State budget prompts tense local talk over property taxes, school funding

Sen. Michelle Reynolds, speaking at the Canal Winchester Board of Education meeting on July 14, summarized the recently passed state budget and its effects on school funding and property taxes and urged local school leaders to “be part of the solution.” Reynolds said the enacted budget increases state formula aid and that “the budget provides nearly $1,000,000,000 in state formula aid to public schools.”

The senator said the budget includes a $1.4 billion increase in formula aid within a total state K–12 investment she described as $23.87 billion and placed that increase in the context of prior biennia. She also told the board the legislature adopted a 40% cap on school cash carryover during conference committee — a compromise between House and Senate proposals — but that the governor vetoed that provision and 67 other line items before the measure reached final form.

Board members and local educators pressed Reynolds on details and impacts. District leaders said Canal Winchester’s funding is lower than expected because of a large change in how Disadvantaged Pupil Impact Aid (DPIA) eligibility was counted after a federal expansion of the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP). Reynolds told the board the district’s DPIA share rose from about 44.94% in fiscal 2024 to 99.17% in fiscal 2025 after the Department of Education and Workforce began counting students considered eligible under CEP. She said House Bill 96 phases down payments for students counted only by CEP expansion, a change that helps explain the district’s reduced state allocation.

School officials and union leaders also raised broader concerns about the budget. Kevin Barhorse, co-president of the Canal Winchester Education Association, criticized the legislature’s approach to funding and school choice, saying, “Public schools are under attack from the current majority in the Ohio State House.” Board members warned that proposed measures empowering county budget commissions or changing levy rules could override local voter decisions and harm districts that rely on emergency levies.

Reynolds described a set of policy tradeoffs and the political pressures driving them: rising home valuations and strong local capacity under the formula reduce state aid for some fast‑growing suburban districts while property owners complain about sharply higher tax bills. She repeatedly advised local officials to engage in planning with state lawmakers, offering to host roundtables and listening sessions; she said she will hold a tele town hall with county auditors and representatives to discuss property taxes and housing and encouraged the board to register through her office.

No formal board action on state budget policy occurred at the meeting. Board members voted on routine consent items and personnel actions but did not take a policy vote related to the state budget or to district responses to the enacted budget.

Why it matters: the enacted budget alters funding streams that districts use to balance local levies and state aid. The Canal Winchester district faces near‑term revenue shifts tied to DPIA counting changes and to any later legislative action such as veto overrides or new rules on carryovers and levy consolidation. District officials said they are still calculating the final local fiscal impact and are preparing for fall budgeting while seeking more information from the legislature and state agencies.

What’s next: Reynolds said she will listen to feedback from auditors, treasurers and school boards in the coming days before deciding on any vote to override the governor’s vetoes. The Ohio House planned to meet on July 21 to consider overrides for several property‑tax provisions; Reynolds told the board she will collect local input and that she is not yet committed to a vote one way or the other.

Speakers quoted in this story came from the meeting’s public record and are shown in the attached speaker list for attribution.