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Ohio sponsors seek new tax-refund checkoff to fund spay-and-neuter programs
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Summary
Sponsors told the Senate Ways and Means Committee House Bill 148 would add a "Companion Animal Fund" as a seventh refund-donation option on Ohio tax returns, routing donations to the Ohio Pet Fund to expand spay/neuter and rehoming grants; supporters said current license-plate revenue is insufficient to meet demand.
State lawmakers heard sponsor testimony on House Bill 148, which would add a "Companion Animal Fund" to the state treasury and create a new checkoff option on Ohio income tax refund forms so taxpayers can donate part or all of their refund to spay-and-neuter and rehoming programs.
Representative Sharon Ray, a joint sponsor, told the Senate Ways and Means Committee the fund would be administered by the Ohio Pet Fund, a nonprofit created in the Ohio Revised Code in 2004 that currently distributes grants funded largely by a pet-friendly license plate program. "We can't adopt our way out of this situation," Ray said, arguing that prevention through sterilization is necessary to curb stray populations.
Supporters noted that Ohio tax forms already offer six refund-donation options and that the companion animal fund would become a seventh. Ray cited reproductive rates to illustrate the scale of the problem: one unaltered stray cat with about three litters a year can lead to thousands of kittens over a decade; stray dogs can have about two litters annually. Ray also shared a personal anecdote about a rescued cat named Hemi to illustrate the human side of the issue.
Representative Grimm, the bill’s other sponsor, added that the Ohio Pet Fund prioritizes grants to organizations that serve low-income Ohioans and to programs such as trap-neuter-release for cats, sterilization for dogs awaiting adoption, and support for qualifying shelters and 501(c)(3) organizations. Grimm listed local organizations that have received grants, including Lucas County Canine Care and Control, Lucas County Pit Crew, the Toledo Area Humane Society, and Toledo's Pet Bull Project.
Committee members offered brief, supportive remarks and personal anecdotes but did not press the sponsors with technical objections during the hearing. The committee accepted the sponsors' testimony and concluded the first hearing on House Bill 148 without taking a vote.
The committee will determine next steps in a future meeting; no formal committee action on the bill was taken at this session.
