Legislative Watch – June 13, 2025

Senate Passes Budget Bill Setting Stage for Conference Committee

This week, the Senate Finance Committee accepted a 600-page omnibus amendment to House Bill (HB) 96, the state budget bill for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027. The bill passed the Ohio Senate Finance Committee on June 10, 2025, along party lines. The Ohio Senate passed the bill the following day, on June 11, 2025, with a vote of 23-10, with all Democrat Senators and Republican Senator Louis Blessing (Colerain Township) voting no.  

Notably, the omnibus amendment included restoration of current law in the composition of the State Board of Education (SBOE). The budget passed by the House removed all elected members of the SBOE and replaced the current 19-member Board with a five-member Board all appointed by the Governor. OEA opposes that proposed change. However, the Senate’s omnibus amendment would also make all school board elections, for members of the SBOE and local boards of education, partisan elections. OEA opposes this change and believes this will only add to political division in our local communities and may preclude qualified candidates, including independent voters from seeking office.

The Ohio House voted not to concur with the changes made to HB 96 by the Ohio Senate, sending the bill to conference committee for final negotiations. As the budget heads to conference committee, OEA’s top priorities remain updating and fully funding the Fair School Funding Plan, removal of the school district carryover provision and changes to property taxes, stopping the expansion of private school vouchers, and changes to school board elections.  Now is the time for Ohio’s policymakers to appropriate funding and enact policies that support public school students and educators.

More information regarding the Senate’s changes to House Bill 96, as passed by the Ohio Senate, can be found in OEA’s summary here.

OEA will continue to keep members informed throughout the process on these critical issues.  Please continue sending letters to your Ohio State Senators and Representatives about the importance of fully updating and funding the Fair School Funding plan using OEA’s action alert. Additionally, OEA and allies are planning a rally to Fight for Fair School Funding at the Ohio Statehouse on June 25, 2025. To RSVP for the rally, please click here.

Please also consider calling your legislators and urge them to support fully updating and funding the Fair School Funding Plan, eliminating the carryover cap, and eliminating the Senate’s proposed property tax changes. Please find partner resources from Policy Matters Ohio highlighting the impact of the Senate passed version of HB 96 on legislative districts and local school districts. And partner resources from All in for Ohio Kids campaign showing how much your local school district would benefit from a fully phased in and updated fair school funding plan.

Stand with Ohio Higher Education: Help Repeal SB1 – Sign, Volunteer, Donate

Ohio’s Senate Bill 1 directly threatens academic freedom, diversity, equity, and inclusion in our state’s public colleges and universities. While SB1 primarily targets higher education, its erosion of shared governance and labor rights undermines principles that affect all educators. A referendum campaign is now underway to put the repeal of SB1 before Ohio voters, and we need your help. The below resources are from the YSU-OEA campaign to place SB1 on the ballot. Please note that this information is intended for OEA members and staff informational purposes only.

How You Can Help

• Sign the Referendum Petition
  • Visit and sign the petition at https://tinyurl.com/4y3xv3nd.
  • If you have already signed, please encourage eligible colleagues to do so.
• Volunteer to Collect Signatures
  • Visit the campaign website for volunteer opportunities and training: https://ohsb1petition.com.
  • You may host or attend local signature-collection events, coordinate with fellow educators, or organize workplace/community drives—every signature matters.
• Donate to Support Petition Printing and Outreach
  • Contribute to offset costs of printing petitions, promotional materials, and logistics: https://actionnetwork.org/fundraising/fund-petition-printing?source=direct_link&.
  • Even small donations help ensure we have enough materials across all 88 counties.
• Stay Informed via the Campaign’s Newsletter
  • Subscribe to regular updates on progress, deadlines, and local events: https://ohsb1petition.substack.com
  • Please share the newsletter link within your network so more Ohioans stay informed and engaged.

Spread the Word

• Share these links on social media, community groups, and among colleagues.
• Forward this email to fellow OEA members about the impact.

Next Week at the General Assembly

Here is your weekly snapshot of notable legislative developments, committee hearings, and bill activity at the Ohio Statehouse. Please review the updates below and take note of key actions or opportunities to engage.

