CINCINNATI — Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) and hundreds of other Ohio school districts could lose millions in state funding under a proposed House bill targeting districts that are suing over the state's private school voucher program.
House Bill 671, introduced by State Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord), would place state funding in escrow for schools that file lawsuits challenging Ohio's EDChoice voucher program.
The legislation comes as districts across the state have pushed back against the voucher system through legal action with the coalition Vouchers Hurt Ohio.
"There's nothing else to it. This wasn't about how to use the public dollar or anything to that effect; it was to dissuade us because we were successful in the initial stages of this lawsuit," said Brandon Craig, CPS board president.
For CPS, the financial impact could be severe. The district could lose around $156 million in state funding if the bill becomes law, coming at a time when CPS has already been forced to shrink its operating budget.
"Tax revenue has really flattened, which was the purpose of the property tax reform, and state aid is not increasing, so it makes a difficult situation for a school district of our size," said Michael Gustin, CPS board treasurer.
Callender defended the legislation, arguing that districts are misusing taxpayer money by challenging the voucher program in court.
WATCH: Ohio lawmaker amends bill targeting districts over voucher suits, the impact it could have on Cincinnati Public Schools
"We removed school choice dollars from the same line item, the same budget portion that funds our districts as part of the fair school funding plan, as part of the deal with the fair school funding to make it so that it was predictable and transparent, and to have some of the districts take the funding that we gave them and file use it to file a lawsuit, is really a misappropriation of state funds," Callender said.
Data shows Ohio spent over $1 billion on school vouchers in fiscal year 2024-2025.
"We have exponentially increased the amount that we are supporting private education and nonpublic schools, but that does not equate to a higher performance, that doesn't equate to students knowing more, doing more, learning more," Craig said. "The vast majority of the kids in Ohio go to public schools, Districts that need to be supported."
After facing backlash, Callender said in an exclusive interview with WCPO's statehouse reporter, Morgan Trau, that he is now considering amending the bill, so districts would only lose funding equivalent to their legal fees in the lawsuit. For CPS, that would amount to about $72,000 a year.
Callender said that the bill was supposed to start a conversation about ways to save money in the districts.
"I'll ask for it to be amended so that the amount put in escrow is only the amount being spent on the lawsuit, not the entire amount the school district would get," Callender said.
Craig said even the amended version would have serious consequences.
De'Jah Gross covers education stories for WCPO. You can contact her here:
"Even if it's a smaller amount, it's still going to affect the district. We're not getting adequate funding from the state as it stands. There's nothing about this that can be lessened. It will cost people jobs," Craig said.
Danielle Elizabeth, who has children in both private and public schools, said she supports the voucher program as providing educational options for families.
"I hope that it would also push and urge the administrators in public schools to close the gap to make sure that all students are receiving the education they need for them to be successful," Elizabeth said.
However, Kate Elliott, a Pleasant Ridge Montessori parent, said she believes the focus should be on improving public schools rather than providing alternatives.
"There are underperforming schools. I'm not going to pretend that every public school is meeting every student's needs, but I don't think that the solution is to leave the public schools. The solution is to band together and fix them," Elliott said.
