Westerville superintendent urges lawmakers not to strip districts’ cash balances amid proposed 25% cap

Angie Hamburg, superintendent of the Westerville City School District, told the Ohio House Finance Committee on April 8 that a proposed amendment to suspend property tax collections for school districts with unreserved cash balances above 25% would quickly force deep cuts and likely require districts to seek levies every year.

Hamburg said Westerville, which serves nearly 15,000 students across Franklin and Delaware counties and employs nearly 2,000 people, is using cash balances to smooth a multiyear funding gap caused in part by federal ESSER funding winding down and by state funding changes. “Only looking at a year of the forecast. No business can function by reducing revenue while increasing services. 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.

She told representatives the district has used one-time cash to cover recurring needs as it shifts positions funded with ESSER back onto the general fund…