House Members To Spend Summer Getting Schooled On Funding Formula
Gongwer 6/20/12
The House is expected to begin regional hearings on the creation of a new school funding formula within the next few weeks, but the administration says it will be responsible for the end proposal.
A tentative schedule of public hearings for the House Finance & Appropriations: Primary & Secondary Education Subcommittee had planned to start meetings as early as next week. However, the work could be pushed back to July, Chairman Rep. Ron Amstutz's office said.
About half a dozen hearings around the state are expected during July and August as lawmakers seek a constitutional method of funding public schools. The Ohio Supreme Court decided more than a decade ago that the state's formula violated the constitution, in part because it relied too heavily on local taxes that create a disparity among communities.
The House Finance Committee held a series of hearings in the spring on the way the state currently funds schools in preparation for the regional meetings. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, May 2, 2012) The briefings delved into the multiple attempts to create a constitutional system since the court ruling, including the Building Blocks and Evidence-Based Model approaches.
House Speaker Bill Batchelder (R-Medina) said the House's hearings are in preparation for what the governor's office is expected to produce and is not an indication of dissatisfaction with the work the administration has done thus far.
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