Election 2022: Who is running for state treasurer in Ohio?

Anna Staver
The Columbus Dispatch
Ohio treasurer candidates 2022: Republican Robert Sprague (left) and Democrat Scott Schertzer

When Ohio goes to write its next capital budget, how much the state will pay for loans to pave roads and repair schools depend, in part, on how well the state treasurer has invested the state's $28billion-dollar portfolio.

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Ohio's treasurer also picks a member of each public retirement system board, maintains the state's credit rating and helps farmers and other business sectors offset some of their upfront costs through programs like Ag-LINK.

"There's no glory in it," University of Cincinnati political professor David Niven said. Most Ohioans don't know who the state treasurer is let alone what the job does, "but if it doesn’t work, we’ve got a crisis."

Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague

This November Republican Robert Sprague is asking voters for another four years while Democratic Marion Mayor Scott Schertzer is campaigning to unseat him.

Here's what both candidates had to say about the major issues facing the office:

Why is the treasurer's office an important part of state government?

Schertzer: "The treasurer is the watchdog of the state’s investment portfolio." But what he thinks matters most to millions of voters is the role Ohio's treasurer plays in the public pension systems.

"If you're part of one of those systems, you have lost benefits over the past 12 years while the Republicans were in control of those pension funds," Schertzer said. "People are very familiar and upset with those losses."

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He promised to appoint board members who prioritized preserving the benefits promised to "hard-working Ohioans."

Sprague: "We really believe in this theme of using the power of finance to help families."

For example, the Ag-LINK program wasn't being used the way Sprague hoped even though it provides substantial interest rate reductions on loans. (Ohio deposits money into a bank in exchange for giving farmers below market rates.)

Democrat Scott Schertzer is running for Ohio treasurer in 2022.

"It’s been in the treasurer’s office for 30 years but no one was using it because of all the red tape," he said.

Sprague's office worked to simplify the process and saw "record results" during the first half of 2022. He said the changes couldn't have come at a better time. Inflation doubled the price of diesel and tripled the price of many fertilizers.

Why are you the right person for this job?

Schertzer: "I have been the mayor of my hometown for almost 15 years now. We’re the closest to our taxpayers, our voters, our constituents. And I don't believe that kind of connection is taking place in our state government."

He's never had a visit from a state treasurer during his time as Marion mayor, and that's something he'd like to reinstate if elected. State Treasurer Mary Ellen Withrow, who Schertzer worked for, used to do this.

"There are three questions that I get asked virtually everywhere I go and one is who the treasurer is now," Schertzer said. "If I'm elected, you will see him. He will be back in your county. I won’t be a ghost like my opponent."

He also promised to use his platform to speak out in opposition to abortion restrictions, calling the proposed bans an economic development issue.

"I hear employers almost daily that they just can’t find enough qualified employees, so why are we throwing up a barrier when it comes to women’s rights?" 

Sprague: "From a personal standpoint, I have a strong finance background. We have a $28 billion portfolio, and hundreds of millions of dollars potentially moving each day on the investment side. You want somebody who understands finance."

Sprague has a master’s degree with an emphasis in finance from the University of North Carolina. He served as City Treasurer and City Auditor of Findlay. And he worked for a major accounting firm that implemented systems for Fortune 500 companies.

What programs would you change, implement or continue if elected?

Schertzer: "I want to be the point person out there promoting all our programs."

The Ohio Checkbook, for example, is "great for transparency but not enough political subdivisions are participating" and Schertzer wants to get all of Ohio's school districts and local governments enrolled.

The interactive budget tool lets voters see how their money is being spent, but "thousands do not participate in one of the most transparent programs the state has ever created."

He would lobby state lawmakers to consider a carrot rather than stick approach to getting municipalities enrolled by offering to increase local government dollars.

Sprague: He would expand his office's K-12 literacy programs to more schools, specifically Ohio State Univerity's Real Money, Real World program.

The class puts kids in a simulation where they get to choose their family composition and try to make a budget work. Sprague said his own son took the class and quickly realized the cost of owning five pets.

"They have an experience instead of just some boring lectures...," Sprague said. "This is the way that’s really effective to help kids learn."

He's also likely to continue modernizing the treasurer's office to "fit with modern banking process" such as a system that automatically "checks our investments against our criteria."

What is an accomplishment from your recent professional life?

Schertzer: "Nobody has had to go through the challenges that local governments have in the last 15 years."

From the Great Recession to the opioid crisis, cuts in state funding, and COVID-19, Schertzer said being in local government has been challenging to say the least.

"We survived it all because we made good decisions," he said.

Sprague: Fitch Ratings gave Ohio its first AAA rating in September, and Sprague said, "We need to recognize how significant this upgrade is for the state of Ohio. It's been 50 years since Ohio’s credit has received an update."

The upgrade lowers the interest on every loan the state and local governments take going forward, saving Ohio millions in the years to come.

And he's proud of the Results Ohio program that offers grants for "successful" social and public health projects. The idea is that the treasurer's office helps launch an idea but only covers the cost if verified goals are achieved.

For example, the iSee project received $1.2 million for a pilot project to create a mobile vision center that gives glasses to children in rural areas, Sprague said. "In Appalachian counties, many kids don’t get eye exams because there aren’t enough optometrists...This is us using the power of finance to help families."

Anna Staver is a reporter for the USA TODAY Network Ohio Bureau, which serves the Columbus Dispatch, Cincinnati Enquirer, Akron Beacon Journal and 18 other affiliated news organizations across Ohio.

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