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A New Plan May Replace the $200 Million Public Transit Lost in the Ohio Budget

Rosenberger, Kasich and Obhof
KAREN KASLER
/
STATEHOUSE NEWS BUREAU

State lawmakers overrode six of Gov. John Kasich’s 47 budget vetoes. But one headline-making veto may survive – the one that stops a plan to ask the federal government to increase the tax on managed-care organizations. 

Local authorities rely on that tax to raise more than $200 million for transit. The House overrode Kasich’s veto of a plan to boost the tax, and the Senate was considering it. But Senate President Larry Obhof of Medina says there’s a deal to put more than $200 million toward counties, plus $50 million next year and up to $30 million more if state revenues stay positive.

“If they exceed expectations month after month, there would be some sort of revenue sharing between the state and the local governments, including the transit authorities.”

Kasich had said he doubted the federal government would approve the tax increase request. And Obhof says that this is a better solution than rolling the dice with the feds. 

Karen is a lifelong Ohioan who has served as news director at WCBE-FM, assignment editor/overnight anchor at WBNS-TV, and afternoon drive anchor/assignment editor in WTAM-AM in Cleveland. In addition to her daily reporting for Ohio’s public radio stations, she’s reported for NPR, the BBC, ABC Radio News and other news outlets. She hosts and produces the Statehouse News Bureau’s weekly TV show “The State of Ohio”, which airs on PBS stations statewide. She’s also a frequent guest on WOSU TV’s “Columbus on the Record”, a regular panelist on “The Sound of Ideas” on ideastream in Cleveland, appeared on the inaugural edition of “Face the State” on WBNS-TV and occasionally reports for “PBS Newshour”. She’s often called to moderate debates, including the Columbus Metropolitan Club’s Issue 3/legal marijuana debate and its pre-primary mayoral debate, and the City Club of Cleveland’s US Senate debate in 2012.