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Ohio state budget

The Ohio legislature passed a new biennial $55.8 billion budget for FY2012 on June 30, 2011, the last possible day to do so before the start of the new fiscal year on July 1, 2011.^[1] Gov. John Kasich signed the bill into law four hours before the start of the fiscal year, after he had vetoed seven items in the budget.^[2]

Ohio has a total state debt of approximately $240,236,606,000 when calculated by adding the total of outstanding official debt, pension and other post-employment benefits (OPEB) liabilities, Unemployment Trust Fund loans, and the budget gap. ^[3]

To balance the FY2012-13 budget, Gov. Kasich and legislators had to address an $8 billion gap between revenue and projected expenditures. However, as revenue projections improved, the budget gap decreased. State lawmakers though are taking criticism for increasing spending. The biennial general revenue budget simultaneously grew from $50.7 billion under former Gov. Strickland to Kasich's $55.5 billion plan. ^[4]

See also: The Ohio State Budget on State Budget Solutions

[edit] State Budget for FY2012-13

• See past state budgets

[edit] MidTerm Budget Bill

The Ohio House on April 25, 2012, approved a midterm budget bill trims state spending by $69 million through cuts and cost-saving ideas, while setting aside $30 million for high-quality nursing homes and $3 million to establish a "healthy Lake Erie" fund. The midterm budget bill now goes to the Senate.^[7] Gov. Kasich voiced his displeasure over the Republican additions of the money for nursing homes as well as language in the bill that that stops surplus state budget funds from automatically going into the state's rainy day fund.^[8]

Revenue Reports

Although first-quarter FY2012 state tax receipts were $35 million, or 0.8 percent, above forecast, September fell 1 percent short of estimates as $511 million in sales levies missed by 3.5 percent, according to the state budget office in October 2011.^[9]

Budget

On June 28, 2011, the Senate voted 22-11 to accept the conference committee report on a $112 billion state budget that includes cuts to schools and local governments. It now goes to the House.^[10] The Republican-led Ohio House on June 30, 2011, voted 59-40 along party lines to send the bill to Gov. John Kasich.^[11] Gov. John Kasich signed the 3,262-page bill into law four hours before the start of the fiscal year, after he had vetoed seven items in the budget.^[12] The budget can be found here.

Cities, townships and other local governments will receive $1 billion less in state aid over the next two years through a combination of cuts to state funding and changes to the tax money they get, but the budget also includes a $45 million grant program in the budget for local governments that share services.^[11]

The governor told his budget director in August 2011 to monitor revenue collections so any emerging deficit can be avoided, saying "we’re not going to go back in the hole.”^[13]

The state budget accounts for $40 to $45 million to reimburse state employees for the equivalent of four days’ wages plus four sick days because employees agreed not to accrue eight personal days under a 2009 union contract to help balance the budget then. Reimbursement began in August 2011. The Kasich administration did not criticize the reimbursements.^[14]

In Aug. 2011, the state announced that it sold only one prison for $72.7 million, and not the 5 prisons it had hoped to sell for $200 million. To compensate for not selling the other four prisons, Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction reorganized the management and operations of them. Officials said that the privatization fulfills the goal of reducing overhead costs by saving $13 million annually.^[15]

Budget Highlights

• The budget eliminates the state estate tax starting in 2013.^[16][17]
• Provides for the sale of six prisons expected to generate around $200 million.^[17][18]
• Permits the governor to pursue a long-term lease of the Ohio Turnpike by a private operator as long as lawmakers approve the terms.^[17]
• Raises the threshold at which government must pay union-scale wages on public projects from the current $78,000 to $125,000 in 2012, $200,000 in 2013, and $250,000 in 2014.^[17]
• Allows counties and universities to sell buildings to private owners and lease them back.^[17]
• Provides no funding for enforcement of smoking in indoor public places and phases out support for the Quit Line.^[17]

[edit] Legislative Proposed Budget

After the Senate approved its budget, the House voted 97-0 to reject the Senate changes to the budget, allowing a group of state lawmakers from both Republican-led chambers to work out their differences in a conference committee.^[19] The six-member conference committee passed a unified budget on party-line vote of 4-3 on June 27, 2011.^[20] Changes made by the Republican-controlled committee included removing a provision to privatize the lottery and a host of changes in education funding. Those changes included eliminating a controversial merit pay system for teachers, permitting a smaller number of new charter schools to be opened without the current system of direct sponsors, banning new e-schools until 2013, and requiring districts to pay for only two additional years of education for high school dropouts. The committee also inserted a provision specific to Cleveland Public Schools that would permit the mayor to remove collective bargaining rights for employees at public schools being converted into charter schools as long as he files a letter with the Cleveland Board of Education and the state employment relations board saying he is doing so. ^[21] It also included a last-minute "Invest Ohio" tax credit, a 10 percent income tax credit for investors in small businesses, capped at $100 million for the biennium, added the night of the vote.^[10]

