DeWine wants millions of more tax dollars for Ohio prisons re-entry support

CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) -On Tuesday, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine traveled to the Dayton Correctional Institute to highlight the millions of more dollars he asked for in the 2024-2025 state budget for rehabilitation programs.

The funding request to run the entire Ohio Department of Corrections for FY 2024 is $2.3 billion, an increase of 7.9% from 2023.

The area seeing the largest percent increase is labeled “institution education services,” that would see a 24.7% increase in 2024 and another 11% in 2025.

In 2024, the request is for $46 million in spending for educational services and in 2025 another $51 million.

In a news release from the DeWine’s office, the money will teach skills needed to support current workforce demand in the state.

Along with Lt. Gov. John Husted, the pair also introduced a new initiative to give inmates who have severed their time the opportunity to play what is being called a, “key role in building the infrastructure necessary for broadband expansion and 5G deployment across the state.”

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