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Ohio Industrial Commission seeks funds for IT modernization, warns of retirements; presents biennial budget
Summary
Jim Hughes, chairman and CEO of the Ohio Industrial Commission, told the Senate committee the commission's 2026–27 budget request funds continued adjudication of workers' compensation appeals, upgrades to legacy IT systems, and recruitment to address retirements; he described a non‑GRF funding model and provided budget totals and expense details.
Jim Hughes, chairman and CEO of the Ohio Industrial Commission, presented the commission's biennial budget request to the Senate Financial Institutions Insurance and Technology Committee during the first hearing on House Bill 80. Hughes said the commission's mission is to resolve disputed workers' compensation claims fairly and impartially and described operational needs the budget is intended to address.
Hughes told the committee the Ohio Industrial Commission plans investments in technology to expand remote hearings and modernize legacy applications used in the hearing process. He said modernization will move core business processes to up‑to‑date platforms intended to improve user experience and reduce long-term operating costs.
Hughes said workforce turnover is a major near-term challenge. “By January of 2026, nearly 40% of OIC's current workforce will be eligible for retirement,” he told the committee, and the commission has ramped up marketing, recruitment and internship programs — including outreach to law schools — to fill hearings and attorney positions across 12 offices.
On finance, Hughes described the commission as a non‑GRF agency funded by an administrative cost fund surcharge applied to the workers' compensation insurance premium coverage rate. He provided line-item examples including rent for the William Green Building and payments to the Attorney General's Office for legal services. Hughes said payments to the Attorney General are split roughly 62/38 between the Bureau of Workers' Compensation and the Industrial Commission; he gave the attorney‑general payment amounts as about $3,186,000 for fiscal 2026 and roughly $3,300,000 for fiscal 2027.
Hughes said the commission's requested operating totals are $53,140,000 for fiscal year 2026 and about $54.3 million for fiscal year 2027, totaling approximately $107,442,765 for the biennium. He described the request as a 3.3% decrease from the comparable 2024–25 budget and noted the budget previously cleared House committees by wide margins.
On staffing, Hughes described recruitment strategies that include posting in legal directories, recruiting at law schools, and offering internships at each of the commission's 12 regional offices. He said the commission also is exploring expanding remote hearings to reduce travel time and expense for parties and staff.
Senators asked questions about succession planning and recruitment; Hughes outlined advertising, internship and law‑school outreach as ongoing efforts. The hearing concluded with no committee vote recorded; House Bill 80 was presented for its first hearing.
