· March 31, 2011

Innovation Ohio Posts “One Stop Shop” for School Funding Info

For Immediate Release March 31, 2011 Contact:  Dale Butland 614- 783-5833

INNOVATION OHIO POSTS “ONE STOP SHOP” FOR SCHOOL FUNDING INFO Think Tank says it correctly calculated that over 600 districts face cuts

Columbus, Ohio — Innovation Ohio, a progressive think tank headquartered in Columbus, today consolidated and posted on its website all district-by-district school funding figures released to date by the Kasich Administration, as well as the funds districts can expect to lose from stimulus money that will not be replaced.  The spread sheet is in Excel format and can be accessed here. Innovation Ohio President Janetta King described the posting as a “service to Ohio school officials and parents who deserve both transparency and a ‘one-stop shop’ where they can easily learn what the true and total impact of the Administration’s proposed budget will be on their school districts.” King also said: “The Kasich administration has been anything but forthcoming on this issue. First, they announced incomplete and misleading school funding figures on March 24, which led a number of newspapers around the state to erroneously report that over 400 districts would receive funding increases.  Then the administration dragged its feet in releasing the district-by-district cuts that will result from discontinued reimbursements for the repealed TPP and public utility business taxes. “When the Administration finally did release the TPP and public utility tax figures yesterday, it inexplicably broke the numbers down into four different spreadsheets, making it very difficult for school administrators to figure out how their districts will be impacted.  And they are still refusing to reveal the district-by-district impact resulting from the loss of federal stimulus funds.  All of this has led to great frustration, with school officials unable to get a straight answer concerning how much money their districts will receive from the state over the next two fiscal years.  The IO spread sheet pulls all those figures together in one simple document.  Why the administration itself couldn’t or wouldn’t do this is completely beyond me.” On a related subject, Innovation Ohio Communications Director Dale Butland said: “When Innovation Ohio obtained and published internal Administration spread sheets on March 25 showing the TPP and public utility tax losses, the Kasich administration challenged their authenticity. “Just the day before on March 24 — they said that over 400 of Ohio’s 612 districts would receive increases.  We said that was false; virtually all school districts would receive significant cuts compared to what they received in FY 2011. “It’s now clear who was telling the truth.  According to the TPP and public utility data released by the administration earlier this week — and when lost stimulus funds are also factored in — 609 districts will, in fact, receive cuts in FY 2012, and 607 will receive cuts in FY 2013.”

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