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March 2009
Strahorn sworn in as state senator
Democrat Fred Strahorn returned to the Ohio General Assembly on Tuesday, March 31, when he was sworn into office as a state senator. Strahorn, who served eight years in the Ohio House, replaces Tom Roberts who left in February to accept an appointment to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission.
Strahorn will fill the remainder of Roberts term, which runs through 2010.
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TweetLottery director gives 100 free tickets to trooper
Ohio Lottery Director Michael A. Dolan avoided a traffic ticket on I-71 and expressed his gratitude by sending 100 promotional lottery tickets to the trooper.
Trooper James M. Baker stopped Dolan on Jan. 26 on I-71 near Mansfield. Dolan, who was appointed lottery director by Gov. Ted Strickland in January 2007, told Baker that he was on his way to the governor’s residence in Columbus.
Baker issued Dolan a verbal warning for the violation and for not wearing his seatbelt.
Two days later, Baker received a thank you note from Dolan and the promotional tickets, which would have won $60. Baker reported it to his supervisor and a short while later the governor’s office referred the matter to state Inspector General Tom Charles.
Charles issued a 16-page report on Tuesday, March 31, that said Dolan’s actions were wrong and showed a lack of judgment.
“Regardless of Dolan’s intent, his actions give the perception of an attempt to influence a public official with gifts or gratuities,” the report said.
Dolan told the inspector general that he had given promotional tickets to police, prosecutors, and other local and state government officials as a way to market the lottery. In addition to promotional tickets, instant lottery tickets were also given away. The report said the lottery commission gave away 55,711 instant tickets for marketing between Jan. 8, 2007 and Feb. 9, 2009.
Charles criticized the lottery’s practice of sending promotional tickets to public officials as a means of marketing and recommended a new policy that would ban promotional items being given to law enforcement personnel, legislators, state vendors or public officials with decision making authority over lottery issues.
Strickland said he expressed his disappointment to Dolan and canceled the distribution of all lottery tickets for promotional or marketing purposes until new policies are implemented.
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TweetTransportation budget vote delayed
- Related: Budget plan includes raising speed limit for trucks
- Politicians split budget spoils
Supported by a 75-21 margin a proposal on the Nov. 3 ballot to give those who served in the armed forces during recent wars a bonus of up to $1,000.
Approved 64-29 percent Strickland’s plan to resume passenger train service between Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Dayton.
A vote on the state’s $9.6 billion transportation budget apparently will be delayed for at least a day while lawmakers try to add a provision that would immediately make it possible to use federal stimulus money to help pay for health insurance for some unemployed workers.
The vote on the budget had been scheduled for today after a House-Senate conference committee on Monday, March 30, gave unanimous approval to the two-year budget. The version the conference committee approved, however, lacked an emergency clause for the health insurance provision.
It takes 66 votes in the House to approve an emergency clause and Republicans said on Monday they didn’t have the 13 votes they would need to contribute. Democrats control the House 53-46.
Today, however, Republicans approached majority Democrats and said they wanted to come up with the votes, said Keary McCarthy, spokesman for House Speaker Armond Budish, D-Beachwood.
The conference committee now is scheduled to reconvene at 12:35 p.m. on Wednesday, April 1.
The insurance provision would save an average worker $750 a month for individual coverage and $2,063 a month for family coverage over the three-month period they would not otherwise have received the federal subsidy, according to the Ohio Department of Insurance.
The federal stimulus money would provide a 65 percent subsidy for the coverage.
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TweetMound money headed region’s way
The former Mound Department of Energy site will receive $20 million from the economic stimulus bill that passed earlier this year, Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said Tuesday.
The money is aimed at completing the cleanup project, creating 40 jobs in the region and attracting clients for the technology, science and business park.
“The funds will finish the cleanup, but more importantly, they will complete Mound’s transition to a world-class business park,” Brown said. “This park can now compete to bring the most innovative and technologically advanced businesses to the Miami Valley. This cleanup investment is great news for Ohio.”
U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville and former U.S. Rep. David Hobson, R-Springfield, have garnered some $35 million for cleanup of the site thus far.
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TweetDayton writer’s book now potential bedtime story for Sasha and Malia
At the end of a White House ceremony signing Monday, March 30, Amanda Wright Lane, the great-grand niece of Wilbur and Orville Wright, navigated her way through the crowds and handed a book to President Obama.
The book: “Wee and the Wright Brothers,” a picture book by Timothy R. Gaffney, a former Dayton Daily News reporter.
Wright Lane attended the ceremony because the parks bill Obama signed added Hawthorn Hill and the Wright Company airplane factory to the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park.
She said she gave the book to Obama for his daughters, Sasha and Malia.
“Wee and the Wright brothers” tells the story of a curious mouse who lived in the Wright brothers’ bicycle shop and sneaked aboard the Wright Flyer to share Orville’s first powered flight in Kitty Hawk, North Carolina.
Gaffney, of Miamisburg, is the author of 13 books for children and adults.
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TweetRyan for Lt. Governor?
U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan, D-Niles, who was earlier thought to be a possible Democratic successor for retiring Sen. George Voinovich, might be interested in a different job instead.
The Washington Post reports that Ryan, 35, is interested in running for lieutenant governor in 2010. They cite unnamed sources saying he will make an announcement at the end of this week.
The current lieutenant governor, Lee Fisher, is running to succeed Voinovich in 2010, at the end of his term.
Ryan spokesman Brad Bauman told newspapers that Ryan “is certainly honored just to be mentioned.”
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TweetGreene takes his ballot battle to Ohio Supreme Court
Attorney James R. Greene III appealed to the Ohio Supreme Court on Monday, March 30, to try to get his name on the May 5 primary ballot for the Dayton mayor’s race.
Greene asked the Ohio Supreme Court for emergency relief and to hear oral arguments in his case against the Montgomery County Board of Elections.
The elections board invalidated more than 200 signatures on Greene’s nominating petitions, leaving him short of the 500 required to qualify for the ballot. Greene filed suit, contending that the elections board violated the Dayton City Charter. After losing before the 2nd District Court of Appeals, Greene is taking it to the supreme court.
