The Ohio House last week approved a $61.5 billion general fund budget that lacks Gov. John Kasich’s plan to expand Medicaid under the new federal health care law.
The two-year spending plan, which features a $1.5 billion income-tax cut, now goes to the Senate for a vote.
The House budget calls for lawmakers to study Medicaid expansion – which Kasich promoted as central to his proposed budget – and for state Medicaid officials to propose large-scale reforms to the state program by September. The Ohio Hospital Association continues to lobby heavily for the expansion.
The tax cut would reduce income taxes by 7% over the two year period, down from Kasich’s proposed 20%. The budget does not include Kasich’s plan for a new tax on oil and gas producers or his controversial plan to impose the sales tax on a variety of services.
The House’s proposed all-funds budget totals $120 billion. That’s down from Kasich’s proposed $130.5 billion plan. The House’s general fund budget is $61.5 billion compared to Kasich’s $63.3 billion.
“This budget plan reflects Ohio’s recovering economy,” Chairman of the House Finance and Appropriations Committee Ron Amstutz, R-Wooster, said in a statement. “Additional resources are being allocated back to our communities in three main areas: additional health care for the poor, additional money for schools, and additional taxpayer relief. The Finance and Appropriations Committee strived to find a good balance between keeping our state government costs affordable and maintaining the services that many Ohioans rely on.”
