This week the House passed House Bill 415, a bill that creates the Local Government Road Improvement Fund, to which one half of the state surplus revenue each fiscal year will be allocated. The measure would supply funds to local governments for road improvement projects. The bill would prevent this or any future General Assembly from passing legislation that decreases the amount allocated to the Local Government Improvement Fund, which must be least 1.66 percent of the General Revenue Fund. House Bill 415 also includes provisions to keep the Budget Stabilization Fund (BSF), otherwise known as the state’s “rainy day fund,” at a specific balance considered to be sufficient. Historically, surplus revenue from the General Revenue Fund has been deposited into the BSF. Beginning in fiscal year 2020, House Bill 415 would mandate that half of the surplus be moved to the Local Government Road Improvement Fund, and the other fifty percent placed in the BSF to maintain its required level (which is 8.5 percent of the General Revenue Fund). The bill now moves to the Ohio Senate for action. 3/1/2018