On Wednesday, the House voted not to concur with the Senate’s changes to House Bill (HB) 33, the fiscal year (FY) 2024-25 budget bill.
The differences between the House and Senate versions of the budget will now be reconciled in conference committee. We recently sent a letter to the members of the conference committee outlining our preferred outcomes. A copy of that letter is available below.
The HB 33 conferees include:
- From the Ohio House of Representatives:
- Rep. Jay Edwards (R-Nelsonville), chair, House Finance Committee; email: rep94@ohiohouse.gov; phone: 614.466.2158
- Rep. Jeff LaRe (R-Canal Winchester), vice chair, House Finance Committee; email: rep73@ohiohouse.gov; phone: 614.466.8100
- Rep. Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Cleveland), ranking member, House Finance Committee; email: rep16@ohiohouse.gov; phone: 614.466.3350
- From the Ohio Senate:
- Sen. Matt Dolan (R-Chagrin Falls), chair, Senate Finance Committee; email: dolan@ohiosenate.gov; phone: 614.466.8056
- Sen. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland), vice chair, Senate Finance Committee; email: cirino@ohiosenate.gov; phone: 614.644.7718
- Sen. Vernon Sykes (D-Akron); ranking member, Senate Finance Committee; email: sykes@ohiosenate.gov; phone: 614.466.7041
In addition to your legislators in the House and Senate, please contact the conferees listed above to influence the outcome of the budget bill. There are several provisions in the Senate-passed version that will have a detrimental impact on K-12 public schools, including modifications to the Fair School Funding Plan, transportation changes, universal vouchers with little accountability and more.
These proposed changes were discussed during a webinar hosted by OASBO, BASA, and OSBA. You can find a link to the webinar PowerPoint and recording below.
We have developed the following resources to assist with your advocacy:
This is an extremely busy time of year, but PLEASE take the time to reach out to your legislators. It is critical that they hear from you in the next 48 hours.
Thank you for all you do for public education – you make a difference!