Rep. Antonio Says "No" to State Budget that Ignores Hard-working Ohioans While Prioritizing the Wealthiest 1%

This week in Columbus, State Representative Nickie Antonio voted “no” on House Bill 49, the state’s biennial budget. Amid a more than $1 billion financial shortfall, Ohio’s legislative Republicans passed their state budget, leaving Gov. John Kasich less than 48 hours to review it before the start of the new fiscal year.

“This budget is chock-full of the same old recycled and ill-conceived tax shifting policies that we’ve seen time after time. In fact, we’ve seen these policies proposed in the last 3 budgets from this administration,” said Rep. Nickie J. Antonio.

To shore up the state’s deteriorating financial outlook, Republican lawmakers raided numerous special funds, ended local grant programs, delayed payment of certain bills and counted on a glowing economic forecast the next two years – though Ohio spent the last 54 months trailing the nation’s job growth.

Republicans also propped up the state’s ledger by taking $35 million in local community funding used to fight opioid addiction.

“Ohio is at the epicenter of this crisis, leading the nation in opioid and heroin overdose and deaths. By shifting money away from our local communities, we will only allow those numbers to further increase. Local law enforcement cannot be expected to respond to the opioid epidemic if we take away the meager resources they have today then expect a successful outcome tomorrow,” said Representative Antonio. “I fear this measure within the budget will only create a more disastrous outcome in communities across Ohio, and taking away local government funds will ultimately result in forcing tax increases or cutting back our law enforcement during this critical time.”

Another devastating part of the budget includes the Republican initiative to lock working people out of expanded Medicaid healthcare coverage. If federal approval is granted for the Medicaid lockout, the state estimates at least 700,000 people would lose healthcare.

“Quite frankly, this budget passed by Republicans will restrict access to healthcare for veterans, single mothers, and other hard working low-income people. We know that restricting access to care has never made anyone safer, healthier or more financially stable, and it won’t start now. We cannot cut ourselves to prosperity,” said Rep. Antonio.

During the months-long budget process, House Democratic lawmakers called on Republicans to come together on economic and tax reforms that would put $200 million in real money against opioid addiction while walking back six years of tax-shifting that have seen Ohio trail the nation in job creation and shift to poverty-wage jobs. Democrats also said the state could better attract new businesses and good-paying jobs by rebuilding local communities and prioritizing education funding for every student to earn the skills they need to compete.

As this crippling budget heads to Governor Kasich’s desk for his signature by July 1, Representative Antonio is urging the governor to do what is right for Ohioans by vetoing the Medicaid expansion freeze and the shifting of Local Government Funds to the state.