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TweetWright Brothers’ great-grandniece at White House for bill signing
Amanda Wright Lane spent two years arguing that the national park devoted to her great-grand uncles Wilbur and Orville needed two more sites to fully tell their story.
On Monday, March 30, her arguments bore fruit: President Barack Obama signed into law a massive parks bill that included a provision adding Hawthorn Hill, which is the Wright Brothers’ home and the Wright factory buildings to the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park. Wright Lane and U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, the key proponent of the measure in Congress, sat in the audience in the White House’s East Room for the bill-signing ceremony.
Wright Lane beamed as Obama signed the bill, and as the audience applauded the bill’s passage, she turned to Turner and shook his hand.
“I’m really happy for our community,” she said, adding that visitors to the park can now learn about her great-granduncles’ family life and learn about how they manufactured commercial airplanes in Dayton. Not many people, Turner said, knew the latter.
Hawthorn Hill, in Oakwood, was designed by Wilbur and Orville Wright and was the family’s home until 1948. The Wright Company factory buildings are the first U.S. buildings designed and built for the manufacture of airplanes.
The park currently includes Huffman Prairie, the Wright Cycle Company, Carillon Park, the Wright Memorial and the Paul Laurence Dunbar House.
The bill also allows community organizations including Dayton History, which operates Carillon Historical Park, Aviation Trail and other partners that operate the park’s sites to receive grants from the National Park Service to help operate the park. Turner, R-Centerville, said such partnerships may become necessary as government funds become tighter and tighter, because it’ll help national and local governments team up to fund similar preservations.
As for adding the sites?
“It should’ve been done when the park was created,” Turner said.
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TweetState announces business loans
Projects in Springboro, Franklin, Wilmington and Dayton are expected to receive $3.7 million in low-interest loans from the state of Ohio, Gov. Ted Strickland announced Monday, March 30.
“Like the federal transportation stimulus projects announced last week, these projects build upon Ohio’s logistical strengths, enhancing our infrastructure and creating good jobs for Ohioans,” Strickland said. “Strategically investing in growth industries like logistics and distribution will boost today’s economy and position Ohio for sustainable growth after the recovery.”
Pending approval by the State Controlling Board the following projects will receive money:
City of Franklin has been awarded a $1.6 million loan, which may be forgiven if certain project terms are met. The money is for the purchase of equipment and facility renovations for the Franklin Yards project, which is expected to create five construction jobs and 10 permanent positions.
Klosterman Baking Co. in Springboro has been awarded a 10-year, $900,000 low interest loan for the equipment purchases and construction costs. Klosterman is one of the largest family-owned bakeries in the midwest, producing more than 400 varieties of baked goods. This $1.4 million project is expected to create 10 positions and retain 42 jobs. Airborne Maintenance and Engineering Services, Inc. in Wilmington has been awarded a five-year, $600,000 low interest loan. The company will offer maintenance, repair and overhaul services at the Wilmington Air Park in the wake of DHL ceasing operations there. The $2.2 million project is expected to create 430 jobs.
Stratacache, Inc., in Dayton has been awarded a 10-year, $585,000 low-interest loan to help purchase the company’s new headquarters. This $1.9 million project is expected to create 15 positions and retain 14 jobs.
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TweetBoyce to Obama: try this Ohio program
Treasurer Kevin Boyce likes Ohio’s linked deposit program so much that he’s passing on a tip to President Barack Obama: try using the federal bail out money this way.
Boyce, a Democrat, wrote to Obama to pitch the idea that troubled asset relief program (TARP) money could be used to sustain and grow small business by adopting a linked deposit program like Ohio’s 25-year-old program.
The Ohio treasury gives banks incentives to offer loans at below-market rates to small businesses and farmers. The program allows the treasury to invest in certificates of deposit and accept a reduced rate of return on them. In turn, the banks agree to pass on the savings to approved borrowers.
Ohio’s linked deposit program has invested more than $365 million in small businesses since 2008. These investments helped create more than 6,500 jobs and retain nearly 10,000 workers, according to Boyce’s office.
The deposits are linked one-for-one with approved loans, making it easy to track where the government money goes, Boyce’s office said. If adopted by the U.S. Treasury, this program will ensure participating banks are using the TARP funds as they were intended, to lend capital to qualified borrowers.
“While not a panacea, the linked deposit program has been one of the Ohio Treasury’s most successful initiatives,” Boyce wrote to the president. “We look forward to hopefully working with you to bring its benefits to the entire nation.”
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TweetOhio senators on auto bailout
Here’s Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio and George Voinovich, R-Ohio, on President Obama’s announcement Monday on the auto bailout. Both, essentially, applauded Obama for insisting the auto companies create a better plan to become self-sufficient and refused further long-term rescue plans for GM and Chrysler.
Brown, D-Ohio, said Obama understands the auto industry is “too important to fail.”
“Today’s announcement represents the President’s commitment to protecting taxpayers while ensuring the auto companies come out of this economic downturn stronger and more competitive,” he said. “This short-term assistance will give the auto industry the time it needs to make long-term plans that will allow it to compete in the global market. It will require shared sacrifice across all stakeholder groups.
“For too long, cuts have been balanced on the back of workers - who have already made many concessions and are prepared to make more. It’s time for bondholders to come to the table so debt can be restructured to manageable levels.”
Voinovich, R-Ohio, meanwhile, expressed sympathy for employees of GM and Chrysler.
“Although I am extremely disappointed that the administration believes GM and Chrysler did not go far enough in their viability plans, I give them credit for insisting that American auto companies receiving taxpayer dollars can stand on their own two feet eventually,” he said.
He said he’s hopeful that “a restructured GM will become healthy and competitive and that Chrysler will come together with Fiat as supported by the administration.”
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TweetUpdated - Strickland, lawmakers near deal on transportation budget
Gov. Ted Strickland and legislators appear close to a deal on a transportation budget, House Bill 2, and a House-Senate conference committee began meeting about 2:15 p.m. on Monday, March 30 to finalize agreement.
In Toledo, Strickland told the Associated Press that compromises have been reached on all the major issues during negations over the weekend and that he expects to sign the bill. Once the conference committee acts, the House and Senate would have to approve the bill. Strickland has said he wants to sign the bill by Tuesday, March 31.