On June 28, 2011, the Senate voted 22-11 to accept the conference committee report.^[10]

Senate Proposal

The Senate passed a $112 billion, 5,000 page budget on June 8, 2011, with 23 Republican "yes" votes, and 10 Democratic "no" votes. It privatizes half-dozen state prisons, state liquor operations, lottery operations and the turnpike. It also cuts $2 billion dollars in funding for local governments and schools, as well as cuts legislator pay by 5 percent. The Senate Budget also contains symbolic efforts to curb abortion, the elimination of the estate tax in 2013 and decentralized E-check testing. ^[22]

One Senate proposal was the privatization of the state's liquor sales, which would allow local governments to see more cash, but is in contrast with the governor's proposal to use liquor sales to fund JobsOhio.^[23] Some of the other Senate provisions included: ^[24]

• A push to strip a provision from the House-passed bill that specifically applied a state business tax to all casino wagers without deducting winnings and payouts
• Also up in the air is the governor's plan to shift 2 percent of pension contributions from employers to employees. The House-passed budget stripped the idea from the legislation.

Senate Republicans wanted to restore $115 million in funding to spend on the state's schools. They also hoped to restore $100 million to local governments. The additional $100 million for the state's Local Government Fund would still mean a cut of some $455 million to local communities. About $1.3 billion from business taxes would be shifted from local communities and schools to the state's general revenue fund to fuel spending in other areas of state government. ^[25]

House Proposal

On May 5, 2011, the House approved with a vote of 59-40 along party lines a $112 billion, 4,004-page all-funds budget in House Bill 153 for the next two years.^[26][27] It is $70 million larger than the governor's proposed budget.^[27]

The House budget features many significant changes to the way the state operates, such as doing away with the estate tax beginning in 2013, privatizing six state-owned prisons, relaxing the rules for charter schools and transferring the state's liquor operations to a privately run job-creation board.^[26] New construction projects that cost less than $3.5 million would not be subject to Ohio's prevailing wage law, whereas the threshold used to be $79,000.^[28]

The budget makes many cuts, including:^[26]

• up to 20 percent in basic aid for Ohio school districts, approximately $800 million;^[29]
• reduction of $640 million to local governments over the biennium, but the budget attempts to make it easier for governments to consolidate services or merge townships; ^[30]
• reductions to the Local Government Fund totaling $555 million;
• cuts to higher-education funding, reducing state aid to universities an average of 13 percent and capping tuition increases to 3.5 percent each year;
• reducing $470 million in payments to nursing homes;
• a 2 percent reduction in public pension costs, with public employees paying an additional 2 percent of their salary toward their pension.^[29][30]

The governor said that increasing revenues would not mean that local governments and schools would be spared from the cuts in the House-approved budget.^[30]

Although revenue numbers have risen higher than those used as the basis for the House budget, the governor's administration said that they will need to pay about $500 million in bills deferred by the previous administration. ^[26]

Initial House Proposal

House Republicans rolled out their first changes to the Governor's proposed budget on April 28, 2011, including eliminating the estate tax in two years and on money wagered instead of taxing them on net revenue as is the current practice.^[31] The House also changed the governor's school-funding proposal to give schools an additional $80 million over the biennium and provides $15 million more for a home-care program for Medicaid-eligible seniors. It cuts aid to state agencies by an additional $40 million. Overall, the House budget increases spending by $70 million.^[32] Lawmakers rejected a proposal permitting privatization of county jails.^[33]

The House Finance Committee approved the biennial $120 billion budget with a party line vote on May 3, 2011, and the full House will vote on the plan on May 5.^[34] It will then head to the Senate. The governor said that he didn't completely with the House changes, but believed he would be satisfied with the budget.^[32]

On June 1 Ohio House Speaker William Batchelder panned a move by the state Senate to strip the budget of a proposal that would more closely tie teachers' wages to how well they and their students do in the classroom. The House version of the budget features a plan to overhaul teachers' evaluations and how they get paid. Teachers' salaries would be based on their performances and evaluations instead of the current increases based on seniority and level of training. Senate President Tom Niehaus has said his chamber wanted to remove the wording to avoid conflict with any union agreements that schools made with teachers as part of federal Race to the Top grants. ^[35]

