Officials add $657M to Ohio's rainy day fund

[TexasTowelie]

COLUMBUS -- Ohio officials are adding another nearly $657 million to the state’s rainy day fund, a move they say was made possible by lower spending and higher tax growth than expected.

The transfer of surplus dollars brings the fund’s balance to nearly $2.7 billion, far exceeding the 89 cents it held when Republican Gov. John Kasich took office in 2011.

The announcement Wednesday came just 15 months after Kasich joined GOP legislative leaders at a gloomy news conference where they announced $400 million in planned budget cuts.

Kasich, a 2016 presidential contender and detractor of President Donald Trump, predicted financial devastation at the time if Republicans in Washington were to repeal the federal health care law without protecting Medicaid expansion.

The federal Affordable Care Act ultimately was not repealed.

http://www.cantonrep.com/news/20180711/officials-add-657m-to-ohios-rainy-day-fund
(short article)

[mr_lebowski]

1. Sound like bullshit to me (nt)

[TexasTowelie]

2. While I understand the need to have some financial reserves,

the gist of the matter is that they either over-taxed the citizens and businesses in the state or they could provided more financial assistance to the less fortunate than they did. Considering how tight things were previously, I'm willing to give them a mulligan to increase those reserves. However, when you keep building the reserves like Texas has ($12B) over the years then it becomes appropriate to ask questions like "Why don't we expand Medicaid?" and "Why don't we spend more on education?"