Total spending in the bill is expected to be more than $9 billion.
The budget must be approved before the more than $900 million in federal stimulus projects for transportation projects can be spent. Strickland announced the projects last Thursday, March 26.
“I will not get everything I wanted,” Strickland said. “The Senate will not get everything it wanted.”
In Columbus, Rep. Peter Ujvagi, D-Toledo, chairman of the House-Senate conference committee working on the budget, also was optimistic.
“I think that we’re in good shape,” Ujvagi said. “We’re just crossing the i’s and dotting the t’s.”
The committee agreed that the the final plan will not include Strickland’s proposal to give law enforcement the authority to pull over motorists solely for failing to wear a seatbelt or the governor’s proposal to allow the use of cameras to catch speeders in construction zones on interstate highways.
Strickland, however, got support for his plan to keep the Public Safety Department budget, which includes money for the Ohio State Highway Patrol, in the bill.
The conference committee also went along with a Senate proposal to raise the speed limits for trucks on interstate highways from 55 miles per hour to 65 miles per hour.
Also, the committee is expected to give the Controlling Board, not the legislature, the authority to spend any federal stimulus money for infrastructure and equipment for passenger rail service, Ujvagi said.
The vote to go ahead on the seven-member board, however, would have to include support from two of the three House members on the board and two of the three Senate members, Ujvagi said. This would encourage bipartisan support, he said.
The budget includes more than $2 billion in federal stimulus money that Strickland wanted to keep in the bill.
It also includes a provision to designate Dayton and Montgomery County as “an Ohio hub of innovation and opportunity for aerospace and aviation.”
The conference committee also adopted a provision that the Strickland administration said would help an estimated 35,000 unemployed Ohio workers qualify for 20 weeks of extended federal benefits after they’ve used up their state and emergency federal benefits.
Under the federal economic stimulus package, the federal government will pick up 100 percent of the tab for these extended benefits through the end of 2009.
The provision will enable the workers to qualify by changing the way Ohio sets the threshold for getting such extended benefits. Under the change made by the committee, the state would qualify if its unemployment rate is above 6.5 percent for three consecutive months, which has happened in Ohio.
Ohio’s February unemployment rate was 9.4 percent.
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TweetHusted announces redistricting proposal
State Rep. Jon Husted, R-Kettering, on Monday, March 30 announced that he plans to introduce a plan to change how Ohio legislative and congressional districts are drawn. It would require voter approval.
Husted, a possible candidate for secretary of state in 2010, said the plan would create a “true, bipartisan seven-member commission” to oversee the creation of district boundaries for both state legislative and congressional districts.
To promote bipartisanship, the resolution would require a five vote super majority for the adoption of any redistricting plan. In addition, at least one of the required five votes must come from each of the three groups represented on the commission: two Republican legislative leader appointments; two Democratic legislative leader appointments and three remaining members, who would be selected by the four legislative leaders.
“We can’t change the hyper-partisan ways of government unless we change the system that demands it. This change would allow the voters to pick their politicians rather than letting the politicians pick their voters.” Husted said in a press release.
“I hope this will serve to stimulate bipartisan debate and action. The cost of inaction in 2009 will lead to the preservation of a system that values partisan advantage over problem solving-Ohioans can no longer to afford to live this way.”
The plan would replace the five-member Apportionment Board for drawing legislative districts and the legislature for drawing U.S. House districts. New districts are drawn after each census. The next time will be after the 2010 census.
Husted has said the goal is for the House and Senate to agree to put the issue on the Nov. 3 ballot for voter consideration.
The Apportionment Board is made up of the governor, secretary of state, auditor and a member of the legislature from each party. Right now, Democrats would hold a majority on the board, 3-2.
However Democratic Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner is running for the U.S. Senate in 2010 and Republican Auditor Mary Taylor is considering a run for the U.S. Senate. Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland is expected to seek re-election in 2010.
The proposal adds and defines what a competitive district is to the factors the commission must consider when creating new districts. It also would make commission meetings open to the public and the date used in the process available for review.
The proposal also prohibits redrawing congressional district lines between censuses. Now the Ohio Constitution prohibits mid-census changes to General Assembly districts but not congressional districts.
Catherine Turcer, director of the Money in Politics project for Ohio Citizen Action, a government reform group, called the proposal “a significant improvement over the status quo.” She said she would like to see more independence from the three members who are to be appointed by consensus. For example, lobbyists, former legislators and political consultants should not be considered for the spots, Turcer said.
Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland, applauded the plan.
“It is not easy to take an issue that is inherently political, bring opposing sides together and come up with a thoughtful proposal for the General Assembly to consider,” Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland, said in the press release.
“I appreciate the tremendous amount of time and hard work Jon Husted has put into his resolution and look forward to working with him to reform Ohio’s redistricting process.”
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TweetHouse, Senate and Gov. Strickland face showdown on transportation spending
The Democrat-controlled House, Republican-controlled Senate and Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland are headed for a three-way showdown on the state’s transportation budget, House Bill 2.
Strickland wants to sign the spending plan by Tuesday, March 31 in order for it to take effect by July 1, start of the state’s new fiscal year.
The House-Senate conference committee formed to reach a compromise out of separate versions of the budget met briefly during the past week and was scheduled to meet again Sunday, March 29, at the Statehouse.
That meeting was cancelled and another meeting has been set for Monday morning, indicating continuing disagreement.
Both versions include a provision designating the city of Dayton and Montgomery County as “an Ohio hub of innovation and opportunity for aerospace and aviation.”
Rep. Clayton Luckie, D-Dayton, said he inserted the provision to help marketing efforts in the Dayton area.
It’s the year’s first real test of how well divided state government will work with a Democratic governor and House and a Republican Senate. For 14 years Republicans controlled the governor’s office and both houses of the legislature.
“I am very concerned, very concerned. I’ve expressed my concern to some of my colleagues in the legislature,” Strickland said on Thursday.
