Ohio Fact Sheet – 2008

This information was taken from “Ohio Facts, 2008 Edition”, a publication of the Ohio Legislative Service Commission that is available for free download at their website - www.lsc.state.oh.us/

Economy/Income

• Ohio’s economy ranks 7th largest out of the 50 states, with a gross domestic product of $466.3 billion in 2007, but Ohio’s share of the U.S. economy (3.7%) has declined steadily since 1997 (when is was 4.0%) because Ohio’s economy has grown more slowly than the national economy
• Ohio’s per capita income of $38,874 is ranked 28th in the nation and is nearly 10% below the U.S. average
• Between 1995 and 2007, Ohio lost approximately 264,100 manufacturing jobs, an average annual rate of 2.8%
• Ohio’s unemployment rate was 5.6% in 2007, compared to a national average of 4.6%
• A monthly average of 336,400 Ohioans were unemployed  in 2007, up from 322,100 in 2006

Energy / Environment

• Coal provided 37.9% of Ohio’s energy in 2005, compared to a national average of 22.7%
• Ohio was the 6th largest energy user among the 50 states in 2005.
• On a per capita basis, Ohioans rank 22nd in the nation for energy use.
• Ohio’s public water system serves about 11.1 million people and has an average production rate of 1.7 billion gallons per day, resulting in an average daily water use of 153 gallons per person.
• Between 2000 and 2006, Ohio farm acreage declined from 14.8 million acres to 14.3 million acres, a decrease of 3.2%.
• In 2007, Ohioans registered move the 12 million vehicles, including 8.3 million passenger cars.
• Ohio’s 74 state parks include over 174,000 acres of land. The number of visits to Ohio state parks increased by 6.3% in 2006, to 53.6 million visits.

Education

• In 2008, 84.9% of Ohio school districts were rated in one of the top three categories (effective, excellent or excellent with distinction), up from 56.9% in 2004.
• Although no Ohio school districts were given an “academic emergency” rating in 2008, 9 continue to be rated as “academic watch”, the second lowest category.
• Ohio’s 30 academic standards include minimum proficiency rates on all 28 achievement tests as well as minimum graduation and student attendance rates.  In 2008, Ohio met 18 of the 30 standards.
• Ohio school districts are also rated on their students’ academic improvement compared to improvement standards set by the state. In 2008, 44.9% of schools exceeded these standards, 23.3% met these standards, and 31.8% fell below the established standards for student improvement.
• In 2006, Ohio ranked 17th in the nation for per pupil operating expenditures ($9,598 per student). Average spending  per pupil in rural areas is $8,367 (13% less than the state average).
• On average, Ohio school districts spend 55.7% of their budget on instruction, 19.4% on building operations, 11.7% on administration, 10.2% on pupil support and 3.0% on staff support.
• Rural school districts tend to spend a higher percentage of their budgets on building operations because this includes student transportation costs.
• Spending on Ohio school choice programs has increased from $19.7 million in 1999 to $641.3 million in 2008.
• 52.8% of Ohio high school graduates went directly on to college in 2004, slightly below the national average of 55.7%
• Between 1999 and 2009, in-state undergraduate tuition at four-year campuses increased by 96.1% (from $4,306 to $8,446). Tuition at two-year campuses increased by 47.1% over the same time period (from $2,425 to $3,566).
• 21.1% of Ohioans had at least a bachelor’s degree in 2006, compared to a national average of 24.5%

Health/Human Services

• 76% of Ohio’s Medicaid caseload is low-income families, but this group accounts for only 26% of costs. The majority of Medicaid costs (72%) are spent caring for low-income elderly and disabled residents (24% of the caseload).
• 25% of 2007 Medicaid costs were related to nursing home costs.
• 33% of Ohio households include at least one person under 18; 24% include at least one person over 65
• 45% of state child welfare spending was for the 26,500 children enrolled in Ohio’s foster care program in 2007
• In 2002 – 2004, Ohio exceeded the national average for women receiving prenatal care during the first trimester of their pregnancy (87.8% of Ohio women receive this care compared to 83.8% nationally). As in the rest of the country, African American and Hispanic women are significantly less likely to receive this care (78.8% and 78.7%, respectively, receive prenatal care in their first trimester.
• In 2002 -2004, Ohio’s overall infant mortality rate of 7.7 (number of infant deaths per 1,000 live births) was higher than the national average of 6.9. Similar to national trends, the infant mortality rate for African American babies (15.6) was more than twice that for Caucasian babies (6.3).
• In 2006, 75% of 19 – 35-month old children in Ohio received the standard series of childhood vaccinations, 2% below the national average of 77%.
• Ohio ranks 44th in the nation for breastfeeding rate, with only 59.6% of children ever breastfeeding compared to 73.8% nationally.
• In 2005, the percentage of low-birth weight babies (8.7%) and preterm births (13.3%) were both above the national averages of 8.2% and 12.8%, respectively.
• Ohio’s cumulative Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) surplus (federal money earmarked for assistance to Ohio low-income families but not spent ) was nearly $300 million in 2008, down from a high of $913 million in 2005.
• Retail liquor sales in Ohio increased by 6.5% between 2007 and 2008.
• Retail liquor sales have increased every year in Ohio since 1999, with an average annual increase of 5.9%
• In 2007, Ohio sheriffs issued 22,103 licenses to carry a concealed handgun.

Crime/Prisons

• In 2006, Ohio’s crime rate was 4,029 crimes per 100,000 residents,  8% higher than in 1986. This reflects a sharp increase between 1986 -1991 (15%), followed by a slow decline that leveled off at the current rate in 2003.
• Ohio’s 2006 crime rate was 5.8% higher than the national average of 3,808 crimes per 100,000 residents.
• In 2007, drug offense convictions were the most common, accounting for 31% of all convictions. Property offenses were second (24%) and crimes against persons (excluding sex offenses) were third (22%).
• 57.9% of drug convictions in 2007 were for drug possession.
• In 2007, 6% of convictions in Ohio were for sex offenses including rape (489), registration violations (427), unlawful sexual contact with a minor (319), gross sexual imposition (277) and sexual battery (169).
• Ohio’s prison population nearly doubled between 1988 – 1998, increasing from 24,750 to 49,000. As of July 1, 2008, a total of 50,400 individuals were incarcerated in Ohio.
• In 2006, Ohio had the 7th largest prison population in the nation.
• In 2008, Ohio’s adult prison system included 32 correctional institutions employing a total of 14,000 workers at a cost of $1.54 billion. An additional $263.5 million was spent on corrections services for youth.
• The average cost per inmate per year in an Ohio prison is $25,024.
• As of July, 2008, there are 182 death row inmates in Ohio prisons. A total of 26 prisoners have been executed in Ohio since 1999.
• On average, 1,735 youth were incarcerated in 9 Ohio juvenile corrections institutions in 2008 at an estimated cost of $236 per inmate per day.