By Spencer Hunt
Enquirer Columbus Bureau

COLUMBUS - Republicans and Democrats joined forces in the Ohio Senate on Thursday to pass a $49.3 billion state budget that conservatives denounced as the biggest tax increase in state history.

Even as majority senators congratulated one another for passing a plan that relies on $2.5 billion from a two-year, 1 cent hike in the sales tax, Republican leaders were warned by Gov. Bob Taft's office that they may have to find hundreds of millions more.

Lower-than-expected income tax revenues that helped produce a $200 million deficit this month will spawn an even bigger deficit over the next two years.

No one will say just how big the budget hole is, at least not yet. Taft's budget office is expected to announce its estimate no later than Wednesday.

"I think the (Taft) administration is going to have some shocking numbers," said House Speaker Larry Householder, R-Glenford. "I think they're going to be bad."

Senate President Doug White agreed, just minutes after engineering a 24-9 vote on the budget that included the support of eight Democrats.

"It is going to be a major issue we're going to have to address," said White, R-Manchester. "I just have to wait and see the dollar amount."

That could mean more taxes or cuts to school, health and social service programs that many senators had hoped to avoid. Their $49.3 billion plan would spend more than either the governor or House lawmakers have proposed.

Democrats, including Sen. Mark Mallory, D-Cincinnati, keyed their support to $150 million in additional spending that would preserve state-funded health and day-care services for thousands of needy families, their children and Ohio's elderly.

Democratic senators said more work needs to be done to restore vision and podiatry services cut from the state's Medicaid program. They also pledged to push for higher business taxes when joint House-Senate budget talks begin next week.

"Let's not kid ourselves about who pays the bulk of the sales tax in Ohio," said Sen. Eric Fingerhut, D-Cleveland. "We've shifted the tax burden to individual taxpayers."

Some of Fingerhut's minority party colleagues said that's why they couldn't vote for the plan. Sen. Leigh Herington, D-Ravenna, said corporations are not paying their fair share for state government operations.

"How can I go back to the citizens of the state of Ohio and say this is a fair budget?" Herington asked.

Conservative lawmakers argued that more should have been done to cut spending.

"When the economy is weak, the last thing you should do is take money out of the private sector," said Sen. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana. "Ohio is already a high-tax state, and yet we're enacting the largest tax increase in the history of the state."

Jordan and five other GOP senators voted against the plan. Their opposition led White to open the budget talks to Democrats and their demands.

Moderate lawmakers defended the proposal, calling it balanced and fair.

"This budget is, under tough economic times, the best, most focused we could come up with," said Sen. Bill Harris, R-Ashland, chairman of the Finance Committee and sponsor of the budget bill.

Harris also responded to critics who doubt the sales tax hike will ever expire. The budget plan eliminates the 1-cent increase after June 30, 2005, but lawmakers could later vote to make it permanent.

"Most of us will be back here in two years," Harris said. "It will be up to us to decide."

The budget bill, which has now passed the House and the Senate, is expected to go to a panel of lawmakers from both chambers who will work out a compromise that can be sent to the governor. All are looking to reach a consensus by July 1, the beginning of the next fiscal year.

White said those talks may take some time, as lawmakers look to balance spending with lower taxes.

"If in fact (the deficit) is hundreds of millions, that's a problem," White said. "We'd have to analyze that internally before debate could even begin."

E-mail shunt@enquirer.com