Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Hb96 Budget Hearing topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
House Development Committee hears budget requests for economic development, life sciences, housing and survivor workforce programs
Summary
The House Development Committee took testimony on the biennial budget (House Bill 96), hearing extensive requests to expand or continue funding for TMUD, Opportunity Zone, historic tax credits, the Brownfield Remediation Program, life-sciences workforce initiatives, drone safety infrastructure, housing programs and survivor workforce expansions.
COLUMBUS — The Ohio House Development Committee heard hours of testimony on the proposed biennial operating budget, House Bill 96, as developers, nonprofit leaders and industry groups urged the legislature to preserve and expand programs designed to spur redevelopment, workforce pipelines and economic growth.
Witnesses recommended targeted increases to four established commercial development tools: the Transformational Mixed Use Development program (TMUD), the state Opportunity Zone program, the Ohio Historic Tax Credit (HTC) and the Brownfield Remediation Program. Mike Sikora of the commercial real-estate trade group recommended raising TMUD’s allocated tax-credit pool from $100 million to $150 million a year, with $50 million set aside for non‑major cities, and increasing Opportunity Zone allocations to $75 million. Sikora also urged broadening the market of buyers for tax-credit certificates to include banks, trusts and individuals, not just insurance companies.
“The mixed-use developments are by their very nature transformational,” Sikora told the committee, arguing additional credits would help projects that are otherwise financially viable but squeezed by rising construction costs.
Several witnesses called for retooling the Brownfield Remediation Program from a first-come, first-served distribution to a merit-based system scored by experts. Jason Warner of the Greater Ohio Policy Center and environmental consultants from Verdantas and Tetra Tech described wide demand across counties and urged a stable, dedicated funding source for cleanup grants so communities can turn contaminated industrial sites into productive development.
“Shifting to a merit-based system and providing predictable funding will unlock sites across the state,” Warner said, noting more than 600 sites have been served in 86 counties under earlier rounds of brownfield funding.
Life-sciences advocates asked for modest sustained funding for workforce development. Eddie Pauline, president and CEO of the Ohio Life Sciences Association, said Ohio risks losing early-stage companies and manufacturing opportunities unless the state invests in talent, space and matching programs.
“Ohio must invest in the life sciences to keep companies and jobs here,” Pauline said, adding that prior small investments produced identifiable workforce programs and training pilots.
The committee also heard a series of smaller, targeted funding requests tied to workforce and community needs. Dr. Stewart Mandel of Baldwin Wallace asked for $2.5 million over the biennium to expand the NeoFIX drone-safety infrastructure to five partner communities, saying the system helps law enforcement, health care and local governments manage safe drone operations. Nonprofit Freedom a la carte sought $250,000 per fiscal year to expand a social-enterprise workforce program for survivors of human trafficking; CEO Paula Haynes cited a Stanford alumni team’s estimate that the program yields a 7:1 social return on investment and generates community savings tied to reduced incarceration and social-service costs.
Goodwill representatives proposed a $5 million grant program for nonprofit thrift operators to expand job-training and placement programs, and CDFI (Community Development Financial Institution) leaders asked for a $50 million revolving fund to multiply lending to small businesses and locally led real-estate projects.
Ranking members and committee members asked witnesses to provide additional data, including return-on-investment studies and details about program administration and eligibility. Several witnesses recommended that the Ohio Department of Development continue administering merit-based brownfield awards and that language in previously passed bills (including provisions in House Bill 315) restore private developer access to certain programs.
The committee did not take votes on amendments or appropriations during the hearing; witnesses were invited to submit follow-up materials. The hearing will inform the committee’s budget work as it negotiates final language and allocations.
The Development Committee adjourned after hearing all scheduled testimony; no final funding decisions were made during the session.
