Ohio’s current budget

Governor Mike DeWine has not released a supplemental FY 2026-2027 budget proposal. He gave the state of state address in March 2025. The FY 2026-2027 budget was enacted in June 2025.

Ohio enacted its FY 2024-FY2025 budget in July 2023. The budget reported $95 billion in total spending, an increase of 9 percent over the previously enacted budget. Ohio passed major individual income tax cuts in 2025. This follows significant tax reductions in the state in 2023 and 2021.

Under the American Rescue Plan, Ohio received $5.4 billion in direct state fiscal aid and $4.4 billion in local government aid from the federal government. As of January 2025, Ohio had allocated over 75 percent of its state ARP. States must spend the funds by Dec. 31, 2026.

According to the National Association of State Budget Officers (NASBO), Ohio’s total expenditures in fiscal year FY 2025 were $93.4 billion, including general funds, other state funds, bonds, and federal funds. NASBO reported that total expenditures across all states in FY 2025 were $2.9 trillion, ranging from $5.4 billion in Wyoming to $413.8 billion in California.

According to NASBO, Ohio’s recent expenditure totals (general fund spending/total spending, including federal transfers) were:

• FY 2025: $29.4 billion/$104.7 billion
• FY 2024: $28.0 billion/$99.7 billion
• FY 2023: $24.8 billion/$93.4 billion
• FY 2022: $23.9 billion/$90.0 billion
• FY 2021: $22.9 billion/$81.2 billion
• FY 2020: $22.5 billion/$74.6 billion
• FY 2019: $22.8 billion/$71.0 billion

For more on Ohio’s budget, see

• the Ohio Office of Budget and Management,
  
• Ohio’s Interactive Budget,
  
• the Ohio Treasurer, and
  
• the Ohio Legislative Service Commission.

Ohio’s budget institutions, rules, and constraints

Ohio uses a biennial budget. The legislature must pass a balanced budget, but it can carry a deficit over into the following year. Ohio further limits spending growth with a budget rule based on the previous yearÕs spending, inflation, and population growth. The rule is binding and requires a two-thirds legislative supermajority to override it. Ohio also limits total authorized debt and debt service incurred by the state.

(Note: Some states have informal budget institutions that constrain overall spending growth or a specific expenditure’s growth.)

Overview of Ohio’s state and local expenditure and revenue sources

Each state allocates spending and taxes differently among different levels of governments, and local governments often administer programs with state funds, so combined state and local government data show a more complete picture of individual benefits and contributions when comparing states.

Per the US Census Bureau, Ohio’s combined state and local direct general expenditures were $127.8 billion in FY 2022 (the most recent year census data were available), or $10,871 per capita. (Census data exclude “business-like” activities such as utilities and transfers between state and local governments.) National per capita direct general expenditures were $12,083.

Ohio’s largest spending areas per capita were public welfare ($3,285) and elementary and secondary education ($2,447). The Census Bureau includes most Medicaid spending in public welfare but also allocates some of it to public hospitals. Per capita spending is useful for state comparisons but is an incomplete metric because it doesn’t provide any information about a state’s demographics, policy decisions, administrative procedures, or residents’ choices.

Ohio’s combined state and local general revenues were $143.2 billion in FY 2022, or $12,174 per capita. National per capita general revenues were $13,619. Ohio does not levy a corporate income tax but reports some revenue because it has a special tax on financial institutions. Ohio’s main business tax is its gross receipts tax. (Census counts gross receipts tax revenue as general sales tax revenue or selective sales tax revenue.) After federal transfers, Ohio’s largest sources of per capita revenue were charges ($1,744), such as state university tuition and highway tolls, and property taxes ($1,616).

Ohio’s economic trends

Ohio’s per capita income (per the Bureau of Economic Analysis) was $64,225 in 2024, ranking 36th among the states. It was below the national average of $72,425, but above the Great Lakes regional average of $63,458. The state’s median household income (five-year estimate) was $71,389 in 2024, ranking 39th among the states and below the national average of $80,734. Ohio’s poverty rate was 13.3 percent in 2024 (five-year estimate), above the national rate of 12.5 percent.

Although Ohio’s averages tell a story about the entire state, Ohio is composed of diverse localities. For example, the city of Youngstown’s median household income was $34,408, and its poverty rate was 37.3 percent; the city of Hudson’s median household income was $171,427, and its poverty rate was 3.7 percent.

Ohio’s unemployment rate historically tracks the national average.

Unemployment rates (like other economic indicators) often vary significantly by race and ethnicity. In Ohio, the average unemployment rate in 2024 was 3.4 percent for white residents, 8.9 percent for Black residents, and 4.6 percent for Hispanic or Latino residents.

The major industries that contributed the most to Ohio’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2024 were finance, manufacturing, professional services, government, and social services (i.e. health and education). Finance and social services contributed more to Ohio’s GDP than they did to the nation’s and region’s GDP, while professional services was less important to Ohio than it was to the nation and region in 2024.

Looking at more specific industries, among those that accounted for at least 1 percent of Ohio’s GDP in 2023, monetary authorities (e.g., banks) produced far more for the state than for the nation, contributing 6.5 percent to Ohio’s GDP and 3.3 percent to the nation’s. Other industries that overperformed in Ohio relative to national averages in 2023 were insurance carriers, management of companies, petroleum and coal manufacturing, and fabricated metal manufacturing.

Ohio’s politics

Governor Mike DeWine, a Republican, was elected in 2022 with 62 percent of the vote. The next gubernatorial election is in 2026.

Republicans control both the House of Representatives (67 Republicans to 32 Democrats) and Senate (25 Republicans to 7 Democrats), with veto-proof majorities in both houses. Control of the governor’s mansion and each house of the legislature gives Republicans a trifecta in Ohio. All Ohio House seats are on the ballot in 2026 because representatives serve two-year terms. Senators serve four-year terms; roughly half the senatorial seats are on the ballot in 2026, and the other half will be up for election in 2028.

Ohio’s demographics

As of July 2024, Ohio’s population was 11,883,304. That was up 3 percent from 2010. The state’s population growth rate was slower than than the nation’s 9.9 percent growth over the same period. The Urban Institute estimates the state’s population will increase 0.9 percent between 2010 and 2030, less than the nation’s estimated growth rate of 16 percent.

Additional resources

• The State and Local Finance Initiative’s Backgrounders explain the tax and spending issues highlighted in these briefs.
  
• The State Economic Monitor presents updated data and customized visualizations of state economic indicators.
  
• State and Local Finance Data: Exploring the Census of Governments allow users to sort, customize, and download the Census of Governments State and Local Finance series data featured in these summaries.
  
• The State Tax and Economic Review series provides quarterly reports on state tax collections and underlying economic trends in all 50 states.
  
• The Urban Institute’s State Tax Data Subscriptions provide access to up-to-date revenue data in all 50 states.