As the weekend nears, nonprofits here and across the country are watching with bated breath as problematic state and federal budgets are on the cusp of passage, and with the White House eager to enact a federal funding freeze in the wake of a new Supreme Court ruling.

Earlier today, we submitted a long list of veto requests to Governor DeWine, echoing priorities to a diverse array of our members. He will be deliberating over the weekend, and we are hopeful that he will aggressively wield his pen to prioritize non-partisan issues of importance to all Ohioans rather than to sign the partisan legislation before him that will fray the social safety net and make accessing child care, healthcare, nutritious food, and more that much more difficult.

Over the weekend, we will make one more attempt to influence the deliberations of Ohio’s U.S. Senators, as they make final revisions to the federal budget. For an excellent summary of where things stand as the Senate parliamentarian has tossed out certain provisions, please read this from CBPP:

This week, the Senate Parliamentarian ruled that several provisions reported by Senate committees violated the Byrd Rule and could not be passed with a simple majority vote. Some of these provisions include the current version of the Medicaid provider tax and the reduction in the federal match (FMAP) for states that use their own state dollars to provide health care to certain immigrants. The burdensome provision requiring all families to pre-certify their children every year before applying for the Earned Income Tax Credit was struck down as well.

This does not mean that the cuts the Parliamentarian has ruled against are off the table. For example, the Parliamentarian initially said the new state match for SNAP benefits violates the Byrd rule, but then Republicans modified the provision, so it now fully complies with the rules. Senate Leader Thune has indicated that leadership is working to revise some of the problematic provisions in order to comply with the reconciliation rules and include them in the final substitute bill.

Once all of the Parliamentarian’s rulings are issued, the Republicans will finalize the Senate’s substitute reconciliation bill for floor consideration. From there, the timetable remains uncertain, but the earliest it appears the Senate can begin debate on the budget reconciliation bill is Saturday. The legislation will then head to the floor for a vote, likely this weekend or early next week.

But unexpectedly this morning, the Supreme Court handed the White House the chance to implement executive orders such as his federal funding freeze, even as they are challenged for their legality. Shortly after today’s ruling, the White House indicated it would seek to resume its attempted federal funding freeze, which would affect dozens of our members and stop the flow of considerable millions of dollars in Columbus alone.

Tough days are ahead, as we forecast at Wednesday’s State of the Sector discussion at the Columbus Metropolitan Club.

We have to come together as a community to mitigate and navigate the turbulence ahead.

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