Ohio Senate Passes Budget with $600 Million Allocation for new Browns Stadium in Brook Park

The Ohio Senate passed its $60 billion budget for the next two fiscal years following an approximately four-hour debate on Wednesday. Part of this budget includes $600 million allocated to assist the Cleveland Browns in constructing their proposed domed stadium and mixed-use development in Brook Park.

The Brook Park project proposed by the Haslam Sports Group, who owns the Browns, entails building a $2.4 billion domed stadium alongside a mixed-use development expected to cost around another billion dollars. HSG, in collaboration with their development partners, has pledged to contribute over $2 billion in private capital and is looking for public funding to cover the remaining expenses.

The Senate’s plan calls for the utilization of the state’s $3.7 billion in unclaimed funds to create a “Sports and Culture Facilities Fund.” The Browns’ $600 million “performance grant” would be paid back to the state through tax revenues generated by the stadium and mixed-use development over 16 years. 

To protect the state’s investment, GOP Senate lawmakers say the Haslam Sports Group would put $50 million into escrow that could be tapped into if revenues fall short of projections. If that $50 million is used early, the Browns have also committed to providing another $50 million through a line of credit. 

Several other options for state support for the Brook Park project have emerged in the past few months.

In his budget rollout in February, Gov. Mike DeWine introduced a plan to double the sports gaming tax in Ohio to 40%, generating between $130 million-$180 million per year for a Sports Facilities Construction and Sports Education Fund.

In April, the Ohio House passed a budget that allocates $600 million in state-backed bonds to go towards the Brook Park development. With the Senate’s plan in place, the reconciliation process now begins between the House and Senate to iron out differences in the two proposals and approve a final budget for DeWine to sign by June 30. 

Last month, Forbes reported that Jimmy Haslam is worth around $8.5 billion. While detractors say that’s why HSG should front the entire bill for Brook Park by themselves, many elected in officials says that’s exactly why the state of Ohio should be in business with them.

“Since 2016, since they (Jimmy and Dee Haslam) got to Cleveland, they have built 16 brand-new high school stadiums in the city of Cleveland,” state Sen. Tom Patton (R-Strongsville) pointed out. “Candidly, I think the Haslams have been pretty good neighbors.”

Brook Park Mayor Edward Orcutt was also in Columbus Wednesday to lobby for the plan, which has the unanimous support of Brook Park City Council.

“(I’m) just very excited about what the Senate has presented,” Orcutt told 3News in an interview. “We’re building a destination where we’ll be able to host year-round for national championships, concerts, and a lot more than what we have today.”

However, not all members of the Ohio Senate agreed with the Browns’ proposal.

“I don’t know the Haslams personally. I wish no ill on them. But they are billionaires. They have billions of dollars in their possession, and the Senate legislature shook the couch cushions looking for money from everyday Ohioans,” said Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood).

The Browns’ domed stadium plan also called for the city of Brook Park and Cuyahoga County to provide an additional $600 million in bonds to be covered by an increased admissions tax, parking tax, bed tax and rental car surcharge. However, Cuyahoga County Executive Chris Ronayne has pushed back on the proposal, calling it everything from “a risky bet” to a “boondoggle.”

Last month, the Haslam Sports Group informed Ronayne that the Browns were prepared to go forward with the project without the county’s participation. In response, Ronayne accused HSG of engaging in “greed and opportunism,” “distorting the facts,” and “attempting to bully the public and fleece County taxpayers” for their private gain. 

After the Senate rolled out its proposal last week, Ronayne called a press conference and angrily denounced the plan to give the Browns $600 million in unclaimed state funds as “piracy” and a “pocket pick.”

“They’re giving it ($600 million) away to the Haslam Sports Group — $600 million of your taxpayer dollars. They’re picking your pocket,” he said. “We see the methodology the state Senate has presented to pass through your dollars to Haslam Sports Group for the Cleveland Browns’ next stadium as really a loss of their moral compass. This budget as proposed by the state Senate is morally bankrupt.”

Ronayne is urging Gov. Mike DeWine to line-item veto the measure once the completed budget passes through both houses of the General Assembly. 

So how can the project move forward if the county is not part of the equation? 

“What we asked the county to do initially was to issue bonds — use their credit rating to issue $600 million of bonds that are largely repaid by Brook Park specific tax revenues. It was never a true $600 million ask of the county,” explained HSG Chief Operating Officer Dave Jenkins. “They have since made it very clear they’re not going to play if we go to Brook Park, which lessens the amount that Brook Park can issue in bonds themselves or through some other authority. So we are working to solve and have zeroed in on a solve for the remaining balance that otherwise could have been available if the county had issued the bonds.”

That “solve,” according to Jenkins, will be accomplished through private means. “We’re taking on more risk, so that’s where it would ultimately be.”

Senators also signed off on a 2.75% flat state income tax for all earners, which keeps the rate the same for most citizens while lowering the current rate of 3.5% for those making more than $100,000 a year. This would amount to a $1 billion tax cut for the richest 20% of Ohioans, according to estimates.

Democrats lined up to blast the plan, as well as cuts to programs like Medicaid.

“Let’s be clear: this budget is a disaster,” Ohio House Minority Leader Allison Russo said in a statement. “People need solutions that put more money in their pocket, but this budget is not built for those working families — it’s built to reward the wealthiest Ohioans, corporate special interests and far-right extremists. People deserve better.”