Sticking points include:
*The Senate’s decision to move the Public Safety Department and an estimated $150 million in fee increases out of the Transportation Budget and let it become part of the operating budget, still being hammered out. Money from the fees is supposed to pay for the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
*The Senate’s refusal to go along with Strickland and the House on proposals to give police the authority to pull motorists over solely for not wearing a seatbelt and to permit the use of cameras to catch speeders in construction zones on interstate highways.
*The Senate’s refusal to accept Strickland’s elimination of a tax credit for fuel dealers and retailers for collecting the sales tax. The credit is worth an estimated $54 million a year.
*Disagreement between the Senate on one side and the House and Strickland on the other on how to proceed with spending federal stimulus money for passenger rail service. Strickland and the House want the seven-member Controlling Board, controlled by Democrats, to approve the spending while the Senate wants the legislature to have that authority.
“Let me say that as governor I don’t expect to get everything that I may have asked for,” said Strickland. “….there are areas that I will be willing to compromise on.”
The Senate version of the budget authorizes spending of $6.18 billion by the Ohio Department of Transportation and also authorizes various state agencies to spend an additional $2.2 billion in federal economic stimulus money.
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TweetFranklin County’s Brown running for secretary of state
Franklin County Commissioner Marilyn Brown, a Democrat, has announced that she’ll run for Ohio secretary of state in 2010.
“I plan to build on the reforms and improvements started by Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner,” Brown said in a press release. “In addition, I plan to focus on strengthening the relationship between the secretary of state’s office and our 88 county boards of election.”
Brunner, also a Democrat, is running for the U.S. Senate in 2010.
Among Republicans, state Sen. Jon Husted, R-Kettering, has said he’s considering a race for secretary of state in 2010. Husted is the former Speaker of the Ohio House.
The office is important to both parties because the secretary of states sits on the Apportionment Board which will draw new state legislative districts after the 2010 census.
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TweetCasino backer refile proposal with AG Cordray
Backers of the constitutional amendment to permit casinos in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Toledo and Columbus are trying again with Attorney General Richard Cordray.
On Wednesday, March 25, the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee filed a revised petition with Cordray, amending a proposal Cordray rejected on Monday, March 23.
The new proposal:
*Clarifies the tax issue raised by Cordray by removing any reference to casino patrons. Cordray said the language seemed to say patrons’ winnings would be exempt from state and local income taxes, which backers said was not the intent.
*Includes detailed locations for each casino as Cordray requested.
*Clarifies that the amendment, if approved, would have no impact on the conduct of the lottery or bingo in Ohio.
Cordray must approve the language in the petition before backers can begin gathering the 402,275 signatures from registered voters that must be turned in by July 1 to get the issue on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Penn National Gaming, Inc. and Dan Gilbert, majority owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, back the plan.
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TweetRep. Morgan seeks “evidence-based” school records from Gov. Strickland
State Rep. Seth Morgan, R-Huber Heights, is having a tough time getting what he wants from Gov. Ted Strickland.
Morgan on Wednesday, March 25, sent a second public records request to Kent Markus, Strickland’s chief legal counsel, for the material that forms the basis of Democrat Strickland’s “proposed education funding formula known as the evidence-based model.”
Morgan made an error in each request. He spelled Markus’ last name “Marcus.”
Amanda Wurst, Strickland’s spokeswoman, said the governor intends “to provide additional material that may be responsive to the request.”
She didn’t provide a definite time.
“We will work through it as quickly as possible,” she said.
Strickland’s office already has provided 400 references to source material used to develop the education plan, Wurst said.
“It has now been eight business days since an initial public records request was hand delivered in a letter dated March 12, 2009,” Morgan wrote. “I am deeply concerned by the fact that - to date- I have not received any correspondence, either written or verbal, from your office regarding this request.”
Morgan’s letter said Strickland’s office had not been following the policy and procedure it set up to handle public records requests.
“I believe without accurate and complete information we are doing a considerable disservice to Ohio’s greatest asset for the future, our children,” Morgan wrote.
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TweetPoll shows support for higher taxes
If given a choice between cutting services for the sick, hungry and abused or raising taxes on businesses and wealthy families, Ohioans are all for boosting taxes, according to a new survey released Wednesday March 25.
Fifty-seven percent of Ohio voters favor rolling back some recent income tax breaks and increasing some business taxes and taxes on people making more than $200,000 as a way to avoid service cuts, according to Hart Research Associates’ telephone poll of 602 registered Ohio voters.
The poll was commissioned by a coalition of human services groups that are lobbying lawmakers to keep money in the state budget to help food pantries, public schools, child welfare agencies and mental health services.
For example, the state budget currently calls for sending $62 million less in federal money to county governments for child protective services, such as investigating allegations of abuse and neglect. There are 106,000 such cases statewide each year. Without the $62 million, counties will be forced to lay off case workers, leaving more work for the remaining employees.
“They’ll be pedaling as fast as they can,” said Gayle Channing Tenenbaum of the Public Children Services Association of Ohio.
Lisa Hamler-Fugitt of the Ohio Association of Second Harvest Foodbanks said the proposed budget allocates $8.5 million year for food pantries and soup kitchens across the state — well below the $17 million requested. The $8.5 million is what the organizations get now but demand has increased 25 percent and food prices have grown 26 percent, she said. In the last quarter of 2008, the food pantries and soup kitchens served 1.8 million people.
The poll found that 62 percent of Ohioans are worried about jobs and the economy while only 14 percent name state and local taxes as among their top concerns. The state adopted a 21-percent across the board income tax reduction that is being phased in over five years. Republicans herald it as a crucial step toward making Ohio business friendly. But only 8 percent of the poll respondents knew that state income tax rates had been lowered.
“No one noticed it,” said Channing Tenenbaum.
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TweetWould you say ‘I Do’ with a politician presiding?
State lawmakers are considering giving themselves the power to perform civil marriage ceremonies anywhere in Ohio, according to a bill pending in the House.
Current law authorizes ordained or licensed ministers, religious societies, judges, mayors and the superintendent of the State School for the Deaf to perform civil marriage ceremonies between a man and woman.
Lawmakers would be required to donate any fees collected for performing the ceremony to charity.
