Governor says aid for Ohio renters, businesses coming soon

COLUMBUS (AP) — People struggling to pay rent, along with small businesses and nonprofits hurt by the pandemic and the weak economy, could have details by next week on an aid package to help them, Republican Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine said Tuesday.

DeWine acknowledged that people and businesses may need more help than the state can provide from its share of federal aid dollars. The length of the economic downturn created by efforts to slow the spread of the coronavirus is also unclear, the governor said.

He called it a “mental health issue” for those with months of unpaid rent agonizing over how they’ll make payments.

“We’re battling back, we’re doing things, but we still have a lot of people hurting and we need to give them some relief,” DeWine said.

Ohio must balance the use of the federal pandemic aid dollars for such assistance while reserving money for testing, and some of the state’s approach depends on whether Congress will pass another aid package, the governor said.

But even as he was making those comments, President Donald Trump announced he was ending talks with congressional Democrats over another stimulus package and that no additional aid would be negotiated until after the election.

Ohio brought in $8.7 million more than expected last month, or just 0.5% above what it anticipated, with sales tax from car purchases making up for drops in other tax revenue. The state’s commercial activities tax on businesses was above what was anticipated but remains down for the business year beginning July 1, the state Office of Budget and Management reported Tuesday.