Top Legislative Priorities This Week

House Bill 96 – State Operating Budget for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027

• Status: Before Conference Committee
• Summary: The Senate passed its version of HB 96 on June 11, 2025, to which the House voted to not concur with the Senate’s changes.
  OEA Position: Interested Party

Next Steps: The HB 96 Conference Committee will convene on June 17, 2025, to begin work on crafting a final state budget. Conferees include State Senator Jerry Cirino (R-Kirkland), State Senator Brian Chavez (R-Marietta), State Senator Paula Hicks-Hudson (D-Toledo), State Representative Brian Stewart (R-Ashville), State Representative Mike Dovilla (R-Berea), and State Representative Bride Rose Sweeney (D-Westlake).

Important Committee Hearings Next Week

Ohio HB96 Conference Committee

The HB96 Conference Committee will convene on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, to begin its work on crafting a final version of the state budget. To view the Conference Committee hearings on the Ohio Channel Live, please click here.

Get Involved

Take Action:

• Please continue to send letters to your Ohio State Senators and State Representatives about the importance of fully updating and funding the fair school funding plan by using OEA’s action alert.
• Call Governor DeWine and urge him to support OEA’s position on updating and fully funding the Fair School Funding Plan and oppose the General Assembly’s proposed carryover cap and tax proposals. The Governor’s Riffe Center Office number is 614-644-4357.
• Check out Policy Matters Ohio and All in for Ohio’s Kids updated resources.
• OEA and allies are planning a rally to Fight for Fair School Funding on June 25, 2025, at the Ohio Statehouse. To RSVP for the rally, please click here.

For an archive of past Legislative Watch releases, visit the Legislative Watch archive. 

Senate Substitute Budget Bill Misses the Mark on Fair School Funding

This week, the Ohio Senate Finance Committee adopted a substitute bill to House Bill 96, the state budget bill for Fiscal Years (FY) 2026 and 2027.  The bill outlines the Senate’s first changes to the House-passed bill.  OEA believes that the Senate Substitute version of the budget fails to prioritize the 90% of students who attend public school.

On Thursday, June 5, 2025, OEA President Scott DiMauro testified on the Senate’s proposed changes before the Senate Finance Committee. You can watch the entire testimony here. A copy of the testimony outlining our positions can be read here. You may view funding simulations for districts here, and career technical simulations here. Click here, for the simulations of performance supplements.

Below are the major policy changes contained within the Substitute measure.  

School Funding 

• Reinstates the Fair School Funding Plan framework and phases in years 5 and 6 but fails to update the base cost components.
• Guarantees district funding at FY 2021 levels.
• Amends the House-passed per-pupil enrollment growth to be $225 in FY 2026 for districts whose enrollment grew by at least 5% and $250 in FY 2027 for districts whose enrollment grew by at least 3%.  
• Creates a new measure to provide districts funding based on state report card performance.  
• Under the Senate funding proposal, 146 districts would receive less money from the state next year than this year, and 180 districts would see state revenue decline between FY 2026 and FY 2027.  

School District Carryover Balances

• Raises the threshold for carryover balances from 30% to 50% before the County Budget Commission is required to reduce a school district’s property tax collections.
• Allows a school district to adopt a resolution to reserve a portion of the carryover balances for current or future permanent improvement expenses to be utilized within the next three years. These funds would not count toward the 50% threshold.  However, the funds would be used to reduce property taxes if not used within three years.  
• Under the 50% threshold, approximately 239 school districts would be impacted.
• Requires school boards to submit appropriations, revenue, and fund balance assumptions for the current fiscal year in addition to three-year projections of operational revenue and expenditures.  

Property Taxes

• Requires school boards to obtain a two-thirds vote from all members to put a tax levy on the ballot.  
• Requires that current emergency and substitute tax levies be included in calculating a school district’s 20-mill floor or a joint vocational school district’s 2-mill floor for property tax purposes. 
• Eliminates the following types of levies: replacement property tax levy, fixed-sum emergency levy, substitute levy, and combined school district income tax and fixed-sum property tax levy, generally beginning with elections held on or after Jan. 1, 2026. 
• Prohibits a school district from proposing a current expense levy if it has a general fund carryover balance of over 100%. 
• Requires current expense levy ballot language to include the percentage and dollar amount of general fund carryover balances.  
• Prohibits a school district or other education-related taxing authority from combining a renewal levy with an increase to an existing levy and making other changes. Increase the reduction amount of the standard property tax homestead exemption from $28,000 to $32,000 while increasing the income threshold from $40,000 to $42,500. It also increases the enhanced homestead exemptions for disabled veterans and surviving spouses from $56,000 to $59,000. 

