Dolan chosen to lead Senate finance panel
Sen. Matt Dolan was named chairman of the powerful Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday, which has a lead role in crafting the new two-year operating budget.
The Chagrin Falls Republican is familiar with the role, having served as House Finance chairman a dozen years ago. Gov. Mike Dewine will introduce his two-year budget in mid-march, and Dolan will lead hearings and help oversee amendments sometime in late April or May, after the House approves the bill.
“Matt brings an extensive and diverse knowledge of financial matters to the Statehouse from his experiences in both the public and private sectors,” said Senate President Larry Obhof, R-medina, who made the appointment. “I value his commitment to an open and thorough review and debate of the state’s operating budget, one of the most complex and important pieces of legislation we will consider throughout this General Assembly.”
The former Senate finance chairman, Scott Oelslager, Dolan R-canton, has moved back to the Ohio House and is expected to serve as chairman of the House finance chairman.
Dolan, 54, an attorney and generally one of the more moderate members of the Senate GOP caucus, was elected to the Senate in 2016 in a district that includes a number of Cleveland suburbs.
“I appreciate the trust President Obhof has placed in me,” Dolan said. “I am very mindful of the fact that the state budget bill represents the money hardworking Ohioans send to the state. As such, our priority will always be the prudent stewardship of those dollars to deliver a balanced, fiscally responsible budget that invests in essential services.”
Dolan, whose family owns the Cleveland Indians, also is among those who have been mentioned as a possible successor to Obhof, who reaches his term limit at the end of 2020.
Dolan is likely to be among the top targets for Senate Democrats next year. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton eked out a win in his district in 2016, though Dolan outperformed Donald Trump by 10 percentage points.