Some Fairfield County schools see more funding boost than others

LANCASTER – Fairfield County school districts will all see an increase in state funding over the next two fiscal years, but some are faring better than others.

Under the bill signed into law last week, Fairfield Union will see the lowest increase of all the districts in the county during the two year budget span. It will see an additional $5,381, or a 0.1 percent increase during the time period.

"Well, it's quite disappointing," said Jan Broughton, superintendent of Fairfield Union Local School District. "It doesn't look as if we will see any real benefit during the the next two years.

"We are just going to continue to closely monitor our spending and staffing levels during the next two years," Broughton said.

Gov. John Kasich, who is two weeks from launching a White House bid, signed Ohio's $71 billion two-year budget last week, but not before issuing 44 line-item vetoes. He killed special payments that guaranteed wealthier schools a minimum amount of money per pupil from the state.

He also slashed $78 million meant to reimburse districts for the now-defunct tangible personal property tax, or TPP. In his explanation, Kasich wrote that the TPP cuts would only affect the 2016-17 school year, giving districts a year to adjust. The cuts will be no more than 2 percent of a district's total revenue, including state tax money and local property taxes.

In total, Kasich's actions send schools $3.5 million less in 2015-16 and $95 million less in 2016-17, compared with what Republican lawmakers had proposed.

Lancaster City Schools Superintendent Steve Wigton said the district was appreciative of what it will receive under the funding formula.

The district is expected to get and additional $1,968,784, or a 7.9 percent increase over the two year budget cycle from the state.

"However, when you add in the TPP phase out, the district will be getting increases of 3.97 percent in 2016 and 3.77 percent in 2017," Wigton said. "It's just a little bit above inflation."

Wigton said state funding could have been cuts, and some of the earlier proposals seemed to have the district either getting more money or less.

Even with the cuts, the two-year budget still allocates the most money to Ohio schools in state history, Kasich administration officials emphasized.

The vetoes are the culmination of a long, harried battle over school funding. In February, Kasich proposed a plan that would have sent less money to districts capable of raising it on their own to allow more to be diverted to those with higher need. That plan was met by a strong backlash, with critics crying socialism and arguing Kasich was punishing success.

Republicans in the Ohio House and Senate softened the blow in their versions of the budget, still phasing out TPP payments but offering districts a reprieve so none would sustain cuts during the next two years. With his veto, Kasich moved the school-funding formula closer to his original intent.

Hannah Sparling, of Gannett Ohio, contributed to this report.

cburnett@lancastereaglegazette.com

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Twitter: @CarlBurnettJr

SCHOOL BUDGET FUNDING