Mix of revenue sources proposed to fund schools

A constitutional amendment would have to be approved by voters.

By MARC KOVAC

VINDICATOR CORRESPONDENT

COLUMBUS — Ohio’s schools would be funded through a mix of tax sources — ones that historically have risen and are expected to continue to do so — under a proposal outlined by a Canton-area lawmaker Wednesday.

Republican Sen. Kirk Schuring thinks the change would provide a stable and secure funding source for schools, with designated revenue streams outlined in the state’s constitution.

“What Ohio needs is a stable and sufficient source of state funding that local districts can rely upon that will reduce the over-reliance on local property taxes,” according to written testimony he submitted to the Senate’s Finance Committee.

Schuring’s proposal comes in the form of a constitutional amendment, which would have to be approved by voters before taking effect. Before that happens, it will have to get through the standard legislative process in both chambers and be OK’d by Gov. Ted Strickland.

Under the proposal, primary, secondary and higher education would be funded through set percentages from four tax revenue streams: 72 percent from sales and use tax, 70 percent from commercial activity tax, 61.8 percent from income tax, and 25.4 percent from the kilowatt-hour tax.

Additionally, state lottery profits would continue to be used for primary and secondary education, as they are today, Schuring said. All proceeds would go into a new Education Fund, thus removing school monies from the state’s general revenue fund.

He said the setup is comparable to another put into place in the mid-1980s, when lawmakers earmarked a percentage of income tax collections to fund public libraries. Library funding has increased by 157 percent since then, and the state share of library funding now averages 70 percent.

Citing collections statistics, Schuring said income tax collections increased by more than 200 percent from 1986 to 2006, and sales taxes by more than 300 percent.

According to his testimony, “Future collections will increase the state share of funding and reduce the share from local school districts. Therefore, it will also reduce the reliance on local property taxes and the constant need to go to the ballot.”

mkovac@dixcom.com