Ohio State Building. (Photo: Megan Henry, Ohio Capital Journal).
Democratic lawmakers in the Ohio House of Representatives they are introducing several affordability bills in an attempt to lower the state’s cost of living.
The bills focus on five areas – health care, housing, child care, consumer goods and energy affordability.
“Ohio is too expensive for too many people, and it’s time for lawmakers and leaders to take action,” said Ohio Rep. Beryl Brown Piccolantonio, D-Gahanna. “For too long, politicians in Columbus have steered the economy in the wrong direction.”
Many Ohioans live paycheck to paycheck, she said.
“They try to save for hard times, but then they open an electric bill or pick up a prescription and the dollars that were supposed to go into a savings account disappear in the blink of an eye,” Piccolantonio said.
La’Quisa Richardson, a mother and foster parent, said she was struggling to make ends meet.
“More and more families and people are living paycheck to paycheck or from day to day, paying for housing and childcare that they cannot afford anything else,” she said. “If you include food and medicine, there’s not much left.”
Ohio Democrats argue that these bills do not address partisan issues.
“We have consciously selected bills that will lower the cost of living, increase affordability for Ohioans and have a proven track record of bipartisan success across the country,” said Ohio House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn, D-Cincinnati, when asked about the likelihood of passing these bills with a Republican majority in the Ohio Statehouse.
Healthcare
Ohio Rep. Anita Somani, D-Dublin, is introducing a bill that would create a reinsurance program in Ohio. Seventeen states have passed similar laws.
“The reinsurance program works like insurance for insurance companies,” she said. “So if someone developed cancer or a serious heart condition that required expensive treatment, the state would be able to step in and cover some of the cost of that catastrophic care.”
In states that have implemented a reinsurance program, health care premium prices have dropped, Somani said.
When an enrollee’s annual medical costs exceed $30,000, the State Reinsurance Program will reimburse insurers for 80% of claims up to a maximum of $250,000.
Somani proposes to finance this through two income funds. The first would add a 1% assessment fee from health insurers in Ohio, making it a fee for the insurance industry. Another approach would be to redirect federal “pass-through” funding under the Affordable Care Act to Ohio.
“The overwhelming burden of health care costs is one of the leading causes of Ohio’s affordability crisis,” said Somani, who is an OB-GYN.
Apartments
Ohio State Rep. Karen Brownlee, D-Symmes County, is introducing legislation that would provide down payment assistance for recent homebuyers in the form of a $50 million stimulus payment to the Ohio Housing Trust Fund and a $100 million Housing Development Loan Program.
“Ohio used to be a place where you could afford to pay your rent, save up, buy your first home and raise your children,” Brownlee said.
“We intend to expand the lending program statewide through a tiered structure that continues to prioritize rural communities. By doing so, we will trigger a housing boom. We will stimulate the surrounding economy.”
Nearly half of Ohio’s 1.58 million renters pay more than they can afford in rent, and Ohio has a 266,000 shortage of affordable and affordable rental units, study finds 2026 Vulnerability Report by the National Low Income Housing Coalition and the Ohio Coalition on Homelessness and Housing.
Affordable housing is estimated to cost 30% or less of a person’s gross income U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Child care
The average cost of child care in Ohio is more than $10,400 a year, an Ohio state representative said. Crystal Lett, D-Columbus.
“How can we claim to be pro-family and pro-growth when our policies push parents out of the workforce?” Lett asked.
State Rep. Ashley Bailey Bryant, D-Cincinnati, presented Ohio House Bill 804 — Child Care Tax Credit Act, which would create a refundable tax credit on qualified child care expenses for Ohioans with a child under the age of 5.
The tax credit would be $2,000 per child, with a maximum of $4,000 for two or more children.
The maximum income to qualify for the tax credit is 550% of the federal poverty line – $150,260 in annual income for a family of three or $181,500 in annual income or less for a family of four.
“This is absolutely not a radical idea,” Lett said. “When we invest in child care, we are investing in our workforce, our businesses and our economy.”
Consumer goods
Ohio State Representative Munira Abdullah from British Columbia spoke Ohio House Bill 633bill she introduced Ohio State Representative Michele Grim, D-Toledo.
“If the fee is mandatory, it is within the advertised price,” Abdullahi said. “The price you see should be the price you pay.[…]This bill does not tell companies what fees to charge. It only requires honesty and transparency. ”
Energy affordability
Ohio State Rep. Tristan Rader, D-Lakewood, talked about the energy affordability bills he is introducing.
One bill would call on the Ohio Public Utilities Commission to freeze all utility rate increases for the next 12 months, and the Ohio Public Utilities Commission another bill would augment Ohio’s gas severance tax from 2.5% to 7%.
“This will generate a credit on the bill of every Ohioan who pays $150 for utilities,” he added. Rader said. “This is a one-year credit that real Ohioans can use today.”
This will create an annual credit of $150 on the customer’s accounts, Rader said.
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