State budget embraces inequality

The slash-and-burn assault on public institutions and the public good is not just a national phenomenon; it also applies to the state budget drafted by Matt Huffman (R-Lima), speaker of the Ohio House, and the house finance chair, Brian Stewart (R-Ashville).

Their utter disdain for the public has provoked me to revisit my mild-mannered and idealistic language for framing my devotion to democracy and commitment to public education. I fight for public schools because they serve the common good. I reject public funding of tuition vouchers and other schemes that privatize public services because they use public funds to advance private interests and profiteering.

Public institutions, voting rights and civil rights are grounded in a democratic commitment to the equal value of every human being and member of society. It recognizes that we are interconnected and that we all benefit from the well-being of our neighbors.

Self-government is anchored in the idea of equality. The term “we the people,” a centerpiece of our democracy, means all people. Public schools and public libraries are for the benefit of all. We pool our resources to fund them so they are free and open to everyone because everyone is valuable. Access to these resources should be the same whether you have or have not.

Equality is not the guiding principle for Ohio’s unaccountable legislative super-majority. The interests of their constituents do not shape their policies. Huffman may not be a billionaire like his political mentors, but his interests are similar. His state budget promotes inequality. It helps his tribe, not Ohio.

The legislature’s broken promise is especially harmful to residents of the Cleveland Heights–University Heights City School District. For the last two budget cycles, our community has endured minimal increases in state support, while our Shaker Heights and Lakewood peers received more robust state investments. This year’s budget was supposed to fix it. Instead, we may have lost our chance to ever recoup funds lost to voucher payments before 2022.

The legislative majority is willing to undermine education quality for 1.5 million public school students in favor of increased funding for private-school operators who selectively educate approximately 180,000 students.

The budget also slashes public spending on public libraries by $100 million, robbing $3.5 million from Heights Libraries. This 25-percent reduction from this civic gem’s annual budget is accompanied by a requirement to censor the books available to teens.

Additionally, funding to Ohio food banks is cut by $15 million, though the inequality advocates are happy to use $600 million of our money to subsidize a stadium that benefits a sports team’s billionaire owners and $1.24 billion to subsidize tuition payments for people who can already afford to pay for private education. 

The state budget is an unsettling report on what lawmakers care about. It’s not equality. It’s not taxpayers. It’s not children, families, the elderly, good health or quality education. It’s not a capable workforce or thoughtful decision-makers. It’s not vibrant communities and lively main streets.

I want my taxes to advance equality—the common good. I want the state budget to fund institutions and programs that reduce the extremes in our state.

In May the Ohio Senate will have a chance to amend the Huffman budget, which would cancel the final phase-in of the Fair School Funding Plan (www.fairschoolfundingplan.com/) that lawmakers promised two years ago and scrapsthe plan’s approach to addressing generations of inadequate state spending on public education.

Beware, though. The senate will not go there without a big push from us!