Conclusion
Posted on 03/28/13
Previous sectionThe executive budget for fiscal years 2014-15 expands Medicaid, a huge help for communities and families. The proposal also directs more funding to schools, but this boost is complicated by how the funding is directed, by increased funding for charters, and by new voucher programs.
The Kasich administration’s budget would also provide large tax cuts for the wealthy and continues what has become a tradition of dramatically reducing funding for health and human services. The budget should instead restore safety net services for the growing number of children in Ohio living in extreme poverty. In time, Medicaid expansion will provide more jobs and benefit local economies. Right now, social services and local government need restoration. Cities across the state are addressing budget shortfalls by curtailing services, furloughing emergency personnel, privatizing public functions and hiking fees. This can hurt quality of life and property values on the local level, as well as increasing costs in ways that hurt middle- and low-income families