Gov. Mike DeWine has submitted to state lawmakers what he hopes to see in the budget for a key agency – a budget that’s separate from the big statewide spending plan he’ll introduce next month.
DeWine’s two year, $645 million-dollar budget for the Bureau of Workers’ Compensation includes a proposed reduction of an average of 20 percent in premiums for private employers. DeWine’s office says that’s the largest cut in premiums in 60 years.
But the governor also wants a $3 million increase in the BWC’s program for substance use recovery and workplace safety. That program launched in October with a $15 million effort in three counties hard-hit by the opioid crisis: Scioto, Ross and Montgomery.
DeWine is also proposing $40 million for safety grants to buy equipment, improve safety in schools and protect first responders.