The Senate proposal also spends $115 million more than the House on school districts, $100 million more on local governments, and $15 million more on the in-home nursing care program PASSPORT. The bill also opens the door for private management of the state lottery, while protecting the Ohio Turnpike from being taken private without legislative approval, and alters the accountability of charter schools. The legislation proposed by Republican leaders also includes $1.7 billion in property tax relief to Ohio homeowners and tax credit expansions for job creation and historic preservation. ^[36]

[edit] Governor's Proposed Budget

Governor John Kasich presented his FY2012-13 budget to the Ohio General Assembly by March 15, 2011. He fulfilled his promise to not raise taxes but did make deep spending cuts.^[37][38]

On March 15, 2011, the governor proposed a $55.5 billion two-year budget proposal that he called "the most reform-oriented budget in modern Ohio history." Under the budget, totally spending is $119.5 billion, down from $120.3 billion in the prior budget; general revenue spending, however, increased from $50.8 billion in the prior budget to the governor's proposed $55.5 billion.^[39]

The proposed budget eliminates an $8 billion budget shortfall with program restructuring, budget cuts and privatization of public assets. The governor maintained the $800 million, two-year income tax cut that went into effect in January and added an additional $34 million in tax incentives designed to create jobs.^[40]

The proposed budget includes a provision for leasing the state's wholesale liquor distribution system to JobsOhio to fund the state's economic development activities.^[37]

Medicaid

One of every three state tax dollars is spent financing the Medicaid program which serves 2.1 million Ohioans. Under Kasich's proposed budget, the state would spend $11.8 billion on Medicaid in 2012 and $13.2 billion in 2013, which are a proposed reduction of $1.4 billion over the biennium. Those figures include federal funds, which account for 64 percent of the money that goes into Medicaid in the state. The proposed budget includes a proposal to encourage home health care and community-based services as an alternative to nursing homes.^[41]

Pensions

The governor wantsl to increase workers' pension contributions by 2% and reduce the government's share by the same amount.^[32]

Sale of Prisons

The governor also proposed the sale of five state prisons to private operators to raise $200 million, enough to fill the hole left by expiring federal stimulus dollars.^[40]

The governor also wants to include provisions of Senate Bill 10 to change sentencing into the budget. The bill as introduced would save about $24.9 million a year through FY2015, according to an analysis by the Ohio Legislative Services Commission.^[42]

Local Governments

Under the governor's proposed budget, local aid will be reduced 33%, down to $865 million. The money raised from the prison sale could generate between $400,000 to more than $1 million a year in new tax revenues for municipalities. In addition, the proposed budget would also allow local governments to generate new revenue by posting public notices online instead of in newspapers and selling naming rights to their buildings.^[39]

If the legislature succeeds in changing collective bargaining in the state, cities and counties would have more flexibility with their budgets.^[39]

Restructuring of Debt

The proposed budget also calls for restructuring mostly outstanding state general obligation debt by pushing debt service payments due in FY2012 into FY2015 through FY2025. Pushing off the debt means $440 million more for the current budget.^[43]

The budget also reorganizes several agencies and their functions. Overall, the reform measures are expected to save $1.4 billion over the two-year budget. The Department on Aging would lose 90% of its funding but would also transfer responsibility for long-term care and other programs to other departments under the governor's health transformation initiative.^[37]

K-12 Education

Overall funding for education would drop 11.5% in the coming fiscal year due mostly to the loss of $981 million in federal funds, but the governor proposed doubling the voucher program, lifting the limits on the number of charter schools and permitting parents and teachers to take over failing schools.^[37]

Funding Increases

Under the proposed budget, the state's Board of Career Colleges and Schools would see a 12% increase in state funding to promote training and education and the Department of Development will get a 6.6% increase as it revamps economic growth programs and assists in the creation of JobsOhio, a public-private partnership created earlier this year to attract companies to the Buckeye State.^[37]

Higher Education

The proposed budget would raise funding for higher education by $67 million, with an increase of 2.7% in FY2012 and an increase of 0.9% in FY2013. He proposes giving universities more autonomy in exchange for less state funding and exempting them from union-friendly state rules on construction projects that the governor says increase costs.^[39]

The proposed budget also includes a cap of 3.5% on tuition increases, creating three-year bachelor's degree programs, and increasing teaching loads for faculty by one new course every two years.^[39]

