Ohio voters will decide on May 6 whether to approve a constitutional amendment to raise billions of dollars for local infrastructure projects.
Every decade, voters decide whether to approve Ohio’s power to issue bonds for the State Capital Improvement Program.
“This particular program has provided for 19,000 projects in all 88 counties since its inception,” News 5 Cleveland quoted state Rep. Scott Oelslager, R-North Canton, as saying.
The amendment, “To Fund Public Infrastructure Capital Improvements by Permitting the Issuance of General Obligation Bonds,” would allow the state to issue $2.5 billion in bonds over the next decade. Voters first approved the measure in 1987, and voters last renewed the program on May 6, 2014, with 65% voting in favor of it, according to the Ohio Society of Certified Public Accountants.
“The purpose of this amendment is to ensure the public health, safety, and welfare, create and preserve jobs, enhance employment opportunities, and improve the economic welfare of the people of Ohio by improving public infrastructure,” according to a joint resolution filed with the Ohio Secretary of State. “The amendment authorizes the State of Ohio to issue general obligation bonds to pay for or help local governments pay for public infrastructure capital improvements.”
Proponents say projects include roads, bridges, water supply and wastewater treatment systems, solid waste disposal facilities, and stormwater treatment facilities.
“These are projects people recognize and pay attention to,” state Sen. Brian Chavez, R-Marietta, said in a statement earlier this year. “This makes a difference in neighborhoods around the state, the places people call home and it doesn’t raise anyone’s taxes.
“This program has stood the test of time,” Chavez added. “For nearly forty years it has provided critical funding for projects while remaining solvent through the state’s excellent bond ratings.”
However, a statement against the proposal filed with the Ohio Secretary of State notes that while “the newly issued bonds will pay for projects over the next decade, it may take up to three times that long to pay them back.”
“Ohio taxpayers will be paying interest on those bonds to cover loca! government projects including roads, bridges, waste water treatment systems, water supply systems, solid waste disposal facilities and storm water and sanitary collection, storage and treatment facilities,” the opposition statement adds. “These are community-based projects from which many Ohioans may not see a direct benefit and which local governments should prioritize and pay for using locally-raised dollars.”
The vote comes amid a proposal in the Ohio House Republican version of the state budget that would use taxpayer-backed bonds to help fund a new stadium for the Cleveland Browns. The budget includes $600 million in taxpayer money to secure bonds for a new Browns stadium in the Cleveland suburb of Brook Park.
A review of political donations shows the team’s owners are spending big on Ohio lawmakers.
The team wants $1.2 billion in taxpayer money to help pay for the new domed stadium, which could cost upward of $2.4 billion and open by 2029. Apparently, some in the Buckeye State worry that consternation over the Browns’ taxpayer proposal could stymie the effort to raise money for roads.
“We do want to make sure that we let voters know that this has nothing to do with any funding for the Browns stadium,” The Columbus Dispatch quoted Scott Coleman, president of the County Engineers Association of Ohio, as saying.
Local jurisdictions said they rely on the funding from the programs, particularly as infrastructure costs increase.
“This represents a significant source of funding for the City to address aged infrastructure while facing the challenges of uncertain revenue streams and ever rising project costs,” James DeRosa, director of the Cleveland mayor’s Office of Capital Projects, previously testified to state lawmakers.
