smirking even in his official portrait.
State senators voted [Tuesday] to approve Ohio's nearly $56 billion, two-year state budget bill, a far-reaching collection of policy changes that would privatize state operations, overhaul Medicaid, limit unions, ban abortions at public hospitals and provide tax breaks on investments, income and estates.
The House voted Wednesday. Since it was a conference bill, it heads directly to Gov. John Kasich for his signature.
Once again, we see the gubernatorial class of 2010's signature dual-cut system: slash services because there's an alleged budget emergency, and give the lie to the emergency claims by slashing taxes for corporations and the wealthy because they're uniquely deserving.
Plunderbund analyzes some of the budget's major provisions, including:
Tax cuts. In 2005, Governor Taft and the GOP-led legislature introduced massive tax breaks, but delayed their implementation until future budgets. The result was a massive, growing structural deficit that Governor Strickland had to address each budget. The phony $8 billion deficit Kasich is still disingenuously claiming his budget “solves” can be attributed to the Great Recession and the habit of the Ohio GOP passing tax cuts today, with kicking the can down the road on how to pay for them into the next budget when they actually take affect.
(snip)
Turnpike privatization. The initial Kasich budget contained language that empowered Kasich’s OBM Director Tim Keen to privatize any government function. The House limited that to just the Ohio Turnpike. The conference committee, according to the Plain Dealer, limited even further mandating that the Administration cannot even solicit bids for the Turnpike until it receives further legislative approval.
As David Nir wrote a couple months back:
Some days, I get out of bed and have to think about which Republican it is I hate the most. Usually, though, I don't, because it just winds up being John Kasich.