an opportunity to curtail Ohio’s revenue declines in the budget it passed earlier this week. Now, Policy Matters Ohio urges the State Senate to include Governor Kasich’s proposal to limit one of the state’s costliest tax breaks in its 2018-2019 budget. Suppliers to “qualified distribution centers” that buy at […]
Healthcare bill will devastate Ohio
This afternoon, the U.S. House of Represenatives narrowly passed a disastrous health care bill. While it still has to make its way through the Senate, in its current form the bill would have devastating consequences for Ohioans’ health and health care coverage. Under the House Bill: 964,000 Ohioans, and 24 million Americans, will lose their […]
Ohio House budget curtails Medicaid expansion
Provisions in the House budget bill (HB 49), passed today, create barriers to participation in Ohio’s Medicaid expansion, a program that has been remarkably effective in delivering quality care to 723,000 Ohioans. Instead of simply covering working-age Ohioans making up to 138 percent of the federal poverty line, HB 49 limits Medicaid expansion coverage to […]
House budget proposal makes some improvements, but still underinvests
The Republican majority of the Ohio House of Representatives today announced its proposal for the next two-year state budget. Despite some improvements, the new House plan remains an underinvestment budget that provides inadequate resources for Ohio’s needs. The proposal includes some welcome additional support for opioid treatment, children’s services and certain other human services, along […]
Tax breaks won’t fix root of college affordability problem
Today, the Senate Finance Committee is holding a hearing on legislation that would boost tax deductions for those who participate in CollegeAdvantage, Ohio’s 529 college savings plan. A new report from Policy Matters Ohio shows how the plan fails to address the root causes of college unaffordability and amounts to a giveaway to Ohio’s wealthiest. […]
Low oil and gas severance tax costs Ohio millions
As a result of the recent boom in horizontal hydraulic fracturing or “fracking,” Ohio now ranks ninth among oil and gas producing states. Ohio still hasn’t caught up with its peers when it comes to taxing the drilling industry — costing the state hundreds of millions of dollars in the midst of a revenue crunch, […]
Cuts to Medicaid would jeopardize critical health services for Ohio students
Each year, Ohio’s schools receive $81.5 million from Medicaid to pay for health services like speech therapy, mental health services and wellness screenings for eligible students and students with disabilities, according to a report released today by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “Without Medicaid, Ohio schools would struggle to keep nurses and counselors […]
New measures would cut Ohio’s prison population
Ohio’s prisons are overcrowded – operating at 132 percent of capacity. But new legislation and provisions in the state budget show that state lawmakers are starting to see the benefits of investing in rehabilitation instead of incarceration for some non-violent offenders. If passed, the budget bill House Bill 49 and separate legislation Senate Bill 66 […]
Policy Matters recommends 10 state tax reforms
If they haven’t already, millions of Ohioans will file their taxes by Tuesday. Because Ohio’s tax system is upside down, a small group at the very top will pay far too little. Meanwhile, citing low revenue and a sluggish economy, Governor Kasich and legislative leaders announced that they will cut $400 million a year from […]
Portman: Stand up for consumers, not Wall Street
Senator opposes regulations of prepaid debit cards Policy Matters Ohio Policy Liaison Kalitha Williams joined Ohio PIRG and Ohio State Representative Kristin Boggs for a press conference after hand-delivering a letter to Senator Rob Portman. The group called on Portman to defend the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from legislative attacks. Her statement is below. Nearly […]
ACA increased drug treatment for thousands of Ohioans
President Donald Trump has championed legislation that would especially harm states struggling with the drug epidemic, like Ohio, which ranks third in the nation for drug-related fatalities. The House Republicans’ plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) would have stripped 24 million people of insurance by essentially ending Medicaid expansion and making changes to […]
Ohio underinvests in affordable housing
Contact: Wendy Patton 614.221.4504 In 2015 more than 33,500 Ohioans were homeless and 400,000 spent more than half their income on rent. Governor Kasich’s 2018-2019 budget doesn’t do enough to meet Ohio’s housing needs. In a new Budget Bite released today, Policy Matters Ohio calls on state legislators to invest General Revenue Funds in the […]