[edit] Senate Bill 5 and Union Issues

Ohio voters passed Issue 2, overturning Senate Bill 5 by a margin of 61% to 39% on November 8, 2011.^[44] Gov. Kasich warned local leaders after the defeat, "Let me be clear, there is no bailout coming. There's no bailout because frankly, there is no money," Kasich said.^[45]

Sen. Shannon Jones introduced Senate Bill 5, the text of which can be found here. The Ohio Senate approved the bill by a vote of 53-44 on March 30, 2011. The House and Senate passed the bill, which was signed into law by Gov. Kasich.^[46][47]

In addition to limiting collective bargaining rights, the bill also requires state employees to pay at least 20% of their health insurance premiums, eliminates tenure as a consideration when deciding on layoffs, and institutes merit-based pay for some public sector workers.^[48] The bill would also end salary schedules.^[49] In addition, under the bill public employees who strike would have two days of wages deducted from their paychecks for each day of a strike, and public employees violating a court injunction against a strike would face additional fines and jail time.^[50]

Senate Bill 5 applies top 400,000 public employees^[51] including 42,000 state workers in addition to 19,500 workers in the state's university and college system.^[52]

Votes

On March 2, 2011, the Senate Committee approved the bill with a vote of 7-5. ^[53] The full Senate passed the bill by a vote of 17-16 vote, with six Republicans voting against it.^[54] Ohio Democratic senators could not halt a vote by leaving the state as occurred in Wisconsin because there are enough Republican members to form a quorum in the Ohio Senate and state laws do not require representative of both parties be present to conduct business.^[55]

Impact of the bill

While the bill did not completely end collective bargaining, opponents of the bill said it would have the same effect because the provision for elimination of binding arbitration gives the final word in negotiations to state and local government employers.^[50][49] On Feb. 24, 2011, Republicans agreed to amend the bill to permit collective bargaining for wages, but it would still prohibit collective bargaining for benefits, sick time, vacation or other conditions. Senate Democrat Joe Schiavoni

The bill is similar to the one that sparked protests in Wisconsin^[56]

Protests and Debate

Protest against the bill lasted for more than a week and drew up to 8,500 people ^[57][58][53]

The Fraternal Order of Police president said on Feb. 23, 2011 that his organization can agree with parts of the bill, such as more transparency in the bargaining process.^[59]

Lawmakers supporting the measure said SB5 was necessary. "The reality is, in the state of Ohio, we're out of money," said Sen. Jones. "What we need to do is give management the flexibility to be able to continue to provide the high-quality services that they've come to expect."^[48] Proponents of the bill say it could help control spending and provide more flexibility for cash-strapped governments.^[60] Gov. Kasich supports the legislation.^[61]

Union Provisions in House Budget

The House budget proposal includes provisions on merit pay for public workers similar to those in Senate Bill 5. The House budget includes a measure that would end continuing contracts for new teachers and include criteria for teacher performance evaluations that appear similar to what is in Senate Bill 5. Some questioned whether the inclusion of such provisions is meant to counter the referendum on Senate Bill 5.^[62]

[edit] Preparations and Requests for FY2012-13 Budget

The FY2012-13 budget period takes effect July 1, 2011.^[63] The state is currently preparing for that budget. State agencies submitted initial budget requests on Dec. 1, 2010, many of which predicted dire consequences if budgets were cut.^[64] The state Department of Corrections said that even if funding was maintained at 100% of current funding, it would have to cut 339 corrections positions and close prisons due to the expected increase in payroll costs during the next two years.^[64]

The state faces an estimated $8 billion shortfall in the $53 billion biennial budget, and to balance it means that lawmakers will have to adjust inflow and outflow approximately 15%.^[64][65] GOP leaders warned school districts that they could face cuts of up to 20% in state aid.^[66]

The budget submissions by state agencies included new or higher fees as a way to maintain current services with the anticipation of reduced state funding. Kasich has not directly commented on the proposals but he has said that he backs the standard that the anti-tax group Americans for Tax Reform, which maintains that is acceptable to impose certain fees but they are not to be used to increase overall state revenue and spending.^[67]

In September 2011 the state is responsible for a $180 million interest payment to the federal government for borrowing for the state's unemployment compensation fund.^[68] Medicaid growth would add more than $1 billion to the budget hole over the next two years if caseloads continue to grow at the 9 percent-a-year pace they have since 2007.^[68]

See also Ohio Budget Planning and Management Commission for FY2012-13.

[edit] Budget transparency

Ohio currently has no statewide, official spending database online. However, House Bill 420 would make this information available.