State Rep. Tom Letson, D-Warren, who is sponsoring the bill, said he has performed about a dozen weddings as an acting judge in Trumbull County.
“It was just kind of fun because no one is mad at each other at a wedding,” he said. “It is a very good feeling to be in a legal setting where no one is mad at each other.”
Two other states — California and Rhode Island — permit all their state lawmakers to perform weddings, he said.
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TweetUpdated - Foley backs Foley on foreclosure moratorium plan in Columbus
Montgomery County Commissioner Dan Foley supports his brother Mike Foley’s proposal to put a six-month moratorium on mortgage foreclosures.
Dan Foley on Wednesday, March 25 testified in favor of House Bill 3, sponsored by Rep. Mike Foley, D-Cleveland, that would impose the moratorium and also give judges during the next three years the authority to modify mortgage agreements if beneficial to both parties.
Dan Foley, a Democrat like his brother, testified at an 11 a.m. hearing of the Housing and Urban Revitalization Committee chaired by - who else? - brother Mike Foley.
The committee also heard from Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Charles Schneider who expressed doubts about giving judges the authority to modify mortgages.
“The mission is to keep people in their homes,” Dan Foley told the committee.
The moratorium would strengthen neighborhoods, families and help Ohioans get through a difficult time, Dan Foley said.
He submitted a chart that showed an almost 300 percent increase in foreclosure filings in Montgomery County from Jan. 1, 1997 through the end of 2008. From Jan. 1, 1997 through Tuesday, March 24, 43,275 foreclosures have been filed in Montgomery County, Dan Foley said.
He said a new approach to solving the problem of foreclosures is needed.
“This bill will give a lot of people some air under their wings,” Dan Foley said.
Judge Schneider said that giving judges the authority to modify mortgages would produce a constitutional challenges. He said he supported using voluntary mediation procedures such as the one used in Franklin County.
Also, if judges got such authority they would need additional staff and other resources to carry it out.
Rep. Shannon Jones, R-Springboro, also raises questions about the bill. She said judges in Warren County have raised concerns like Schneider’s.
“…Just because it’s different doesn’t mean it’s good,” Jones said.
Rep. Mike Foley said after the hearing that he hopes to vote it out of the committee in April and bring it to the House floor for a vote. It is one of the House Democratic leadership’s priority bills.
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TweetNew study: Ohio flunks teen-dating protection test
Ohio gets an “F” when it comes to protecting victims of teen-dating violence, a new study released on Tuesday, March 24.
The study, from Break the Cycle, a non-profit teen dating violence prevention organization, comes as the state legislature considers two bills aimed to combating teen dating violence.
House Bill 10 would allow Juvenile Court judges to issue protective orders against juveniles. House Bill 19 would require school districts to adopt a dating abuse policy and include dating violence education in health classes.
The study evaluated state laws on their ability to protect victimes of teen dating violence seeking protective orders against their abusers. Ohio was one of 11 states that got an “F.” Five states received “A’s” - California, Illinois, Minnesota, New Hampshire and Oklahoma. Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray backs both bills and said the study shows they are needed.
“Passing these two bills will improve our support to victims of dating violence and allow teens who are threatened by abuse to seek help,” Cordray said in a press release.
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TweetAG Cordray rejects casino summary language
Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray on Monday, March 23, rejected proposed ballot language for a summary of a constitutional amendment to permit operation of four casinos in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Toledo and Columbus.
Bob Tenenbaum, spokesman for the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee, the group backing the plan, said the changes Cordray recommended would be made and the proposal would be resubmitted to Cordray.
Cordray must give his approval on the language before backers can start gathering the 402,275 signatures from registered voters that must be turned in by July 1 to get the proposal on the Nov. 3 ballot.
The plan is backed by Penn National Gaming, Inc. and Dan Gilbert, principal owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers and founder of Quicken Loans.
In a letter to the committee, Cordray said that the language in both the summary and actual amendment appear to say that winning at the casinos would not be subject to the state and local income taxes. Winnings from gambling now are taxable by the state as ordinary income, Cordray wrote.
Tenenbaum said, however, that was not the intent of the language. It was meant to say casino winnings would be subject to existing state and local income taxes but not new casino-related taxes not included in the amendment.
Also, Cordray said the summary must include a fuller description of where in each city the casinos would be located because the actual amendment provides specific parcel numbers.
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TweetNew poll: Majority favors 90 percent tax on AIG bonuses
A new national poll shows that 57 percent of U.S. voters support imposing a 90 percent tax on bonuses paid by American International Group (AIG) and other companies that receive federal government bailout money.
The Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey, released Monday, March 23, showed that 35 percent of voters oppose the 90 percent tax. For full poll results, click here.
The poll also found that 73 percent of voters say Congress and President Barack Obama should have taken action to prohibit the AIG bonuses before the company got the money.
The law imposing the 90 percent tax on the bonuses has been approved by the House and now is before the Senate, where changes are expected to be made. President Barack Obama expressed reservations about the tax during an interview on CBS’ “60 Minutes” on Sunday, March 22.
Here’s your chance to get involved in this tax debate.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]The poll was taken from Friday, March 20 to Saturday, March 21 and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
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TweetBlackwell endorses Portman for U.S. Senate
It wasn’t exactly unexpected but it’s probably good news for Ohio Republicans that Ken Blackwell on Friday, March 20, endorsed Rob Portman in the 2010 U.S. Senate race for the seat being vacated by retiring U.S. Sen. George Voinovich.
“Rob Portman is a principled and experienced leader with a solid conservative record,” Blackwell said in a press release from Portman’s campaign. “He has been a strong voice for sound fiscal policy, and we need him in the U.S. Senate in these tumultuous economic times.”
In the press release, Portman called Blackwell a “respected conservative leader who has a distinguished career in public service” and also a long-time friend.
Blackwell’s endorsement appeared to be another sign that Republicans are uniting around Portman for the Senate race, although Auditor Mary Taylor remains a possible candidate for the GOP nomination.
Democrats, meanwhile, appear to be at the start of a mad scramble for the nomination involving Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher, Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, state Rep. Tyrone Yates of Cincinnati and probably others.
