Ohio is sitting on millions of dollars in unspent rental assistance it received in late 2020, but a department tasked with distributing it says the money will be fully utilized soon.

Why it matters: This is a use-it-or-lose-it federal relief program, so Ohio's share could be forfeited if not allocated by Sept. 30.

State of play: Ohio received more than half a billion dollars in the first round of Emergency Rental Assistance funding given to states and local governments at the height of the pandemic.

• This funding helped Americans stave off evictions by paying for delinquent rent, late fees and internet.

Yes, but: Ohio has been slow to distribute these funds as social service groups faced red tape and staffing shortages.

• Some organizations also chose to spend local governments' portions before the state's, Phil Cole, executive director of the Ohio Association of Community Agencies, told the Columbus Dispatch in March.
• Just 59% of Ohio's initial funding was spent as of Aug. 12, one of the lowest percentages in the U.S., according to data from the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC).

What they're saying: Todd Walker, the chief communications officer for the Ohio Department of Development, tells Axios this percentage is actually much higher as NLIHC's figure doesn't include more recent spending from over the summer.

• Walker says the state intends to spend its full share before the federal deadline.

Of note: A second round of funding provides an additional $496 million to Ohio, but its deadline is in 2025.

• Separately, Columbus and Franklin County received around $27 million and $13 million in initial housing assistance funding, respectively.
• Columbus spent its share to serve over 11,000 households since the spring of 2021, City Council deputy communications director Nya Hairston tells Axios.

🍴 Feast from over 50 vendors during the Columbus Food Truck Festival at the Franklin County Fairgrounds in Hilliard.

• 4-11pm tonight, 11am-11pm Saturday, noon-7pm Sunday. $5 daily or $10 weekend pass.

⚾ Watch an interstate rivalry as the Clippers play the Mud Hens at Huntington Park. Promotions include meet-and-greets with Spider-Man and Kate Flannery, otherwise known as Meredith from "The Office."

• 7:05pm tonight and Saturday (with fireworks!), 4:05pm Sunday. $8-21.

🕵️ Explore the seedy side of history at Crime & Corruption at Ohio Village, with family-friendly activities linked to our state's criminal past.

• 10am-5pm Saturday, Sunday. $7-13. Kids 3 and under free!

🎉 Kick off a new tradition with CBUS Soul Fest, a celebration of Black culture, music and history at Bicentennial Park.

• 11am-11pm Saturday. Free!

🛍️ Search for timeless treasures at Ohio Vintage Fest, featuring over 100 vendors at the Ohio Expo Center.

• Noon-6pm Saturday. $5, plus $5 parking. Kids under 12 free!

The Big Ten Conference inked a new media deal with a trio of TV networks starting next summer, Axios' Tim Baysinger and Sara Fischer write.

Why it matters: The deal positions the soon-to-be-expanded Big Ten to compete with the powerhouse Southeastern Conference for America's top collegiate conference from coast to coast.

👀 Eye-popping stat: The Big Ten becomes the first conference to eclipse the $1 billion mark in annual media rights revenue, a major windfall for member schools like Ohio State.

Details: The conference will have three national football game windows on Saturdays starting in 2024 — early afternoon on Fox, late afternoon on CBS and prime time on NBC.

🏫 The Columbus City School Board and teachers union failed to reach an agreement on a new contract Thursday. The union will meet 6:30pm Sunday to vote and could possibly strike Monday morning. (Columbus Dispatch)

🏈 Browns QB Deshaun Watson will serve an 11-game suspension following more than a dozen accusations of sexual abuse. (Axios)

💰 The board that governs Ohio's teacher pension fund approved $9.66 million in bonus pay for staff yesterday despite objections from retirees and $3 billion in investment losses. (Columbus Dispatch)

💊 A federal judge ordered CVS, Walgreens and Walmart to pay $650 million to two northern Ohio counties for causing severe harm via opioid distribution. (Axios)

🏛 State Sen. Matt Dolan, a suburban Cleveland Republican, reintroduced a bill to curb gun violence that his party rejected during a previous legislative term. (WEWS-TV)

💼 See who’s hiring around the city.

1. Talent Development Manager at Central Insurance.
2. Marketing Coordinator- Employer Branding at CareRev.
3. Digital Marketing / MarTech Sales Origination Lead, Midwest Region at Avanade.

Want more opportunities? Check out our Job Board.

Hiring? Post a job.

👋 Tyler here. In journalism, we try to tell important stories that inform readers and change communities.

• But sometimes, you uncover a century-old tale about a transient who accidentally became mayor of a small village — which later launched an annual festival to celebrate that history.

Driving the news: The Alonzo Weed Festival returns tomorrow in the Southeast Ohio village of Amesville (population 168).

Flashback: Weed, a diminutive, alcoholic wanderer, rolled into town in 1903 and was elected mayor in a joke-gone-too-far plot.

• News of the famous, 4-foot-tall "hobo mayor" spread in newspapers across North America.
• Townsfolk found his leadership less than amusing and unsuccessfully petitioned the governor to remove him from office.
• Weed later left Amesville on his own and drifted across the country, getting repeatedly tossed in jail for public intoxication along the way.

Worthy of your time: I wrote a series of stories about the saga for The Athens Messenger.

The intrigue: Local officials who'd never heard of the controversial mayor before we published our stories wound up embracing Weed far more than his contemporaries did.

• The inaugural festival in 2019 even featured a lookalike contest, with one young child wearing a ragged suit jacket and top hat.

What's next: I have plans to someday write an Alonzo Weed book.

• Here's to the Amesville festival continuing for many years to come.