School Vouchers

• Removes a provision in the House-passed bill that would have established “education savings accounts” for students who attend non-chartered public schools.  
• Expand eligibility for the Jon Peterson and Autism voucher programs by expanding eligibility to students from age 3 to 22, non-chartered private school students, and those who are home-schooled.  It also allows these services to be provided virtually.  

Other Provisions

• Retains OEA opposed language that requires a school district superintendent to assign teachers based on the “best interests of the students” and prohibits them from using seniority or continuing contract status as the primary factor in determining assignments. Specifies that the law pertaining to teacher assignments prevails over conflicting provisions of collective bargaining agreements entered into on or after the provision’s effective date.
• Reinstates OEA supported language that requires the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce (ODEW) to annually collect school district employment and vacancy data for teachers, paraprofessionals, bus drivers, providers of specialized services, principals, assistant principals, and any other positions determined by the department.
• Retains language that proposes the creation of a transportation workgroup to annually monitor and review the student transportation system and develop recommendations for changes to student transportation needs.  
• Retains language that allows evaluation to be used as a “measure of progression” in the resident educator program.

Income Tax

• Reduces Ohio state income tax to a flat rate of 2.75% starting in the tax year 2026.
• Maintains that Ohioans earning less than $26,050 pay no state income tax. 
• Reduces the marginal tax paid on income over $26,050 in tax year 2023 for those making less than $100,000 and in tax year 2026 for all taxpayers.  Taxpayers with higher incomes will begin to phase out eligibility for the joint filer credit and personal, dependent, and spousal deductions. 
• Reduces revenue to the state by $1.68 billion over the biennium.  

OEA will provide a detailed summary of the bill next week once the Ohio Senate Finance Committee accepts the omnibus amendment.

Advocates Host Townhall on the Impact of Federal Medicaid Cuts

On Tuesday, June 3, 2025, OEA members and staff joined other advocates to learn about the impact of proposed federal cuts to Medicaid in the current federal spending proposal currently before the U.S. Senate. Nearly 3 million Ohioans depend on Medicaid for health care coverage.  Hundreds of thousands of students benefit from Medicaid in Schools and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP). In collaboration with Policy Matters Ohio, participants heard from organizers and experts in state and national organizations.  See NEA’s resources on the impact of these programs by the federal proposal.

To find the recording and all the resources sent to participants of Tuesday night’s call, please click here. 

Next Week at the General Assembly

Here is your weekly snapshot of notable legislative developments, committee hearings, and bill activity at the Ohio Statehouse. Please review the updates below and take note of key actions or opportunities to engage.

Top Legislative Priorities This Week

House Bill 96 – State Operating Budget for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027

• Status: Currently pending before the Ohio Senate Finance Committee.
• Summary: The Senate adopted a Substitute version of HB 96 on Tuesday, June 3, 2025. See the above article for details.  
• OEA Position: Interested Party

Next Steps: The Ohio Senate Finance Committee heard public testimony on their substitute bill this week.  The Senate Finance Committee is expected to adopt an omnibus amendment, and the full Senate will vote to pass the budget next week.

Important Committee Hearings Next Week

Ohio Senate Finance Committee

While the Ohio Senate Finance Committee has yet to schedule hearings for the week of June 9, 2025, it is anticipated that the committee will schedule hearings focused on adopting omnibus and stand-alone amendments to their version of HB 96. To view committee hearings on the Ohio Channel Live, please click here.

Get Involved

Take Action: 

• Please continue sending letters to your Ohio Senators about the importance of fully updating and funding the Fair School Funding plan using OEA’s action alert.
• OEA and allies are planning a rally to Fight for Fair School Funding at the Ohio Statehouse on June 25, 2025. To RSVP for the rally, please click here.

For an archive of past Legislative Watch releases, visit the Legislative Watch archive. 

Election Bill Draws Broad Opposition

An election bill opposed by OEA and many other groups, drew broad opposition at its third hearing before the Senate General Government Committee. Senate Bill (SB) 153, sponsored by State Senator Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) and State Senator Andrew Brenner (R-Delaware), drew overwhelming criticism as it would create new regulations making it harder for citizens to collect signatures for statewide ballot issues, and create barriers for new or updated voter registration. Please click here to read a summary of SB 153 put together by our partners at Common Cause Ohio.

At the hearing on Tuesday, May 27, 2025, 69 individuals and organizations provided opposition testimony on the bill. By contrast, only one group—a free enterprise advocacy organization headquartered in Florida—has testified as a proponent.

OEA was one of 140 organizations to sign on to an opposition letter on the bill. You can view the letter here. 