Blackwell is the former Ohio secretary of state, unsuccessful candidate for governor in 2006 and most recently a loser in the race to become chairman of the Republican National Committee. He also is a favorite of social conservatives.
Both Blackwell and Portman are from the Cincinnati area. Portman is a former U.S. House member who also served as trade representative and budget director under President George W. Bush.
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TweetPlan calls for 14,000 slot machines at Ohio racetracks
The Ohio State Racing Commission on Thursday, March 19, endorsed a plan to put 14,000 slot machines at Ohio’s seven racetracks - including Lebanon Raceway in Warren County - to help save the horse racing industry and provide money for Ohio’s schools.
There would be an average of 2,000 machines at each track.
The commission sent the plan to the Ohio House Finance Committee which is considering Gov. Ted Strickland’s proposed two-year state budget.
Tom Zaino, former Ohio tax commissioner and a racing commission member, said the legislature can enact the proposal without a vote of the people.
The commission acted just a week after Penn National Gaming and Dan Gilbert, owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, announced plans to gather signatures to put an issue on the Nov. 3 ballot to allow casinos in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo.
Here are key elements of the proposal:
*The five-member racing commission would be expanded to nine members to regulate the slots.
*Track operators would be the agents for the slots and would be required to invest at least $80 million in improvements at each site.
*Operators would pay a license fee of $50 million each.
*When the proposal was fully implemented in four years, 48 percent of gross revenue would go the the Gaming Profits Education Fund for primary, secondary, vocational and special education. The plan would provide $195 million for education in 2010 and $625 million by 2013.
The commission unveiled the plan with the owners of Thistledown Racetrack in North Randall near Cleveland in bankruptcy proceedings. On Thursday, the commission voted to suspend Thistledown’s racing schedule if the owners can’t post a new performance bond when the current one expires on March 28.
Zaino said four other tracks also are in danger of shutting down due to the decline in the industry.
Mel Hagemeyer, general manager of Lebanon Raceway, said the Warren County track is one of them.
“On the surface it looks very good,” Hagemeyer said of the slots’ proposal. “We’re very interested.”
The proposal doesn’t have a sponsor in the legislature yet and Gov. Ted Strickland already has expressed criticism of it, as well as of the four-casino plan.
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TweetThe Return of Marc Dann
Former attorney general Marc Dann returned to the media spotlight on Thursday, March 19, and could barely keep quiet.
He arrived early for a 10 a.m. Ohio Elections Commission hearing with his lawyer, Donald McTigue, and genially chatted up the reporters who covered him during his time as a state senator and attorney general.
During the lengthy hearing, Dann passed notes and whispered to McTigue so often that opposing counsel dryly said, “The secretary of state would be happy to have Mr. Dann sworn in if he’d like to testify.”
Thursday’s hearing marked perhaps the first public appearance by Dann in the state capital since his resignation May 14, 2008.
With a dozen reporters, four TV cameras and two news photographers paying close attention, McTigue defended decisions made by the Dann For Ohio campaign committee to spend $40,000 on an extensive home security system at Dann’s Liberty Twp. home.
The security system was seen as less costly than continuing to pay police officers to provide 24-hour executive protection.
The security measures started in July 2, 2007 after Dann’s then Deputy First Assistant Brian Laliberte received vague, threatening phone call at work on June 29, 2007.
Between July and November, state taxpayers paid more than $145,000 for police protection for Dann and his family. The Dann administration decided to install the home security system to replace the more costly police protection.
McTigue argued that it was an ordinary, verifiable campaign expense related to Dann’s duties as an office holder so it shouldn’t be considered a violation of campaign finance laws. The threats were related to Dann’s position, he said.
Assistant Attorney General Melinda Osgood, who represents Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, countered that a $40,000 security system is a permanent fixture that benefits the Dann family - something that goes way beyond an ordinary expense.
Marc Dann biography Personal: Age 47; married to journalist Alyssa Lenhoff. They have a son and two daughters. Political party: Democrat Public service: Local board of education member, Ohio Senate, Attorney General Jan. 2007 to May 2008 Legal experience: Entered private practice in Youngstown in 1991 and returned to private practice in Youngstown and Cleveland.
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TweetState Senate eases seat belt enforcement; talks with House next
The Republican-controlled state Senate put its stamp on the state transportation budget on Wednesday, March 18.
Two Democrats joined 20 Republicans in approving a budget that removes a provision giving police the authority to pull motorists over solely for failing to use their seat belts. Nine Democrats voted “no” on the budget.
The version passed earlier by the Democrat-controlled House gave police that authority which is in line with Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland’s wishes. Under current law, motorists can be cited for seat belt violations only if they’re pulled over for other offenses.
The Senate version of the budget authorizes $6.18 billion in spending for the transportation department, plus authority for various agencies to spend $2.2 billion in federal economic stimulus funds.
The House and Senate now are expected to form a conference committee to come up with a compromise budget.
The Senate version left intact Strickland’s plan to go after a share of at least $8 billion in federal passenger rail funding for service to Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus and Dayton. However, the Senate version would require the governor to seek authority from the legislature to spend any of the money the state gets.
The House version would allow the seven-member Controlling Board, controlled by Democrats, to release money for railroad spending.
The Senate also removed spending for the Public Safety Department, which includes the Highway Patrol, from the Transportation Budget. That spending should be part of the main operating budget, which still is before the legislature, the Republicans said.
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TweetFred Strahorn gets nod for state Senate
Ohio Senate Democrats have picked former state Rep. Fred Strahorn of Dayton to replace Tom Roberts in the Senate, Senate Minority Leader Capri Cafaro of Hubbard said on Wednesday, March 18.
Strahorn, 43, was recommended to Senate Democrats by the Montgomery County Democratic Party’s executive committee. Strahorn left the House at the end of last year due to term limits. He is expected to be sworn in to the Senate on Tuesday, March 24.
Roberts resigned from the Senate on Feb. 28 after Gov. Ted Strickland appointed him to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission. Strahorn will serve out the rest of Roberts’ term which ends in 2010.
Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Victor A. Harris also was a candidate for the appointment to the 5th District seat. The district includes Miami County and parts of Montgomery and Darke counties. The job pays $60,583 a year.
