Press Release: Buckeye Institute

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 4, 2016

 

Contact: Greg R. Lawson
614-224-4422
Greg@BuckeyeInstitute.org

Ohio's new capital budget is soon to be unveiled. It will likely clock in at around $2 billion with approximately $150 million of state funds set aside to fund local pet projects.

The Buckeye Institute's latest report, Watch the Pork: Focus State Dollars on Essential Government Services, explains why Ohio's General Assembly should not redistribute hard-earned taxpayer dollars to fund what amounts to localized pork. Further, every dollar spent this way is one less dollar spent on the services and infrastructure taxpayers really demand.

The state's capital budget should be primarily concerned with the "repair, reconstruction and construction of capital assets of state agencies, colleges, universities and school districts" as outlined by the Office of Budget and Management. Regrettably, in most budget cycles, hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars are often siphoned away from these statewide priorities to pay for an array of local and regional projects, such as museums, statues, and athletic facilities.

These local projects should not be funded with state funds that can be better spent providing and improving essential government services. Local recreational interests should be funded with local dollars and private support.

Report author Greg R. Lawson said, "At a time where critical infrastructure needs are emerging across the state, spending state dollars on items that should be paid for locally is not an optimal use of scarce resources. Ohio policymakers should focus on what is really needed to help the state prosper while letting local taxpayers make local decisions."

 

Founded in 1989, The Buckeye Institute is an independent research and educational institution--a think tank--whose mission is to advance free-market public policy in the states.
 

The Buckeye Institute, 88 East Broad Street, Suite 1120, Columbus ,OH 43215