Make Your Voice Heard on Senate Bill 1 – Opponent Hearing Scheduled Next Week!!
Last week, OEA coordinated a testimony workshop with Honesty for Ohio Education and the AAUP, along with other coalition partners. An email with resources from this event was shared with members of OEA’s HEAC caucus. You may find these resources here. As always, OEA has and will continue to monitor the situation as well as provide you with updates and information as it becomes available.
The Ohio Senate Higher Education and Workforce Committee is scheduled to meet on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, to hear all testimony on Senate Bill 1. The hearing will be held in Ohio Senate North Hearing Room and will begin at 2:00 p.m. We encourage members to submit testimony to the committee expressing opposition to SB 1. In-person testimony will be limited to three minutes per witness.
To submit testimony (in-person or written) you must submit a copy of the testimony and a completed witness slip as two separate .pdf documents to roegner@ohiosenate.gov, no later than 24 hours in advance of the committee’s scheduled meeting time. You may download the witness slip by clicking here.
The committee will also meet on Wednesday, February 12, 2025, for a possible committee vote on the bill. There is a strong possibility that Senate Bill 1 could be voted on by the full Ohio Senate later that day.
Please contact OEA Government Relations with any questions or to notify us that you will be submitting testimony (written or in person) at govtsrv@ohea.org.
Other ways to Take Action:
If you haven’t already done so, you may voice your concern by sending your Ohio Senator a letter by clicking here.
We also recommend that you call members of the majority party on the Ohio Senate Higher Education Committee and your state senator to voice opposition to the bill.
- Kristina Roegner (Senate Workforce and Higher Education Committee Chair)
- 614-466-4823
- Tell her NOT TO MOVE SB 1 forward
- Senator Jane Timken
- 614-466-0626
- Tell her to HELP STOP SB 1
- Senator Bill Reineke
- 614-466-8049
- Tell him to HELP STOP SB 1
Look up and call your state senator: Find your senator here
DeWine Releases Final Executive Budget Proposal as Governor
On Monday, February 3, 2025, Governor Mike DeWine (R) unveiled his budget priorities during a brief press conference and the release of the Executive Budget Blue Book for Fiscal Years (FY) 2026 and 2027.
Below is a review of the governor’s proposal. Please note that there are few details at this point as the actual budget language has yet to be released. OEA is also waiting for the release of district-by-district funding spreadsheets. OEA Government Relations will share additional information as it becomes available.
K-12 Education
School Funding
DeWine’s budget proposal continues to use the Fair School Funding methodology to fund schools. However, the proposal uses outdated FY 2022 cost data while updating property values (i.e., local capacity). There is a disparity in support, with the local share of funding education increasing and the state responsibility decreasing. DeWine’s Fair School Funding Plan proposal will result in more school districts being on a funding guarantee.
DeWine indicated that his budget would begin the phase-down of school district guarantees. Funding guarantees ensure that districts don’t lose state funding they previously received. The budget would reduce funding guarantees from 100 percent to 95 percent in FY 2026 and 90 percent in FY 2027. Currently, there are approximately 185 school districts on the guarantee because of a variety of factors, including enrollment loss or formula changes.
OEA will continue to advocate for the Ohio General Assembly to make necessary updates to the components of the funding model and fully implement this biennium plan.
Additional Provisions
- The proposal would expand school-based health care centers.
- DeWine indicated that the proposal would continue to focus on the science of reading initiatives, including supporting literacy coaches.
- The proposal would leverage state funding for reduced-price meals to ensure low-income students have access to school breakfast and lunch.
- The proposal provides for $34 million over the biennium for School Bus Safety Grants.
- The proposal increases the annual bus driver training requirement from four to six hours.
- Included in the Ohio Department of Health’s budget is approximately $40 million in funding to support a new vision services program. The program would increase access to follow-up care, including glasses, for children in kindergarten through third grade who fail vision screenings.
- The budget increases community school facilities from $1,000 to $1,500 per pupil.
- The budget provides $10 million over the biennium to establish the Ohio Principal Apprenticeship Program.