“I am very impressed with Fred Strahorn’s intellect and his commitment to public service,” Cafaro said in a press release. “I believe he’s going to be a great asset to our caucus as we tackle the challenges facing the state of Ohio.”
Strahorn said he missed being in the legislature.
“It felt funny being away from it and not being able to take part in the process and search for solutions,” he said in a telephone interview.
He said that education will be a priority issue for him, particularly encouraging parental involvement.
He will come back to the legislature after serving as vice president of governmental affairs for the Ohio United Way. He is a graduate of the Ohio State University with a B.A. degree in aviation management, the release said.
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TweetPoll: Obama’s approval rating drops in Ohio
President Barack Obama’s job approval rating has dropped slightly in Ohio, according to a new poll by the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. Obama, who had a 67 percent approval rating Feb. 6, is now at 57 percent. Thirty-three percent of Ohioans have an unfavorable view of him, according to the newest poll, up from 16 percent Feb. 6.
Ohio voters by a two to one margin say his mortgage rescue plan is unfair, but they still support it and say it’s necessary to solve the housing crisis, which has hit Ohio hard.
Obama’s biggest loss is among independent voters. In February, 72 percent supported him, and 55 percent support him today. He’s also lost support among evangelical protestants.
“During a presidential election, Ohio is the single most important state in the country because of its history of being a decisive barometer. So the 10-point drop in President Obama’s support in the Buckeye State is something that the White House might want to pay attention to,” said Peter A. Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute.
The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.
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TweetLocal lawmakers less than happy about AIG bonuses
The furious press releases are flying, as members of the Ohio delegation make it known that they, like President Obama and pretty much everyone else in Congress, are less than thrilled with the $165 million in bonus payments to AIG executives coming out of the bailout money approved last year.
Here’s Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, who attended a Senate Banking committee hearing on the AIG decision this morning: “AIG’s actions are a slap in the face to hardworking Ohio families. Bonuses at companies like AIG - companies relying on taxpayer funds to stay afloat - are an outrage. I hope AIG executives voluntarily return these bonuses. If they don’t, I will push to have them recouped through the U.S. tax code.”
And here’s House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-West Chester:
“Americans are rightly outraged by the use of their hard-earned tax dollars to fund the bonuses of AIG executives. For months, House Republicans have called for more protections to ensure that Congress and - more importantly- taxpayers knew exactly how bailout dollars were being used by financial institutions. Unfortunately, the Treasury Department has not responded with the urgency that taxpayers demand, which is why AIG was able to slip through the cracks.”
Boehner also applauded the efforts of a group of Republicans who introduced a bill aimed at increasing accountability in bailout funds and to recover AIG executive bonuses.
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TweetVoters sour on Strickland’s handling of economy
Ohio voters don’t like how Gov. Ted Strickland is handling the economy - a first for the Democratic governor - but Strickland’s overall approval rating, while down, remains solid.
Those are key findings from a Quinnipiac University poll released on Tuesday, March 17. For full results, click here.
The poll, taken as the national and state economies continue to flounder, found that voters disapprove of Strickland’s handling of the economy, 45-39 percent. In a poll released Feb. 5, voters approved of Strickland’s handling of the economy, 44-37 percent.
Also, the new poll found Strickland had a 56-30 percent job approval rating, down from a 63-25 percent approval rating in the Feb. 5 poll.
In another finding, voters narrowly disapproved - 46-43 percent- Strickland’s use of one-time money to balance his proposed state budget. Overall, however, they approved of how Strickland is handling the state budget, 44-36 percent.
Here’s your chance to get in on the debate about Strickland’s handling of the economy.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]“The movement is not large, but the fact that support for a number of his proposals and his handling of the economy is off that much and more is an indication that the public anxiety over the economy is taking its toll on his support,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute said in a press release.
In other poll results, voters:
*Favored Strickland over Republican John Kasich, 51-31 percent in a 2010 governor’s race matchup.
*Favored Strickland over Republican Mike DeWine, 50-34 percent in a 2010 governor’s race matchup.
*Had mixed views on whether Strickland’s plans will improve education in Ohio, with 31 percent saying “yes”, 29 percent “no” and 40 percent saying they didn’t know.
*Approved, 55-39 percent, Strickland’s proposal to increase the school year from 180 days to 200 days.
The poll was taken Tuesday, March 10, through Monday, March 15, with 1,299 Ohio voters and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.7 percentage points.
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TweetBrown makes recommendations for U.S. Attorney, U.S. Marshal for Southern District of Ohio
U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown on Monday, March 16, recommended that President Barack Obama appoint Carter Marshall as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio.
Brown, D-Ohio, also recommended, Cathy Jones as U.S. Marshal for the Southern District.
Stewart, a former assistant U.S. Attorney in the Northern District of California, is currently an associate at Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP in Columbus. According to a biography of him posted on the firm’s website, he specializes in complex litigation matters and has experience in commercial litigation, criminal defense, antitrust and education law.
“Carter Stewart will bring the right combination of experience, commitment, and talent to the job of U.S. Attorney,” Brown said in a release announcing his recommendation. “His prior service as an Assistant U.S. Attorney combined with his extensive litigation experience has given him the perspective and skills necessary to excel as U.S. Attorney.”
Stewart has also worked as a litigation associate at McCutchen, Doyle, Brown & Enersen LLP in San Francisco.
Jones, meanwhile, currently serves as chief deputy U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Ohio.
“Her diverse career in law enforcement spans 17 years and her current service as Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal will ensure a seamless transition,” Brown said. “Cathy is dedicated to crime prevention and gang resistance.”
Obama will make a nomination based largely Brown’s recommendation. After Obama makes his nominations, both Stewart and Jones must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.
U.S. Attorneys are tasked with prosecuting criminal cases brought by the federal government, and prosecuting and defending civil cases in which the United States is a party, as well as collecting debts owed to the federal government.
U.S. Marshals must protect the federal judiciary, apprehend federal fugitives, and overse the Witness Protection Program, among other duties.
The Southern District has court locations in Columbus, Cincinnati, and Dayton and serves more than 5 million citizens in 48 Ohio counties.
