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chuck Ingramont fifty five KR. See the talk station.
It is seven twenty eight, fifty five k c DE Talk station. A very happy Wednesday to you again listener. Lunch Mantree Brewery, Summit Park location usually starts about eleven thirty and can get there whenever you want, and I just hope to see you today. It's a great fellowship and always a pleasure to welcome back to the fifty five CARSCEN Morning Show at this time of the week, Donovan and Eil from Americans for Prosperity to comment on
the Ohio Senates GOP version of the budget. Welcome back, Donovan. Great to have you on the program.
Again, Bryan, always a pleasure to be with you.
All Right, I'm having a difficult time. I know you want to talk about the two point seventy five percent flat tax. I'm all in favor of that, I get it. But yeah, I'm sorry, I'm just frankly I've said used the words pissed off about six hundred million dollars going to the Cleveland Brown Stadium, Brook Park.
Ah.
Did you know, Donovan and Neil for Americans for Prosperity. The High Department of Commerce has said it's sitting on four point eight billion dollars in unclaimed funds. They got a pile of money there. Four point eight billion were of the things like forgotten bank accounts, rent utility deposits, and uncashed insurance policies. And apparently when the Browns ask for money, they can tap into that and pull out six hundred million dollars and hand it over to them.
Well, I think it's an interesting way, and it's a long way from where we started in this conversation, right which the original proposal was raising taxes. I oh, I'm certainly glad we're not raising.
Taxes to do to do these kinds of things.
It's a creative way. The unclaim funds is a creative way to accomplish that.
Though, well, it's better than borrowing the money and paying interest over twenty five years by issuing bonds. But fundamentally, we're giving money to a private sports organization owned by private individuals for the benefit of folks who can afford to go into a stadium and pay twelve to fifteen dollars for a beer. I'm sorry these things never work out.
And they say, well, the revenue generated from the taxes on the purchasers at the brook Park is more than out of well, we got to repay the six hundred million dollars we're giving them. I'll blow it out here.
You know what.
I'm sorry. I didn't mean to catch you off guard, Donovan, but this kind of thing rubs me obviously the wrong way. So we can get back on focus and talk about the flat income tax.
Well, and I think that's the important thing, right these big budget bills, whether it's one big beautiful bill in DC or you know, the two hundred billion dollar all spend budget here in Ohio, which, by the way, I've got some there's some silver linings there too. You know, there's a reason they say it's the look you're watching the sausage you get made, because none of these things
are beautiful or perfect. But I think there's some there's some bright spots in this budget that send a signal that there is a culture shift happening in Columbus, and I think we need to keep our eyes focused on that. And that's certainly what we're doing at AFP, is staying focused on the things that we've identified as top priorities that this budget delivers on.
Well, we had a tiered in well, we do have a tiered income tax system here in the state of Ohio. Correct, And this, this Senate proposal is in line, isn't it with the House proposal to get it down to a flat two point seventy five percent?
Well no, no, knock on our friends in the House, but they actually failed to do that.
Oh old ones, I misremembered of the ones.
No, that's all right, yeah, the Senate actually, so we launched, in fact little self promotion here afp Ohio. We launched it with Leebray Ohio a campaign back on May twentyth a couple of weeks ago, calling on the Senate to put a flat tax in the budget. We're proud to say they did and buy over the course of this biennium.
If this budget gets signed by the governors, ultimately let's get sent and signed by the governor, Ohio will have the lowest rate in the Midwest and be well on its way towards a zero percent income tax, positioning us well for that, I should say, over the next decade.
Well, and that's something that gubernatorial candidate and probably our next coverer, Governor of Vivek Ramaswami, is advocating for as well. He wants to be he wants to be the most competitive state out there.
Well, and that's a big part of the argument that we've been making. And I think a lot of our friends in the Senate, the folks who are real fiscal stewards and champions of the taxpayer, like George Lang, Senate President Rod McCauley, Tercerino, they get that right. They understand that we've got to keep making the margin if we pause that because over the last decade, Brian, by the way, over the last decade, we have cut from nine tax brackets with the top marginal rate at about five percent,
to this point where we're currently at two brackets. And as the Senate has their way, we have our way right, Ohio will be a flat income tax date a two point seventy five percent. It's a phenomenal accomplishment over the last decade. If you ask me, it's taken too long, but hey, we're here now. And and what it does is yet that's someone like a governor rama swam me up to give that mandate to the General Assembly, and over the eight years HEAs governor put Ohio at a zero percent income tax.
Well, and that certainly go a long way to making Aye a more competitive I mean, obviously, if you look at like tech in Florida, businesses flock the states with no income tax.
Yeah, and that's what in the press conference esctially the Senate President was talking about, the Finance Chair Jerry Serena was talking about. And it's not just warm weather states, right, folks. Businesses go where them where the economic climate is most favorable.
