2023: Derek Merrin Voted To Redirect $2 Billion From Public Schools To Pay For Private School Tuition, Including For Families Making Six Figures Whose Students Never Attended Public School To Begin With

2023: Merrin Voted For Roughly $2 Billion For School Vouchers, Including For Households Making More Than $135,000

Merrin Voted For H.B. 33, The FY 2024-25 Budget. In June 2023, Merrin voted for H.B. 33: “Establishes operating appropriations for fiscal years 2024-2025.” The bill passed 67-30. [Ohio Legislature, H.B. 33, 6/30/23]

• Associated Press: Ohio’s FY 2024-25 Budget Included Roughly $2 Billion For Universal School Vouchers. “Ohio’s new budget could include almost $3 billion in income tax cuts, funding for universal school vouchers and hundreds of other measures. […] Roughly $2 billion would be spent phasing in a universal voucher program over the next two years, providing income-based scholarships on a sliding scale for any Ohio child to attend private school, with scholarship amounts decreasing as income increases.” [Associated Press, 6/30/23]
• Ohio Capital Journal: Ohio’s FY 2024-25 Budget Increased Eligibility For “EdChoice Expansion Scholarships.” “Lawmakers expanded the Education Choice-Expansion eligibility to 450% of the poverty line last year through the state budget — creating near-universal school vouchers. This means a family of four above the $135,000 income threshold can still be eligible for at least 10% of the maximum scholarship. K-8 students can receive a $6,165 scholarship and high schoolers can receive a $8,407 scholarship in state funding under the expansion. There were 93,159 applicants for the EdChoice Expansion scholarships and 89,794 were awarded scholarships, according to ODEW data. The amount of EdChoice-Expansion scholarship payments more than tripled from fiscal year 2023 to fiscal year 2024.” [Ohio Capital Journal, 10/25/24]
• Ohio Capital Journal: The Ohio FY 2024-25 Budget Would Give Full Private School Vouchers Up To $8,407 To Families Of Four Making $135,000. “With Gov. Mike DeWine spending the day before a holiday poring over a 1,200-page document debating line-item vetos, he had a lot of input from advocacy groups as to the final education budget. […] The compromise budget included near-universal private school scholarship eligibility, in which households earning up to 450% of the federal poverty level, or $135,000 for a family of four, qualifies for a full scholarship. The scholarships amount to $6,165 for K to 8 students and $8,407 for high schoolers.” [Ohio Capital Journal, 7/4/23]
• Ohio Capital Journal: The Ohio FY-2024-25 Budget Would Give An Income-Adjusted Amount Of Private School Vouchers To Families Of Four Making More Than $135,000. “With Gov. Mike DeWine spending the day before a holiday poring over a 1,200-page document debating line-item vetos, he had a lot of input from advocacy groups as to the final education budget. […] The compromise budget included near-universal private school scholarship eligibility, in which households earning up to 450% of the federal poverty level, or $135,000 for a family of four, qualifies for a full scholarship. The scholarships amount to $6,165 for K to 8 students and $8,407 for high schoolers. But the financial help doesn’t stop there, even for those families making more than $135,000 annually. ‘Scholarships for students in families within incomes above 450% will be means-tested with scholarship amounts adjusted based on their income,’ Senate President Matt Huffman’s office said in announcing the new budget. ‘Every student in Ohio will be eligible for a scholarship worth at least 10% of the maximum scholarship regardless of income.’” [Ohio Capital Journal, 7/4/23]

Experts Found More Than Half The Students Receiving Vouchers Had Never Attended Public School

Statehouse News Bureau: “Experts Have Said More Than Half Of Students Receiving EdChoice Vouchers Have Never Attended Public School.” “School Choice Ohio said more than 143,000 students used EdChoice vouchers to attend private schools this fiscal year. Experts have said more than half of students receiving EdChoice vouchers have never attended public school.” [Statehouse News Bureau, 6/24/25]