Mansfield Taxpayers Pick Up the Tab as Voucher Program Redirects State School Dollars

When Mansfield City Schools asked voters last November for a combined income and property tax levy to generate about $7.8 million in new operating revenue, the answer came back decisively: no, by roughly 70% to 30%. Months later, the district closed out fiscal year 2026 with a cash balance of roughly $4.95 million — and a budget that had already been carved down by nearly $8 million in a single year.

The squeeze playing out in Mansfield is specific and measurable: state voucher spending is surging past $1 billion a year, the state's share of school funding is shrinking, and local property owners are being asked to make up the difference for a district that has already shed more than 60 teaching and support staff roles, shuttered a school, and slashed department budgets.

A Billion Dollars and Growing

Ohio spent about $960.6 million on K-12 private-school vouchers in fiscal year 2024. By fiscal year 2025, that figure hit $1.09 billion, according to a Legislative Service Commission analysis of school choice programs. State fiscal analysts project it will reach roughly $1.264 billion by fiscal year 2026-27.

The engine behind that growth is the EdChoice Expansion program, which served about 100,939 students in 2024-25 — dwarfing the 42,607 students in the traditional EdChoice program. EdChoice Expansion is now effectively open to every Ohio family. Households at or below 450% of the federal poverty level receive the maximum scholarship; those above that threshold still qualify on a sliding scale. For 2026-27, a family of four earning up to $144,675 qualifies for the full amount. Scholarship values for 2025-26 are $6,166 for grades K-8 and $8,408 for grades 9-12.

Participating private schools must accept those vouchers as full tuition for families at or below 200% of the poverty level, though parents may still owe fees for registration, materials, and similar costs.

Mansfield's Shrinking State Lifeline

State sources account for 62.9% of Mansfield City Schools' general fund revenues, with State Foundation dollars alone making up 59.4% of the fiscal year 2024 estimated general fund. That dependence makes even modest funding shifts painful.

State aid to the district was estimated at $31.76 million in fiscal year 2024, about $216,000 above the original estimate. The district's November 2024 forecast projected a small $64,076 increase in fiscal year 2025 — then a $434,253 decrease in fiscal year 2026 compared to the prior year. From there, the trajectory steepens: the same forecast projected annual state funding reductions of $942,549 for each of fiscal years 2027 through 2029.

The broader picture tracks. Statewide, the average state share of Ohio's school funding formula base cost was 43.30% in fiscal year 2024, fell to 39.33% in fiscal year 2025, and projections show it could drop to about 32% by fiscal year 2027. Ohio's Fair School Funding Plan phase-in — intended to bring the formula to full implementation — stood at just 66.67% in fiscal year 2025, up from 50% the year before.

Total state spending on primary and secondary education did rise, from $13.51 billion in fiscal year 2025 to an estimated $14.09 billion by fiscal year 2027 — a trajectory that amounts to modest annual increases. But with voucher costs claiming a growing slice of that pie, the dollars reaching districts like Mansfield are headed the other direction.

Ohio changed its voucher financing in 2022, shifting from direct deductions — $4,650 per K-8 student, $6,000 per high schooler — out of a student's home district to separate state budget lines for vouchers and public schools. The deductions are gone, but the competition for the same pool of state education dollars remains.

The Local Bill

Property-tax revenue represents 34.99% of the district's total revenue, and total local revenues account for 37.10%. The operating levy generates about $7.9 million annually. General property tax revenue has been essentially flat: $15.17 million in fiscal year 2021, $15.23 million in fiscal year 2022, $15.29 million in fiscal year 2023.

In a working-class community where the median household income sits well below that $144,675 full-voucher threshold, flat local revenue against declining state dollars means cuts — or new levies. Voters chose cuts.

What the Cuts Look Like

The district eliminated more than a dozen administrative positions and more than 60 teaching and support staff roles through attrition and a reduction in force. Tyger Digital Academy closed in July 2024, a move expected to save more than $2 million.

A district recovery-plan report went further, proposing the elimination of the entire Human Resources Department — four positions — along with Academic Services and its two positions, the Adult Education program, and five Career Technical Education teaching positions. The recovery plan called for cutting 29 certified and seven classified positions, plus additional administrative reductions. On top of that, the district imposed a $1.2 million reduction through 16% cuts across department and building budgets in 2024-25.

Who's Using the Vouchers?

Mansfield City Schools had 3,183 students according to federal education data, with district forecasts projecting enrollment declining to around 2,852 to 2,871 in coming years. Whether vouchers are contributing to that decline — and whether Mansfield families are the ones benefiting from them — is a question the available data cannot answer. The state and district do not publicly report how many Mansfield City Schools students currently use EdChoice or other vouchers, which private schools they attend, or the household income distribution of local voucher recipients.

That gap matters. A program structured to reach families earning up to $144,675 casts a wide net. Without local data, Mansfield taxpayers have no way to know whether the voucher dollars drawn from the state education budget are serving their neighbors' children or subsidizing tuition in wealthier communities.

One Bright Spot — With a Caveat

The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission has committed to fund up to 96% of eligible costs for a new elementary building in the district, with a maximum state contribution of $56.86 million. The district's required local share is about $2.37 million, which officials say can be covered from the existing facilities budget without new property taxes.

It is a significant investment. But a new building does not staff classrooms, fund career-technical programs, or restore the positions the district has already cut.

The Math Ahead

The numbers lay out the trade-off plainly. State voucher spending is on track to reach $1.264 billion by 2026-27. Mansfield's state funding is projected to fall by nearly $1 million a year starting in 2027. Property tax revenue is flat. Voters rejected the last levy by a 40-point margin.

That leaves a district already down more than 60 staff positions and $8 million in operating expenses with a dwindling cash reserve and fewer options. The question Mansfield property owners face is not abstract: as more state dollars go to vouchers, who pays for the public schools that remain — and what will be left in them?