Policy Matters Ohio to host virtual town hall on defending Medicaid, including critical school-based services like CHIP

The U.S. House recently passed a dangerous budget proposal that would cut funding for vital services to millions of Americans. The bill is now under Senate consideration and contains provisions that threaten to slash Medicaid funding, including critical school-based services that support students’ health and learning. These cuts would severely impact Ohio schools’ ability to provide Medicaid-reimbursed services like nursing care, school counseling, therapy, and psychological services.

In Ohio, more than 1 in 3 children rely on Medicaid or the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) for health coverage. In many school districts, particularly in rural and high-poverty areas, that number is significantly higher. These programs fund essential services that help students stay healthy, focused, and ready to learn.

Click here to see the percentage of students enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP by school district in Ohio: https://ccf.georgetown.edu/2025/03/17/medicaid-chip-coverage-in-ohio-school-districts-2019-2023/

We invite you to join our partners at Policy Matters Ohio for a virtual town hall focused on defending Medicaid, including protecting CHIP and preserving access to school-based health services for Ohio students.

When: Tuesday, June 3, 2025 at 7:00 PM
Where: Zoom – Register here and share with your network

Featured Panelists:

• Georgetown University Center for Children and Families
• Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
• Northern Ohioans for Budget Legislation Equality (NOBLE)
• Ohio Association of Foodbanks
• Universal Health Care Action Network of Ohio (UHCAN)

Please make time to attend and help us spread the word to fellow members, parents, and community partners. Together, we can protect Medicaid and CHIP—and ensure that every Ohio student has access to the health care they need, where they need it most.

Next Week at the General Assembly

Here is your weekly snapshot of notable legislative developments, committee hearings, and bill activity at the Ohio Statehouse. Please review the updates below and take note of key actions or opportunities to engage.

Top Legislative Priorities This Week

House Bill 96 — State Operating Budget for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027

• Status: Currently pending before the Ohio Senate Finance Committee.
• Summary: HB 96 as passed by the Ohio House creates a school funding shortfall by replacing the Fair School Funding Plan with a “Bridge Formula” and a 30% year-over-year carryover cap for local school districts.
• OEA Position: Interested Party
• Next Steps: The Ohio Senate Finance Committee heard public testimony this week and is anticipated to adopt a substitute bill on Wednesday, June 4, 2025. After adoption of the substitute bill, the Senate Finance Committee will hear public testimony on the bill through Friday, June 6, 2025.

Senate Bill 158 — Ban on Cell Phone Use in Schools

• Status: Currently pending before the Ohio House Education Committee, passed by the Ohio Senate on May 15, 2025, with a vote of 30 yeas to 2 nays.
• Summary: Requires school districts to adopt policies governing the use of cellphones during instructional day, however the bill maintains an exception to this prohibition permitting the use of cellphones for student learning or to monitor or address a health concern deemed appropriate by the school’s governing body or if included in a student’s IEP or 504 plan.
• OEA Position: Interested Party—OEA supports the ability for local school districts to make the determination on appropriate use of cell phones as passed in HB 250 from the 135^th Ohio General Assembly.
• Next Steps: The Ohio House Education Committee will hear sponsor testimony on Tuesday, June 3, 2025, from the bill’s sponsor, State Senator Jane Timken (R-Jackson Twp.).  

Important Committee Hearings Next Week

Ohio Senate Finance Committee

The Ohio Senate Finance Committee has scheduled multiple hearings for the week of June 2–6, 2025, focusing on the state operating budget (Amended Substitute House Bill 96). All hearings are set to take place in the Finance Hearing Room. To view committee hearings on the Ohio Channel Live, please click here.

Tuesday, June 3, 2025

• Time: 2:30 PM
• Agenda: Am. Sub. H.B. 96 – 9th Hearing

Wednesday, June 4, 2025

• Time: 9:00 AM
• Agenda: Am. Sub. H.B. 96 – 10th Hearing

Thursday, June 5, 2025

• Time: 9:00 AM
• Agenda: Am. Sub. H.B. 96 – 11th Hearing

Friday, June 6, 2025

• Time: 9:00 AM
• Agenda: Am. Sub. H.B. 96 – 12th Hearing

These hearings are part of the ongoing deliberations on the state operating appropriations for Fiscal Years 2026–2027. Stakeholders interested in providing testimony should refer to the committee’s guidelines and submission deadlines.

For real-time updates and to access meeting materials, please visit the Senate Finance Committee Meetings page.

