Ohio schools will receive nearly $38 million from the first distribution of casino-tax revenue.

Numbers released yesterday by the Ohio Department of Taxation showed that public-school districts and charter schools in Franklin County will get a combined $3.86 million from that pot of money, with a little more than $1 million going to Columbus City Schools.

The money is distributed on a per-pupil basis twice per year. This is the first distribution to schools since casinos opened last year, but it does not include a full six months of revenue, because the Hollywood Casino in Columbus did not open until Oct. 18 and Cincinnati’s facility won’t open until March.

The formula works out to $20.93 for each of the 1,815,517 students in Ohio’s public and charter schools. Private schools do not get money from the fund. The money comes from taxes levied on the three operating casinos in the state.

The Department of Taxation also released quarterly distribution figures for casino money earmarked for counties and “host cities,” including about $2.2 million for the city of Columbus.

An Ohio constitutional amendment that cleared the way for casino gambling requires that schools receive 34 percent of the revenue, with 51 percent going to county government and cities. Five percent more goes to casino “host” cities, 3 percent to the Ohio Casino Control Commission fund, 3 percent to the Ohio State Racing Commission Fund, 2 percent to the Law Enforcement Training Fund, and 2 percent to the Problem Casino Gambling and Addictions Fund at the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addictions Services.

The city of Columbus’ share includes $861,734 as a host city. Cleveland will get a total of $2.5 million, and Toledo $1.2 million.

Columbus City Schools spokesman Jeff Warner said, “It’s important to keep in mind that our general-fund budget is approximately $790 million. While we’re grateful for any additional revenue, when you consider that we’re also getting ready to cut $25 million, $1 million is not going to make a significant impact. It’s definitely additional money that we appreciate and need greatly.”

Columbus Auditor Hugh Dorrian said the casino revenue is in line with his projections and gives a first glimpse of how much money the city can anticipate annually.

“If you do the math on the $2.2 million, that means nearly $9 million this year, and once Cincinnati comes online, that number will go higher,” Dorrian said. “I had projected (about $10.2) million this year, so that seems about right.”

A little less than half of that projected $10 million will go toward the public purchase of Nationwide Arena, paying off some of the $15 million spent to remediate the land and roads around the casino, and funding development on the West Side.

Dorrian projects about $5.5 million will be left over and rolled into the city’s general fund to help backfill state cuts to local-government funding.

Detailed charts on money for schools, counties and cities are available at the Ohio Department of Taxation section on casino tax revenue, www.tax.ohio.gov/government/Casino.aspx.

Dispatch reporters Jennifer Smith Richards and Lucas Sullivan contributed to this story.

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