Despite the outcry from advocates throughout the state, the Ohio House recently passed it’s version of the biennial budget that would effectively eliminate the Ohio Housing Trust Fund – the primary source of state funding for local homelessness and affordable housing programs.

The House’s budget amendment would forfeit State oversight of the OHTF and create great uncertainty for future funding for local housing and homeless services by creating new levels of bureaucracy in each of Ohio’s 88 counties.

Now the biennial budget bill (HB 96) moves to the Ohio Senate. Please take a moment now to call and email members of the Senate Finance Committee and urge them to protect the Ohio Housing Trust Fund! We are asking the legislature to take the time necessary to understand the full implications of this unvetted proposal by removing the House’s amendment and creating a study committee to thoroughly evaluate the OHTF.

The Senate will have public testimony on the budget during the weeks of May 5 and May 12 before making their revisions and passing the budget in June. The House and Senate then have to agree on final changes before sending it to Gov. DeWine by June 30, and the governor can veto provisions he doesn’t like. So please start contacting your senators now!

In addition to your state senator (find my legislator), the key members to call and email are: Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon), Senate Finance Chair Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland); Vice Chair Brian Chavez (R-Marietta); and Sen. Susan Manchester (R-Waynesfield).

Here are some basic facts to highlight in your communications with legislators. For more specific talking points on homeless services, affordable housing development, and emergency home repair, download here.

  • The Ohio Housing Trust Fund is the primary source of state funding for local homelessness, emergency home repair, and affordable housing programs.
  • The House inserted an amendment into the state budget (HB 96) that would forfeit state oversight of the Housing Trust Fund, creating more bureaucracy and inefficiency at the county level.
  • Currently, the State administers the Ohio Housing Trust Fund to maximize resources for housing and homelessness services in all 88 counties. The House’s amendment would disrupt services and decrease overall housing resources in areas with the highest needs.
  • Overhauling the Ohio Housing Trust Fund is a drastic change that will lead to greater housing insecurity and homelessness.
  • We are asking the Senate to replace the House’s amendment with a study committee to thoroughly evaluate the OHTF and recommend improvements.

If your agency uses OHTF, be sure to explain how it helps you fight homelessness, keep seniors and Ohioans with disabilities safely housed, and expand affordable housing in their districts. If your agency receives funding from these sources, it likely includes OHTF dollars:

  • Homeless Crisis Response Program (HCRP)
  • Supportive Housing Program
  • Housing Assistance Grant Program (HAGP)
  • Community Housing Impact and Preservation Program (CHIP)
  • Housing Development Assistance Program (HDAP)
  • Resident Services Coordinator Program

See COHHIO’s OHTF web page for more information about how the Housing Trust Fund supports local homelessness, home repair, and affordable housing initiatives in communities throughout Ohio. And please contact Advocacy and Policy Coordinator Elizabeth Marti​ndale if you have any questions about contacting your member, and any updates you may have after speaking with them.

Thank you,

The COHHIO Team