COLUMBUS — The Ohio House Finance Committee added an amendment to Senate Bill 111 that would include funding to townships in the state’s disbursement of funds from the American Rescue Plan.
According to the Ohio Townships Association, the amendment would deem all of Ohio’s townships eligible to receive the funds.
The fate of townships has been in question since the bill’s passage. In May, it was determined the township eligibility question would fall to the state.
Ohio has 1,308 townships, 15 of which are in Jefferson County, and 1,305 of them were not included in the U.S. Treasury’s list of metropolitan cities with populations of more than 50,000.
The amendment to S.B. 111 specifies that half of the state’s $422 million in ARP funding is to be distributed to non-entitlement units of local government, which includes cities, villages and townships
S.B. 111, with the amendment to include the townships, now awaits a full vote by the Ohio House of Representatives.
If the bill passes the house, the Ohio Senate will vote on concurrence to potentially send it to Gov. Mike DeWine’s desk.
The ARP funds will be distributed through the Ohio Office of Budget and Management by population.
