Ohio's two-year budget was signed, sealed and delivered in the wee hours of the morning Thursday.
The $74.1 billion spending package rewrote how the state will pay for K-12 education, doled out income tax cuts totaling more than $1.6 billion and gave college athletes permission to earn money off their image.
"The new Operating Budget will assist Ohioans by investing in our communities, businesses, and economy," Gov. Mike DeWine said in a statement released at 1:50 a.m.
Still, the governor didn't love everything about the 3,300-page budget. He vetoed 14 items from the final draft, including a controversial provision to let state lawmakers hire outside counsel during the redistricting process.
Read all of DeWine's veto message below
The Ohio House and Senate can override any or all of the governor's vetoes. No word yet on whether that's something they plan to do. So, for now, here are some of the more notable items that DeWine cut from the budget:
COVID-19 fines: The governor vetoed a section of the budget that would have returned about $100,000 to businesses that were fined for violating health orders during the pandemic.
"This item sends a message that those responsible business owners are not valued as much as the few businesses who failed, sometimes repeatedly, to take steps to protect their employees and customers from the spread of this deadly disease," DeWine wrote.
Lawsuit Intervention by General Assembly: The budget gave the Senate President and Speaker of the House (both currently Republicans) permission to spend state dollars hiring attorneys to defend their positions in any redistricting lawsuit that might come up.
Supporters, like Sen. President Matt Huffman, said this gave lawmakers a seat at the negotiating table, but opponents said it was unfair interference in the redistricting process.
DeWine agreed, saying the state attorney general asked for the veto.
"The Governor and the Attorney General are empowered by the Ohio Constitution to defend and enforce the laws of Ohio," DeWine wrote. "These amendments impermissibly infringe on those responsibilities."
Medicaid rates and managed care procurement: DeWine removed a section that would have changed the way the state awards its care contracts.
"The language would require Medicaid to award contracts to certain companies without requiring that they demonstrate the ability to meet the medical needs of Ohioans," DeWine wrote.
He also eliminated another provision to codify certain Medicaid program rates in statute.
Open meetings violations: The governor removed language creating a Court of Claims procedures for open meetings law violations.
School vouchers: This was a partial veto of a section the way Ohio awards its two different kinds of EdChoice scholarships that DeWine argued would create a fairer process.
Nursing facility payments: This language would have excluded a nursing facility from quality incentive payments in fiscal years 2022 and/or 2023 if the facility was on certain lists.
Reducing CAT administration fees: The section would have reduced how much the Department of Taxation got each fiscal year to defray the costs of administering the Commercial Activity Tax.
"This item will hinder the Department of Taxation’s ability to carry out its collection and enforcement functions, which could potentially impact state revenue," DeWine wrote.
Drug reimbursement program: DeWine vetoed a section of the bill he said would have limited reimbursement from the Psychotropic Drug Reimbursement Program to county jails that already participate in the program.
"By limiting earmarked funds, this 6 item excludes jails in eight Ohio counties that primarily serve Appalachian Ohio that could benefit from the program," DeWine wrote.
This story will be updated.
Anna Staver is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.
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