• See sample transparency legislation at the Sunshine Standard

[edit] Government tools

The following table is helpful in evaluating the level of transparency provided by a state spending and transparency database:

Criteria for evaluating spending databases

State Database	Searchability	Grants	Contracts	Line Item Expenditures	Dept/Agency Budgets	Public Employee Salary
Ohio.gov Transparency	Y	Y	Y	N	Y	Y

See also: Evaluation of Ohio state website

[edit] Independent transparency sites

"Our mission is to serve as a convenient place where Ohio citizens and others with an interest in ensuring that government is open, honest and accountable may join together and work to ensure that government data is available to everyone. This includes government officials and offices at all levels that might find OhioSunshine.org a convenient place to post information that is commonly requested, thereby reducing their own burden while simultaneously easing the burden of citizens seeking information."^[69]

[edit] FY2010-2011 State Budget

Find the state’s FY2011 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) compiled by the state government here.

The state ended the year with a $125 million balance.^[70] Three quarters of the way through the fiscal year revenue was 5.4% percent higher than estimates, approximately $627 million more than anticipated. In March of 2011, revenue was 13% higher than estimated.^[71] Towards the end of FY2011, to save $176,000 annually, Kasich is opting out of paying dues to the National Governor's Association. ^[72]

H.B. 1 was Ohio’s operating budget for fiscal years 2010-2011. This measure was signed by Governor Strickland on July 17, 2009.^[73] The 996 page budget may be downloaded here. The FY 2010-2011 operating budget is balanced without raising taxes on Ohio families or businesses.^[74] The budget reduced state government spending by an additional $2.5 billion.^[74] The budget also leveraged $5.8 billion in federal stimulus funds to avoid further job loss and further cuts to services and shifts a number of programs and agencies from GRF funding to fee- supported funding in order to make them more self-supporting.^[74] the Legislative Services Commission has said at least $1.5 billion in revenue comes from higher fees, most which are the result of higher franchise fees for hospitals and nursing homes.^[75]

Eight months into the fiscal year, Ohio's general revenue fund (GRF) tax revenues were 0.7% below estimates according to a report by the state's Office of Budget and Management on March 12, 2010.^[76] The estimates were off by $75.3 million.^[77] Because that was less than the 9% GRF tax revenue's were down last year, the office concluded "that the volatility our economy experienced a year ago is no longer present."^[76]

The state delayed a 4.25% income tax rate reduction.^[78]

[edit] Appropriations

[edit] Federal Funds

Ohio received approximately $880 million from the federal government under H.R. 1586, a $26 billion plan to give states money for Medicaid and education that the President signed into law on August 10, 2010.^[79]

[edit] Budget Negotiation History

Ohio faced not only a budget deficit in fiscal year 2009, but also faced a budget deficit of more than $7 billion in the 2010 - 2011 operating budget, according to Governor Ted Strickland and Budget Director J. Pari Sabety.^[80] However, in early May 2009 it was reported that Ohio was facing a $600 million to $900 million budget gap for fiscal year 2009.^[81] According to the Strickland Administration, 2009 and 2010 will witness the most serious erosion in revenues that has taken place in 40 years.^[82]

The legislature and Governor failed to approve the budget by the end of June and extended the deadline by a week.^[83] The state faced a $3.2 billion shortfall in the 2010-2011 budget.^[84] The temporary budget allows most state agencies to operate at 70 percent their funding from the 2009 fiscal year, divided by a 52 week allotment.^[84] Other programs, such as adoption agencies, have been forced to shut down and it is expected their will be $2.4 billion in cuts for the new budget.^[84]

The finalized 2010-11 budget includes $50.5 billion in spending, a $0.7 billion increase compared to years 2008-09. The budget includes a cut in state aid to public education. For 2010, state aid will drop from $8 billion to $7.5 billion and in 2011 aid will drop to $7.2 billion. Despite the cut in state aid, the use of federal stimulus dollars increases total education funding by $502 million.^[85][86] The governor signed the budget into law on Friday, July 17, 2009.

