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Adjutant General outlines Guard priorities, cyber reserve and budget request
Summary
Major General John Harris told the Senate Higher Education Committee the governor's budget would sustain Ohio National Guard disaster response, cyber reserve, counterdrug support and scholarship programs; he said the FY26/27 GRF request includes increases to maintain recruiting, facilities, mental‑health support and cyber capabilities.
Major General John Harris, Adjutant General for the state of Ohio, testified to the Senate Higher Education Committee about the governor's budget request for the Adjutant General's Department, emphasizing readiness, community support, and evolving missions including cyber defense and counterdrug operations.
Harris described the Ohio Cyber Reserve's growth (from 52 members in 2022 to 171 in 2024) and reported 88 non‑emergency cyber missions that produced an estimated $1,650,000 in cost savings to state and local governments. He said the counterdrug program expanded from 58 to 83 Guard members and cited seizures and arrests tied to those investigations. Harris told senators the Guard responded to tornado damage in Logan County and to hurricane relief missions in 2024 and emphasized the department's statewide infrastructure footprint (about 1.5 million square feet across 55 facilities).
On funding, Harris said the governor's proposed GRF appropriation would be roughly $16.79M for FY26 and $16.99M for FY27, representing double‑digit percentage increases over FY25 levels and that the funding complements federal appropriations. In Q&A he defended a flat cyber budget as feasible because much of the cyber reserve is volunteer‑based but warned that cybersecurity threats are increasingly complex and briefly described coordination mechanisms including a cyber integration center and memoranda of understanding across state agencies.
The committee did not take an immediate funding vote; Harris said he stands ready to answer further questions and provide additional detail.
