Salvo acknowledged lack of experience as new lawmaker
State Rep. Jodi Salvo listens to Amanda Fontana speak about Senate Bill 1 at a recent town hall meeting in Dover.
State Rep. Jodi Salvo (R-Bolivar), vice chair of the House Children and Human Services Committee for the 136th General Assembly, spoke to about 70 Tuscarawas County residents during a town hall meeting Saturday, April 12, at the Dover Public Library.
The freshman representative fielded questions from constituents on her recent votes in the Ohio House, particularly regarding House Bill 96, the Republican-backed state operating budget. The bill includes $600 million in state-backed bonds to help fund a new Cleveland Browns stadium in a Cleveland suburb. Meanwhile, it proposes cuts and structural changes to food assistance programs and allocates more funding per pupil to private schools than to public schools.
HB 96 passed the Ohio House of Representatives on Wednesday, April 9, by a vote of 60-39. It now moves to the Ohio Senate for further consideration.
Among the audience members raising concerns was Jack Dooling of Dover, who questioned funding disparities between public schools and private education supported through the EdChoice scholarship program.
"The tuition that is being paid in Tuscarawas County for EdChoice is $8,408 per student. Dover’s cost per student is $9,000 and the state funds 33 percent of it," Dooling said. "Why are we funding 100 percent for EdChoice kids while we are only funding 33 percent for public school kids? When EdChoice came out, they doubled the tuition (at local Catholic schools) so they could get 100 percent funding."
Amanda Fontana, an adjunct professor at Stark State College and a member of the New Philadelphia Schools Board of Education, addressed her concerns about Senate Bill 1. The legislation, which passed in March, replaces academic freedom with state mandates, eliminates diversity, equity and inclusion programs on college campuses, restricts how faculty teach, prohibits faculty strikes, and restructures university boards of trustees.
Fontana said she had spoken with Salvo days before the vote and found the representative unfamiliar with the bill’s content.
"I took the opportunity to talk with her about it, along with several other topics," Fontana said. "We actually had a very good conversation. This is why I was so disheartened by her vote for SB 1."
Salvo voted in favor of the legislation.
"This bill doesn't stop something because that 'something' wasn’t happening in the first place," Fontana said. "What it does is create barriers to higher education and, I believe, will limit the ability of future social workers to effectively serve their communities at a time when social workers’ expertise is greatly needed in Ohio."
Salvo acknowledged her lack of experience as a newly elected lawmaker.
"As we go forward, my hope is I am going to have to rely on you all who are understanding this issue," Salvo said. "I am brand new in the legislature, so I do not understand all this. I am going to need education. You guys are going to have to help me understand how does it come down, where the disconnect is and what do we need to have for safety nets. Those kinds of issues, once I understand them, I will 100 percent commit to advocating for them."