[edit] Gambling

The state had an ongoing budget saga throughout 2009 created when the Ohio State Supreme Court on Sept. 21, 2009 ruled that the Ohio General Assembly's video lottery plan to balance the FY 2010-2011 biennium budget violates the Ohio Constitution.^[87] The General Assembly authorized installation of up to 17,500 video lottery terminals (VLTs) at Ohio horse racing tracks, but the Ohio Supreme Court found the plan must be subject to a statewide voter referendum because it does not fall within any of the exceptions to the right of referendum.^[88]

The 6-1 majority opinion of the Court stated, “We are not unmindful of the effect our decision may have on the state budget, nor of the commendable efforts of the members of the executive and legislative branches of state government to fulfill their constitutional duties to balance the budget in Ohio; however, our own constitutional duty is to ensure compliance with the requirements of the Ohio Constitution irrespective of their effect on the state’s current financial conditions.”^[89]

Ohioans also approved casinos in November 2009, a few months after Gov. Strickland proposed adding video lottery machines to racetracks to generate new tax revenue. "If I had not been confronted with these difficult circumstances, I would have obviously opposed expanding gambling in Ohio," he said. He estimated the plan would raise $851 million over two years, a source of revenue needed at a time when the governor had already reduced state spending by $2 billion, eliminated 2,500 government jobs, closed two psychiatric hospitals and two juvenile-detention facilities, and also reduced state agency budgets by 10% to 20%. "It still wasn't enough," he recalls.^[90]

[edit] Budget Background

Ohio operates on a biennium, covering two fiscal years at a time. For example, the 2009-2011 biennium consists of year 1, July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010, and year 2, July 1, 2010 to June 30, 2011. For the legislature, work on the budget occurs during the first six months of the first regular session of the General Assembly. First, though, individual state agencies submit their budget requests along with past expenditures and revenue to the governor who proceeds to issue a budget recommendation for the upcoming fiscal year to the Legislature. In the years in which a new governor takes office, the report can be presented as late as March 15. Both the House and the Senate must approve the budget bill before it can be signed into law by the governor.^[91]

Ohio's "balanced budget" requirements come in the forms of a limit the issuance of debt and an appropriations cap that is tied to the actual revenue raised during previous years. Section 107.33 of the State law creates a cap on appropriations that is the previous year's revenue, adjusted for inflation and population growth, or the previous year's revenue plus 3.5%, whichever is greater. Article 8, Sections 1 and 2 of the 1851 Constitution permit the state to contract debts, to supply casual deficits or failures in revenues, or to meet expenses not otherwise provided for as long as those costs do not exceed $750,000. Title 1, Section 126.05 of the State law requires the director of the budget to notify the governor each month on the status of available revenue receipts and balances. The governor must then prevent expenses of state agencies from exceeding those revenue receipts. Ohio law forbids the carrying over of a deficit from one year to the next.^[92]

[edit] Accounting Principles

Main article: Ohio government accounting principles

The Ohio Auditor of State is responsible for auditing all public offices in Ohio, more than 6,500 entities including cities, counties, villages, townships, schools, state universities and public libraries as well as all state agencies, boards and commissions. Mary Taylor was elected Auditor of the State in 2006. Her office publishes the state's audit reports online, directly on the home page.^[93]

The Institute for Truth in Accounting (IFTA) rates Ohio “Worst” in filing the state’s Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR) – The annual report of state and local governmental entities. IFTA rated 22 states timely, 22 states tardy, and 6 states as worst. IFTA does not consider Ohio's CAFRs, and those of the other states, to be accurate representations of the state’s financial condition because the Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) basis does not include significant liabilities for the pension plans and for other post employment benefits, such as health care.^[94] Ohio's CAFRs are prepared and published online by the Ohio Office of Budget and Management. J. Pari Sabety is the Director of the Ohio Office of Budget and Management.^[95]

Ohio currently has no statewide, official spending database online. However, House Bill 420 would make this information available.

[edit] Stimulus

Ohio has received $4.8 billion in federal funding.^[97]

[edit] Public Employees

Main article: Ohio public employee salaries

Main article: Ohio public pensions

According to 2008 Census data, the state of Ohio and local governments in the state employed a total of 750,760 people.^[98] Of those employees, 539,008 were full-time employees receiving a net pay of $2,188,567,523 per month and 211,752 were part-time employees paid $208,806,484 per month.^[98] More than 54% of those employees, or 409,618 employees, were in education or higher education.^[98]

Mental health professionals and IT workers are the most highly paid public salaries in the state, exceeding $100,000 annually.^[99]

The Buckeye Institute posted a state employee salary database here and a local employee salary database here.

[edit] External links

[edit] Additional reading

• Gov. Ted Strickland,"2009 State of the State," retrieved June 1,2009
• Associated Pres,"Perspective: Ohio budget hurt by economy, politics," May 18, 2009
• Dayton Daily News,"State lawmakers hold noses, approve budget," July 14, 2009

[edit] References

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