Reps. Troy's and Oelslager's HJR 8 Passes Ohio House and Senate; Measure to Extend the $2.5 Billion State Capital Improvement Program Will Be Before the Voters In May

COLUMBUS – State Reps. Daniel Troy (D-Willowick) and Scott Oelslager (R-North Canton) today thanked their colleagues in the Ohio Senate for favorable passage of legislation they introduced November 12th. 

“As original co-sponsors of the legislation that created this very popular program, often referred to as the Issue 2 Public Works Program, we are grateful to our colleagues for favorable passage. This is too important and beneficial of a program to allow it to miss its reauthorization date. This is one of the best ideas the State of Ohio ever had, and we need to continue its positive benefits,” said Rep. Troy.

House Joint Resolution (HJR) 8, which previously passed the Ohio House on December 4th, proposes a constitutional amendment to be voted upon at the May 6, 2025 statewide election. Voter approval will continue the State Capital Improvement Program (SCIP), under the Ohio Public Works Commission, with the issuance of an additional $2.5B of general obligation bonds to fund local infrastructure capital improvements.

Since 1987, 19,000 grants and loans have been distributed for critical infrastructure benefiting all 88 Ohio counties. If renewed, the State Capital Improvement Program would create approximately 35,000 construction jobs across Ohio.

“As we are all aware, labor and material costs have increased so the $200 million a year for 10 years ($2 billion total) provided in the current expiring program doesn't cover as much as it previously did,” said Rep. Troy. “Therefore, and as a result of consultation and agreement with the Ohio Public Works Commission, this resolution will ask for $250 million per year, for a total of $2.5 billion over the 10-year period. No tax increase is involved here, as the repayment of the bonds issued will come out of existing state revenues.”

A state-local government partnership, SCIP was renewed by voters three times in 1995, 2005 and 2014. It will exhaust its current, ten-year constitutional bonding authority on July 1, 2025. The capital improvement projects funded by these bonds include: roads and bridges, wastewater treatment systems, water supply systems, solid waste disposal facilities, and storm water and sanitary collection, storage, and treatment facilities. Local governments own 212,500 road lane miles, 29,000 bridges, 4,400 public water systems, 1,000 plus wastewater treatment plants, more than 100 stormwater utilities, and countless miles of water main and sewers.

“To invest in critical infrastructure is to invest in economic development and the future of our state. It has been an honor to champion this program and I look forward to watching it continue to positively impact our communities,” said Rep. Oelslager.

Of the current ten-year authorization period, $2.3 billion has been awarded to 1,084 local governments for 4,490 projects, benefitting cities, counties, townships, and other subdivisions across the state in all 88 counties. Every $1 in funds has been matched with double to nearly triple from other sources.

On December 4th, HJR 8 overwhelmingly passed the Ohio House with 87 affirmative votes and 4 votes against. Resolutions do not require the approval of the Governor.