Click Releases Statement on State Operating Budget Proposal

COLUMBUS – State Representative Gary Click (R-Vickery) released the following statement about the state operating budget, which passed during session Wednesday. 

“While the budget is not perfect, neither is it final. The Senate will make its mark and it will return to the House before being sent to the Governor,” Click said. “I believe there should have been more deliberation of amendments prior to and during session. However, I was pleased to add my fingerprints in a number of significant ways that I know will impact my community and the entire state of Ohio.”

Click submitted the following amendments that were added into the budget package:

• Require the Ohio Department of Medicaid to access available federal funding necessary for local EMS providers in Ohio. At their current levels, they lose money on every run and that burden falls on local taxpayers. This amendment provides access to readily available federal funds so that essential services can be maintained in our rural communities without additionally burdening local tax-payers. 
• Establish the Actionable Help and New Dignity (A HAND UP) pilot program to help financially dependent Ohioans overcome the benefits cliff and enjoy the dignity of work and financial security. This is expected to help meet workforce demands by assisting people who are ready to work as they struggle to overcome the difficult demands that accompany stepping away from government assistance and engaging in a life of independence.
• Modernize the reimbursement structure of the Ohio Grain Indemnity Fund to better protect farmers in the event that a grain handler reaches insolvency as we saw with Evergreen Grain in Sandusky County. 
• Sets aside $1 million in emergency-use funds for the Department of Public Safety to assist local emergency management agencies during the 2024 total solar eclipse. The predicted massive influx of tourism is expected to place a sudden and overwhelming demand of public safety services throughout the path of totality in Ohio (See www.eclipse.ohio.gov.)  Should the need exceed $1 million, the controlling board is authorized to reimburse DPS for eclipse related expenditures.

Remove the excessive bureaucratic red-tape that has hindered Terra State Community College from operating their dormitory facility effectively and efficiently.