State Rep. Debbie Phillips Votes Against Budget

COLUMBUS- Late Thursday, the Ohio House passed a budget which fails to invest in Ohio’s people, and provides tax breaks for the wealthiest while denying basic services for our communities.

 “The House proposal on Medicaid is nothing more than an empty promise. It does nothing except to say we should keep working on a plan,” said Rep. Phillips. “People in our region who are working hard to make a better life for themselves and their families deserve a real commitment to affordable healthcare, not another round of tea-party inspired rhetoric.”

 “This right-wing agenda, which gives more money to school vouchers and charters, while failing to fund our local schools, is the wrong direction for Ohio,” said Rep. Phillips. “I sincerely hope the Ohio Senate will work hard to expand Medicaid, fix the school funding formula, and invest in our communities, instead of providing sweet tax deals to the wealthiest Ohioans.”

“When business leaders make decisions about where to locate; infrastructure, the quality of local schools, and the quality of life in our communities are the biggest factors they consider. This bill further disadvantages our schools, communities, and the working poor, and takes our state further in the wrong direction. There is more work to be done, and I feel the budget was not ready for a vote.”

Main provisions in the budget:

 •         Does not expand Medicaid coverage for the working poor, leaving 275,000 people without coverage in Ohio. Instead, states that the Governor and legislature should keep working on legislation.

 •         A tax shift that forces the cost of services onto local communities, while giving more tax breaks to the wealthiest Ohioans.

 •         Many schools in our region are flat-funded or cut in the House version of the budget.

 •         Cuts to Local governments were not restored. In fact, the money from last year’s cut is used to fund the tax cuts in the budget, shifting the burden onto our local communities.