Ohio House Education Committee

The Ohio House Education Committee will meet on Tuesday, June 3, 2025, at 2:15 PM in Room 121 of the Ohio Statehouse. During next week’s hearing, the committee will hear testimony on the following bills:

First Hearings (Sponsor Testimony)

• H.B. 269 (Reps. Ritter, Newman)
  Topic: Regards success sequence and character education curriculum
  Note: Possible amendment
• H.B. 294 (Reps. Mathews, T., Ritter)
  Topic: Addresses intradistrict open enrollment policies
• Sub. S.B. 158 (Sen. Timken)
  Topic: Prohibits student cell phone use in public schools

Second Hearings (Proponent/Opponent/Interested Party Testimony; Possible Vote)

• H.B. 187 (Reps. Click, Synenberg)
  Topic: Requires daily moment of silence in schools
• H.C.R. 7 (Reps. Ghanbari, Miller, J.)
  Topic: Supports American Legion Buckeye Boys State and Buckeye Girls State

Third Hearing (Possible Vote)

• H.B. 117 (Reps. Richardson, Brennan)
  Topic: Enacts The Pledge of Allegiance Act

For real-time updates and to access meeting materials, please visit the House Education Committee meetings page.

Get Involved

• Take Action: Please continue to send letters to your Ohio Senators about the importance of fully updating and funding the fair school funding plan by using OEA’s action alert.

For an archive of past Legislative Watch releases, visit the Legislative Watch archive. 

OEA Members Advocate at the Statehouse for Fair School Funding and Respect for Educators’ Voice

On Tuesday, May 20, 2025, nearly 100 OEA members and allies from across the state gathered at the Ohio Statehouse for OEA’s second Member Lobby Day of the 136th General Assembly. Educators met directly with their legislators to share firsthand stories about how decisions in Columbus impact their students, schools, and communities. The focus of the day was advocating for the full and fair implementation of the Fair School Funding Plan, opposing harmful provisions in House Bill (HB) 96, and defending Educators’ voices at the State Board of Education and State Teachers’ Retirement System Board of Trustees, and supporting the Future Educators Support Act. 

Throughout the day, members urged lawmakers to reject arbitrary budget caps, restore evidence-based funding, and ensure accountability for all institutions receiving public dollars—including private school voucher programs. Legislators heard loud and clear that educators are united in their demand for a budget that reflects the actual cost of educating every child and supports the vital role of public schools in Ohio’s communities.

OEA thanks all the members who took time to travel, speak up, and make a difference. Your voice is essential to shaping policy that puts students first and strengthens public education.

If you were unable to attend the lobby day, please consider using OEA’s virtual lobby day alert to engage your state senator and/or representative and request a meeting to discuss these critical issues. 

Other ways you can engage in OEA’s HB 96 advocacy include:

• Send a letter using OEA’s action alert
• Use Policy Matters Ohio’s local school district or legislative district fact sheets with your colleagues, friends, family and neighbors and ask them to engage your elected officials. 
• Urge your local school district to pass a school board resolution in support of the Fair School Funding Plan using All in for Ohio Kids campaign resources.

Immigration Status Reporting Bill Raises Alarms for Public Schools

On May 20, 2025, the Ohio House Government Oversight Committee held a second hearing on House Bill (HB) 42, legislation mandating public schools and other state agencies to collect and report data on individuals’ citizenship and immigration status. The bill, sponsored by State Representative Tex Fischer (R-Howland Twp.) and State Representative Josh Williams (R-Sylvania Twp.), has drawn sharp criticism from education and civil rights advocates who warn it could lead to discrimination and funding cuts for districts serving immigrant communities. 

Under HB 42, school districts would be required to gather and disclose information about students’ immigration status, which opponents argue is both unnecessary and harmful. Critics contend that the bill targets schools with large immigrant populations, potentially leading to reduced funding for already under-resourced programs. Under the Plyer decision, schools have a legal responsibility to educate all children, regardless of immigration status. HB 42 could undermine that mandate.

In response to the bill’s progression, the Honesty for Ohio Education, a nonpartisan statewide coalition in which OEA is a leading partner, has introduced a model resolution for local school boards to formally oppose HB 42. The resolution emphasizes the importance of protecting students’ rights and maintaining inclusive educational environments. Honesty for Ohio Education urges school boards across the state to adopt this resolution to send a clear message against policies that could harm vulnerable student populations.

