Blaming the pandemic for negatively impacting state revenue, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has ordered budget cuts, but also restored some of the money that was cut from K-12 schools and higher education last year.
DeWine said when he made three-quarters of a billion dollars in cuts to Medicaid and education last year, he thought the budget would be worse off than it is now.
Revenues have been coming in overestimates lately. In December, tax receipts were more than $64 million over estimates, but total tax receipts are down 10%.
With an executive order, DeWine is finalizing current year budget reductions of $390 million across all agencies. But he’s also putting an additional $160 million into K-12 education and $100 million into higher education.
DeWine has said he expects to tap the $2.7 billion in the state's rainy day fund because of the pandemic, but has also said he wants to hold off as long as possible. He said he won't consider a tax increase, though the liberal-leaning think tank Policy Matters Ohio has suggested a tax on corporate profits.
