The FY 25-26 State Capital Budget Process:
Overview: State Capital Budget
● Every two years, the Governor and Ohio General Assembly consider a capital appropriations bill to direct funding to support for the acquisition, construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation, remodeling, renovation, enlargement, improvement, equipping, and furnishing of capital facilities
● Eligible organizations for funding under the capital budget include:
○ State institutions, through formula funding and specific grants
○ Local governments and Ohio 501(c)(3) organizations, through community project grants
● State capital appropriations are funded primarily through the issuance of state bonds, which require authorized purposes for spending
● Awards are authorized for a period of two fiscal years, and project sponsors contract with their assigned fiscal agency to have eligible expenditures covered on a reimbursement basis
Possible Legislative Timeline
Although precise timing decisions have not been definitively made, below is a potential timeline based on prior cycles.
December of 2023/January of 2024 Ohio House & Senate release forms, guidance on capital budget application submissions
January of 2024 Deadline for applications to legislator offices
January/February 2024 Legislators consider requests, develop priority lists, and submit to caucus leadership
March / April 2024 Capital Budget Bill is introduced
April / May of 2024 Capital Bill passed and signed into law
July 1, 2024 State Fiscal agents begin outreach to recipients of Capital Budget Funding
State Fiscal Agents
Several state agencies administer community capital grant projects, including:
○ Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC)
○ Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR)
○ Ohio Mental Health & Addiction Services (OMHAS)
○ Ohio Department of Agriculture (OhioAg)
○ Ohio Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD)
○ Various public university funds, such as Community Colleges through ODHE
Administration of Awards
● Each agency has their own process, based in statute and best practices, for eligible grantees to contract with the state for receipts of eligible expenditures to be reimbursed with awarded grant dollars
● Eligible grantees must complete their contract agreement prior to disbursement of any capital funding
● Upon approval of the agreement, fiscal agencies will:
○ Submit contract details, project information to State Controlling Board for approval
○ Outline process for project sponsors to submit for and receive reimbursement
○ Continue over the full term of the state contract to communicate with project
sponsors on the status and use of the project, monitor required reporting
● Awards are project-specific; project sponsors are not able to transfer capital funding to another project without action from the legislature through reappropriation