OEA stands in solidarity with educators, families, and community leaders who oppose HB 42. We encourage members to contact their local school boards to support the adoption of the resolution against HB 42 and to reach out to their state representatives to express concerns about the bill’s potential impact on public education.

For an archive of past Legislative Watch releases, visit the Legislative Watch archive. 

Senate Education Committee Deliberation of State Budget Concludes

Last week, the Ohio Senate wrapped up its consideration of the K-12 and other education provisions of House Bill (HB) 96. The bill now returns to the full Senate Finance Committee for amendments based on testimony before and reports from standing committees. It is anticipated that the Ohio Senate will adopt a substitute bill the week of June 2, 2025, with additional amendments adopted by the committee the week of June 9. It is also anticipated that the Senate Finance Committee will report their amended version of HB 96 on either June 11 or 12, with the full Senate taking up the budget bill for final consideration on Thursday, June 12. Once passed by the Senate, the House will take up the budget for concurrence with the Senate amendments. If the House does not concur, the budget will then head to conference committee for final negotiations on the differences between the two chambers, which is anticipated to occur over the weeks of June 16 and June 23.

As such, we would like to elevate the email below sent to local leaders last week and ask that all members continue to contact their Ohio Senators and Representatives to urge their support for restoring and updating the Fair School Funding Plan and repealing the 30% carryover cap. Please use the links below to send letters, sign OEA’s petition, and find resources from partners to engage your elected officials and organize your communities.

Congressional Recess: Schedule Your Member Meetings

With Congress on recess from May 27 through June 2, now is the ideal window to meet with your U.S. Representative and Senators in your home district. In-person meetings during recess are one of the most powerful ways to make our voices heard. Here’s how to get started:

• Find your members of Congress
  • Visit www.house.gov and www.senate.gov to look up your district’s Representative and Senators.
• Request a meeting
  • Use their online “District Office” scheduling portals or call their local offices directly.
• Prepare your message
  • Oppose proposed federal cuts: Explain how rollback of Title I, IDEA, ESSA and other critical education programs would widen opportunity gaps, undermine supports for students with disabilities, and force cuts to classroom staff and school services.
  • Highlight equity impacts: Emphasize that reduced funding disproportionately harms low-income and rural communities, jeopardizing after-school programs, mental-health services, and resources for English learners.
  • Call for investment: Urge them to protect and increase federal education funding so every student has access to qualified teachers, up-to-date materials, and safe learning environments.
• Bring allies
  • Invite fellow educators, parents, or community members to join you for greater impact.
• Provide feedback
  • Use OEA’s member lobbying feedback form to let us know how the conversation with you elected officials went and what subjects you discussed. Please also indicate if your requests went unanswered using OEA’s feedback form.

Face-to-face conversations during recess show our elected officials that public education isn’t just a talking point—it’s our top priority.

As always, please contact OEA Government Relations with any questions or for additional support in engaging with your elected representatives.

In Solidarity,

OEA Government Relations

At this weekend’s Representative Assembly, OEA launched a petition to “Protect Ohio Classrooms.” You can download the flyer we used, which lays out three simple but critical actions your members can take right now to defend the Fair School Funding Plan. Please share this with your colleagues and emphasize that we need to move quickly this week to build momentum before the Ohio Senate adopts its substitute amendments on House Bill 96, the state budget bill for Fiscal Years 2026 and 2027, next week. Specifically, ask your colleagues to:

1. Sign OEA’s Petition to Protect Ohio Classrooms:
   Direct members to add their name in support of a student centered, adequate, and predictable funding formula. The petition helps demonstrate overwhelming grassroots support for fully funding our schools.
2. Email Their State Senator:
   Urgency is paramount—encourage members to use the flyer’s talking points to explain why scrapping the Fair School Funding Plan underfunds schools by $2.75 billion, caps carryover reserves at 30%, and undermines student success.

To help your leaders make these actions as powerful as possible, please direct them to these Policy Matters Ohio resources:

• District by District Impact: Compare the House passed plan versus a fully updated Fair School Funding Plan
• Legislative District Details: See how full implementation would affect their legislative district.
• Pass a Local School District Resolution: Using the All in for Ohio Kids campaign resources to urge support from your district, administrators, parents and community.

If anyone needs to confirm their state senator, they can look up who represents them here: www.ohea.org/scorecard.

Thank you for your leadership in mobilizing our members. By standing together—signing the petition, calling senators immediately, and joining us in Columbus on May 20—we will protect the resources every Ohio student deserves.

For an archive of past Legislative Watch releases, visit the Legislative Watch archive.