Ohio has $1 million reserved for solar eclipse safety costs, with millions more available

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- Thousands of people will be traveling to Ohio for the solar eclipse, and the state has set aside money in anticipation.  

Last July, Gov. Mike DeWine signed the state’s multi-billion-dollar budget with a $1 million allocation of taxpayer dollars for eclipse safety cost reimbursements. State officials said they are expecting more than a half million people to travel to Ohio to see the eclipse, and Rep. Gary Click (R-Vickery) said it's going to strain the state's resources.

“This literally is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” Click said.

Click advocated for solar eclipse safety money in the budget. But he said agencies were anticipating a bigger price tag.

“When I talked to DPS, I talked to some folks in the EMA, they actually thought we needed 10 million,” he said. Click said not everyone was on board with that dollar amount.

Now, with $1 million secured in the budget, the rest is now up to the state controlling board, which is authorized to approve and reimburse more funds. Budget experts said the money the controlling board uses will likely come from the state’s emergency purposes fund.

That emergency fund is typically used for things like disaster relief, instances the East Palestine train derailment, or paying the Ohio National Guard when its services are needed.

“Ultimately, we got the 10 million, we just got it shaped a little differently,” Click said. “We have the money, and we have the authorization to spend more as necessary.”

Click said the money will be used for things like extra law enforcement, traffic control and overtime pay. But he said there are other things being done to prepare that people may not think of.

“We’re going to have to put up extra cell towers because the number of people coming in is going to be an overburden to the cell towers,” Click said. “We have to prepare for Life Flight services in case there are any medical emergencies because the roads are going to be jam-packed.”

The Department of Public Safety said reimbursements for solar eclipse safety planning will be coordinated through county EMAs. DeWine has also signed an executive order to ensure all agencies are ready to utilize their personnel.