- The proposal provides funds from the sports gambling tax revenues to offset student pay-to-participate fees.
| K-12 GRF Total (State Funding) | FY 2026 – $9.96 billion – 1.9% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $10.14 billion – 1.8% Increase | |
| K-12 All Funds | FY 2026 – $14.86 billion – 3.1% Decrease |
| FY 2027 – $15.08 billion – 1.5% Increase |
State Board of Education
| Operating Expenses | FY 2026 – $13.0 million – 15.0% Decrease |
| FY 2027 – $13.5 million – 3.9% Increase | |
| Rapback | FY 2026 – $2.0 million – 15.0% NEW |
| FY 2027 – $2.0 million – Flat Funded | |
| SBOE All Funds | FY 2026 – $16.36 million – 1.7% Decrease |
| FY 2027 – $16.87 million – 3.1% Increase |
Higher Education
DeWine’s higher education recommendations include an expansion of the Governor’s Merit Scholarship that was created in the last budget. The proposal will continue to provide $5,000 scholarships to every student in the top five percent of their high school graduating class to attend a public institution of higher education in Ohio. The governor’s budget also proposes guaranteeing admission for recipients to state college and university main campuses. The proposal also increases funding for the Ohio College Opportunity Grant (OCOG), a needs-based program.
Additionally, he is proposing an initiative that would let students know if they would be admitted to a state college or university by inserting criteria (GPA and SAT/ACT test scores) into a database.
| State Share of Instruction | FY 2026 – $2.12 billion – 0.1% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $2.12 billion – Flat Funded | |
| Ohio College Opportunity Grant | FY 2026 – $220.6 million – 11.8% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $207.4 million – 6.0% Decrease | |
| Governor’s Merit Scholarship | FY 2026 – $47.0 million – 107.0% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $70.0 million – 48.9% Increase | |
| Shawnee State Supplement | FY 2026 – $9.27 million – 3.0% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $9.55 million – 3.0% Increase | |
| GRF Total (State Funding) | FY 2026 – $3.01 billion – 1.7% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $2.97 billion – 1.2% Decrease | |
| All Funds | FY 2026 – $3.16 billion – 3.2% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $3.04 billion – 3.8% Decrease |
Developmental Disabilities
| Multi System Youth | FY 2026 – $5.0 million – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $5.0 million – Flat Funded | |
| Technology First | FY 2026 – $3.2 million – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $3.2 million – Flat Funded | |
| Employment First | FY 2026 – $2.7 million – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $2.7 million – Flat Funded | |
| GRF Total (State Funding) | FY 2026 – $1.17 billion – 12.2% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $1.18 billion – 0.9% Increase | |
| All Funds | FY 2026 – $5.51 billion – 6.9% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $5.75 billion – 4.4% Increase |
Department of Rehabilitation & Corrections
| Prisoner Programs | FY 2026 – $400,000 – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $400,000 – Flat Funded | |
| Education Services | FY 2026 – $4.66 million – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $4.66 million – Flat Funded | |
| Institutional Operations | FY 2026 – $1.54 million – 10.3% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $1.64 million – 6.3% Increase | |
| Inst. Education Services | FY 2026 – $53.15 million – 17.2% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $57.80 million – 8.7% Increase | |
| Institutional Services | FY 2026 – $3.5 million – 22.8% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $3.5 million – Flat Funded | |
| Adult Education Programs | FY 2026 – $9.84 million – 19.1% Decrease** |
| FY 2027 – $9.87 million – 0.2% Increase** |
Department of Youth Services
| Vocational Education | FY 2026 – $1.44 million – 3.1 % Decrease |
| FY 2027 – $1.49 million – 4.1% Increase | |
| Education Services | FY 2026 – $4.66 million – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $4.66 million – Flat Funded | |
| Education | FY 2026 – $1.89 million – 81.4% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $1.96 million – 3% Increase |
Deaf & Blind Education Services
| Deaf School Ed Program | FY 2026 – $250,000 – 16.7% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $250,000 – 16.7% Increase | |
| Blind School Ed Program | FY 2026 – $330,000 – 4.6% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $340,000 – 3.0% Increase | |
| Early Childhood Education | FY 2026 – $65,000 – 22.6% Increase |
| FY 2027 – $65,000 – Flat Funded | |
| Library for the Blind | See “State Library Board” |
State Library Board
| Library for the Blind | FY 2026 – $1.27 million – Flat Funded |
| FY 2027 – $1.27 million – Flat Funded | |
| Early Childhood Education | FY 2026 – $24.7 million – 0.6% Decrease |
| FY 2027 – $24.9 million – 0.8% Increase |
For an archive of past Legislative Watch releases, visit the Legislative Watch archive.