And when we think about economic development. Not to bring up the beginning of the segment necessarily, but one of the challenges we have, I believe as a state is because of our complexity, because of the amount of local governments we have, because of the tax burning we have. Compared to states like Texas, tennesse or Florida, there's a compelling nature the lawmakers are compelled to use taxpayer dollars to try to lure businesses and develop into the state.
We can change that paradigm by creating a foundation that is much more favorable the economic opportunity and prosperity. One of the key ingredients of that is having these zero percent income tax states. So when you bring your employees to Ohio, you can tell them they're going to keep all of their hard earned money that they earn nine to five Monday through Friday. It's great policy and great politics.
It is now obviously things like this get pushback. And since the House did not have that, and I apologize for misremembering that Alice build ninety six past the House in April, that this is going to be a reconciliation process that goes on between the Senate's version and the House version.
Then well, fortunately in Ohio we're not as complex and convoluted as Washington dcing. We have our own laws. But yeah, so what we've got right now is we're really on a clock. We have till probably about June twelfth, is when the Senate is expected to vote on the floor for their version of the budget. What that would do is then send it back over the House and they'll do a they'll do a what's called a concurrence vote,
and typically they vote that down. Depending on what this product is, maybe it's maybe it just makes sense to vote straight up and concur But if they fail to concur which is historically what happens, they go into a conference committee, sort of hash some details out, send the
build back out. So pretty straightforward process in that once the Senate's done it really then goes to a combined committee of the finance's finance committees in the House and Senate to kind of reconcile the process and send it to the governor.
Now, do you find faults with anything that's currently in the Senates version that you prefer the House version? Obviously the House version doesn't have the cap of two point seventy five, so there's a difference there. But are there things in the House build that aren't in the Senate bill that AFP and my listeners should know about.
Well, I think what you saw with the House budget To answer your question directly, no, based on what we're seeing right now. In fact, what it looks like the Senate has done, and this is sort of what they've done historically over the past decade or so. In fact, you'll see the House increase spending from what the executive has asked for, and the Senate often over the last several years, has come in and cut curb spending, restraint
spending from what the House is looking for. The House actually curb spending about four point one billion dollars from what Governor Dwine asked for. The Senate came in and found another one point six billion in in moneies that
just don't fit the proper role of government. And so I think what we're seeing, I think it's a combination of former Senate President Matt Huffman in leading the House Chamber and new Senate President Rob McAuley, who's a long time AFP Bucket blueprint champion, bringing his you know, restraint
to the philosophy of leading to the Senate Chamber. And we've got two legislative leaders, two legislative chambers that are really dialed in on the idea that you know, this money isn't Columbus's money, it's the people of Ohio's money, and we've got to exhibit fiscal stewardship because you know, you know, for all the reasons Conservatives exhibit fiscal stewardship, and that I think what we're seeing here, and so I think they took a good product, made it even better.
And I think our hope is sifting through it still that this is probably a very good product. Maybe you can make make some additional tweaks and modifications, but let's get this thing done and get it to the governor and deliver on a flat tax for ohilands.
Amen. It sounds like both sides are in the right are going in the right direction. In terms of those who are opposed to reducing the income tax, I'm sure they're screaming about not being able to afford what we do here in Columbus on behalf of the ohiolands. How will they deal with less revenue? Is the reduced revenue by reducing this tax satisfied by the cuts that have been offered by the House and Senate.
Yeah, that's sort of the idea, and really what we've argued. We did. We worked with the Buckeye Institute, Greg Laws and Ray Hedderman to put together a study a couple of years ago on how you get onhig of those zero percent income tax. One of the key ways you do is just don't grow government so dang fast. Right, you can grow it, just don't grow it so dang fast.
And that's what I think we're seeing in this budget where I'm historically notoriously bad at math Brian, but I think you know, the governor wanted to grow the budget by about I think eight percent over the last biennium. What the Senate comes in at is just about four and a half percent growth by anum over by anym and so when we just grow it maybe where it's necessary right where you just have inflationary policies or what have you that have caused that delivery of services to
go up. That's the kind of fiscal restraint we're asking for you that enables you to then buy down the tax and that's what we're that's what we're doing in this budget.
As far as we can tell, don On Neil, Americans for Prosperity usually end with the call of action. Is there one today and is there a website?
My listeners should go to Buckeye Blueprint dot com, flash soo s Buckeye Blueprint dot com, slash sos. There's some information in dollard there. And then we're going to be having a rally in Columbus next week to encourage lawmakers to finish the job and get this done and vote this budget over to the House. And so go there you can find out some more details and we'd love to have you join us in Columbus.
Courage my listeners to do just that. AFP Donovan and Neil pleasure having you back on today. Keep keeping us in form and reminding me of the things that happened and didn't happen, but I can't remember. Great having you on donnav. We'll talk again next week. Have a wonderful week. Meantime, always a pleasure. Take care. It's eight seven thirty eight. We're gonna talk about flag Day Steve. Steve Belzer from the Klima County Veteran Services up next. After I mentioned
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