Westerville superintendent warns 25% cash-cap amendment would force cuts

Angie Hamburg, superintendent of Westerville City School District, told the Ohio House Finance Committee on April 8 that an amendment to the state operating bill that would allow the auditor to suspend property tax collections for any district with a cash balance over 25% would rapidly exhaust her district’s funds and force severe reductions.

Hamburg said the district, which serves nearly 15,000 students across Franklin and Delaware counties and employs about 2,000 people, is using cash reserves as a planned stopgap while it transitions positions off federal ESSER funding and attempts to secure stable local revenue. “The only band aid we have right now is our cash balance, and like many districts, losing it abruptly would be catastrophic for us,” Hamburg said.

The superintendent told the committee the district had already absorbed a $4 million reduction in state funding this school year while seeing only about $2.7 million in increased local property-tax revenue after recent reappraisals, leaving the net effect a funding decrease. Hamburg said Westerville has been deficit spending as it phases positions back to the general fund and that the district’s cash is part of a five-year plan to remain solvent through 2029. “With our cash balance and the reductions we've made, we are in the black until 2029,” she said.

Hamburg described how the district has relied in part on ESSER funding to cover positions during the pandemic period and is moving those positions back into the general fund, producing forecasted deficits of more than $20 million over the life of the projection if local revenue is abruptly constrained. She told representatives that the district had placed a levy on the ballot to fund building needs and a small no-new-millage bond; when that ballot measure failed, officials moved some cash back to operating to stabilize the forecast.

Committee members pressed Hamburg on cash-flow timing and program costs. Representative Piccolantonio asked what community feedback she had received during listening sessions; Hamburg said business and local elected leaders told her they value adequately funded schools and are willing to partner on funding needs. Representative Glassburn asked about semiannual tax settlement timing and how cash declines between those receipts; Hamburg said Westerville spends roughly $638,000 a day and that cash levels do vary significantly between tax settlement periods.

Several members pressed on the composition of the district’s needs. Representative Young asked how much additional money the district needs; Hamburg pointed to rapidly rising special-education costs and said Westerville added eight specialized elementary classrooms this year to serve students with intensive needs. She said some out-of-district placements for students with severe needs can cost six figures plus transportation. “These are students who are in a classroom with a required ratio of 8 students to 1 adult,” Hamburg said, describing the staffing intensity and related costs.

Hamburg also described credits banked through the expedited local partnership with the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission — about $25 million in credits — and said those credits were raised locally for facilities work but are not yet available to the district for all eligible projects because of wealth-factor eligibility rules. She said the district’s AAA bond rating (from a prior bond sale) and long-term financing position depend in part on the stability of cash reserves.

Hamburg told the committee that a strict 25% cash test that triggers suspension of tax collections would likely force the district back onto the ballot annually and could require immediate cuts to programs and personnel. She said the district’s cash is not idle: it is relied upon to meet recurring payroll and contract obligations and to smooth year-to-year funding volatility.

The superintendent concluded by urging the committee to consider the differing fiscal structures across districts — noting Westerville is not on a 20-mill floor and does not levy an income tax — and by asking lawmakers to take into account that cash balances reflect planning, deferred facility needs and one-time credits, not discretionary surplus. Hamburg invited questions from members.

Ending: The testimony and question-and-answer period were part of the committee’s seventh hearing on House Bill 96. No formal committee action on Westerville-specific relief or language was recorded during Hamburg’s appearance; the committee proceeded later in the day to consider omnibus amendments and a floor recommendation for the bill.