Ohio Budget

Ohio is off to what the state's chief financial officer described as a modest start to the fiscal year, according to figures from the Office of Budget and Management.

Ohio lawmakers who supported the provision say it will reduce absenteeism in schools and make life easier for girls in sixth through 12th grade.

The deadline for a new two-year state budget is midnight on Friday. Ohio lawmakers confirm talks are going well, but it's unlikely the budget can be passed and signed into law in time.

The two-year state budget is supposed to be passed by both the House and Senate and signed into law by the governor by midnight Friday night, but there are significant differences between the two chamber's spending plans.

Federal prosecutors recommend that former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder should spend 16 to 20 years in prison for orchestrating the largest public corruption case in Ohio history.

Republican Senators pulled back on a proposal to expand work and training requirements for Ohioans in the SNAP program, but added on a new requirement that critics say is costly, unneeded and could cause problems.

There are some key differences between the budgets created by Republicans in the House and Senate, both of which passed with very little support from minority Democrats.

The Republican Senate leadership's budget expands its previous tax cut proposal and adds controversial bills to take power away from elected state school board members and to make sweeping changes at Ohio's universities.

An analysis by Policy Matters Ohio finds more than 80% of benefit from the Senate's income tax changes will go to the top fifth of earners.

This week the Ohio Supreme Court might decide if we have an August special election to decide whether to make it harder to change the Ohio Constitution.