Board hears warning on Senate budget changes, reaffirms support for full Fair School Funding Plan

An OSBA legislator (title reported to the board) updated the Canal Winchester Schools Board of Education on the Ohio Senate’s substitute to House Bill 96, saying the substitute removes important elements of the Fair School Funding Plan and replaces them with a bridge or flat funding model.

The presenter told the board that the Senate version “notably removes key components that ensure the plan remains equitable,” specifically citing removal of updated base cost inputs and full formula funding and saying the substitute “guarantees district funding at 2021 levels, which fails to account for inflation or the actual cost of educating students today.” The presenter also reported that the substitute adds a “performance based provision” and that property-tax changes in the bill do not fully offset the funding reductions the presenter described.

The presenter noted that, in response to the Senate changes, “the Canal Winchester Board of Education unanimously approved and adopted a resolution in support of the Fair School Funding Plan as it was originally intended” at a May 28 special meeting. The presenter said the Ohio Senate was expected to vote on its version of the budget in the coming weeks and reminded the board that the General Assembly must pass a final budget for the governor by June 30.

No new board action was taken at the meeting; the presentation served as an update on pending state legislation and the board’s previously adopted resolution supporting full implementation of the Fair School Funding Plan.