Lawmakers overwhelmingly passed a spending bill that started as a way to make sure name, image and likeness contracts for college athletes end when their college eligibility does. But some lawmakers in both parties raised concerns that the bill had been rushed to the floor and approved late on Wednesday night.
Along with provisions related to NIL deals, House Bill 184:
- puts $40 million into a fund for first responders dealing with post-traumatic stress
- changes the formula for nursing home payments from the state
- pays publicly funded childcares based on attendance, not enrollment
- excludes educational service centers from a requirement that administrative expenses be capped at 15% of a school district's operating budget
- authorizes school districts in certain counties to contract with mass transit for transportation for high school students
- requires the commercial driver’s licenses of legal immigrants to feature the words “non-domiciled commercial driver’s license”
“These changes will ensure our state operates effectively and that the legislative intent of what was passed comes to fruition," said Sen. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland).
But lawmakers from both parties in both chambers complained about how quickly the bill was put together.
“I'm not a big fan of these Christmas tree bills," said Sen. Bill DeMora (D-Columbus). "I think too much stuff is crammed into it at late hours, and we don't get to see it all.”
Rep. Munira Abdullahi (D-Columbus) said she was concerned about "using a simple bill to move millions of dollars while Ohioans are not looking. If anyone else did it, we'd call it money laundering. But when we do it, it's a budget adjustment."
"The eleventh hour is literally when I got eyes on an amendment that then we had a rustle around to get changed up, to then not be able to see the amendment until it got voted on," said Sen. Al Cutrona (R-Canfield). "Unfortunately, I'm going to have to go ahead and vote no on this. And it's a darn shame because there's some really good policy that's in here."
Cutrona was the only senator to vote against the bill. Five Republicans voted against it in the House.