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TweetTurner asks Clinton for help getting Laurean extradited
U.S. Rep. Mike Turner has asked Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for help in getting the man accused of murdering Vandalia native Maria Lauterbach extradited from Mexico.
Marine Cpl. Cesar Laurean, who fled for Mexico shortly after the remains of Lauterbach, a 20-year-old fellow Marine, were found charred and buried in his backyard in January 2008. Lauterbach had accused Laurean of rape, and was pregnant at the time she was murdered.
Laurean, a dual U.S. and Mexican citizen who was arrested in Mexico in April 2008, has fought extradition.
In a letter sent late last week, Turner, R-Centerville, requested Clinton help in extraditing Laurean so he can be charged with Lauterbach’s rape and murder.
“Cesar Laurean is charged with the heinous crimes of rape and murder and it is imperative that he be brought to justice,” Turner said. “I hope that Secretary Clinton will be able to help the Lauterbach family in their efforts to bring closure to this process and peace to Maria and her unborn child.”
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TweetProtests filed with elections board over McLin candidacy
By Steve Bennish Staff Writer
DAYTON — Two protests were filed late in the day Friday, March 13, at the Montgomery County Board of Elections regarding the Dayton mayoral race, board chairman Greg Gantt said.
The first was from Alvin Freeman who claimed that he was listed as a nominator for incumbent Mayor Rhine McLin, but said that he didn’t give the mayor permission to use his name and that he was instead a nominator for James Greene, who unsuccessfully sought a spot on the mayoral ballot. Candidate filings to run for Dayton offices were due last week.
Green followed with a protest at the same time saying that McLin should be disqualified because she has no nominating committee, referencing the Freeman protest.
Gantt, also chair of the Montgomery County Republican Party, said he intends to schedule a meeting for next week to look into the matter.
McLin said Friday night she’s a certified candidate who won’t be distracted by the protest. She said she’ll focus on “keeping the city fiscally strong, public safety and using the stimulus money.”
“First we have to look at the city charter to see whether, even if the allegation is true, it is significant,” said board member Dennis Lieberman. “I won’t pre-judge the protest. We have a procedure for it.”
TweetLawmaker wants to change how legislative districts are drawn
State Sen. Kevin Coughlin, R-Cuyahoga Falls, who’s running for governor in 2010, wants to change how Ohio draws its legislative districts.
The goal, according to a press release on Friday, March 13, is to “bring more fairness and balance.”
Coughlin’s proposed constitutional amendment would replace the current five-member Apportionment Board with a seven-member board and require that five of the seven members agree on the redistricting plan. Such a plan appears aimed at promoting bipartisan agreement but wouldn’t guarantee it. The next time districts will be redrawn is after the 2010 census.
“This is a practical solution to the ongoing debate about redistricting in Ohio,” Coughlin said in the press release. “This critical decision should be made by those who were elected by the people as part of a fair and balanced process.”
The current five-member board includes the governor, auditor, secretary of state and a member of the legislature from each party. The party that controls two of the three executive offices controls the board and how the districts are drawn. Historically, districts have been drawn to favor the party controlling the board.
Under Coughlin’s plan, the board would include: the governor, auditor, secretary of state, House Speaker, House Minority Leader, Senate President and Senate Minority Leader. If one party controlled all three executive offices on the board - governor, auditor and secretary of state - that party would have the votes to approve a plan without help from the other party.
If new districts were drawn this year, Democrats would have the upper hand with Gov. Ted Strickland and Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner. Auditor Mary Taylor is a Republican. However, Brunner has said she plans to run for the U.S. Senate next year and Taylor is considering a U.S. Senate run.
Strickland is expected to run for re-election in 2010 when all statewide executive offices will be on the ballot.
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TweetMayor McLin, Montgomery County commissioners back Strickland rail plan
Dayton Mayor Rhine McLin and Montgomery County commissioners have signed on to Gov. Ted Strickland’s plan for restoring passenger rail service in Ohio, Strickland’s office announced on Friday, March 13.
Springfield Mayor Warren Copeland also was on the list of public officials giving their endorsement, according to a press release.
The two mayors and Montgomery County commissioners are Democrats like Strickland.
Strickland said in his State of the State address that he would work to restore passenger rail service to Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton for the first time since 1971,
The House has passed the Transportation budget that includes plans to revive the passenger service. House Republicans, however, objected to a provision that would give the Controlling Board, controlled 4-3 by Democrats, authority to continue work on the rail plan without further approval from the legislature.
The Ohio Rail Development Authority wants the legislature to help send a “strong signal” that Ohio is serious about competing for $9 billion in federal stimulus money for rail investments, the press release said.
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TweetStrahorn recommended for Ohio Senate
Former Ohio Rep. Fred Strahorn, D-Dayton, earned the nod from the Montgomery County Democratic Party’s executive committee to replace Ohio Senator Tom Roberts, D-Dayton.
The executive committee’s Thursday, March 12, recommendation now goes to the Senate Minority Caucus, which will pick someone to replace Roberts in the 5th District. Roberts stepped down in February to accept an appointment to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission.
The committee also screened Retired U.S. Army Lt. Col. Victor A. Harris and a third candidate, Jason S. Wheatley of Dayton, who asked to be screened even though he does not live in the district.
“Fred has far away more experience in the Statehouse and he would be, on the merits, the better candidate,” said Mark Owens, party chairman.
The Senate Minority Caucus will interview both Strahorn and Harris, according to Mike Rowe, spokesman for Sen. Minority Leader Capri Cafaro, D-Hubbard.
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TweetMore stimulus money headed to Ohio
Ohio will get more than $362.8 million in grants for weatherizing and energy efficiency, the White House announced Thursday, March 12.
It’s part of a pot of nearly $8 billion in stimulus money that the Obama administration projects will create 100,000 jobs nationwide.
Of that money, $266.7 million will go toward weatherizing homes, including adding more insulation, sealing leaks and modernizing heating and air conditioning. That program will allow an average investment of up to $6,500 per home in energy efficiency upgrades and will be available for families making about $44,000 a year for a family of four.
More than $96 million will go toward the state energy program, which will give consumers rebates for home energy audits or other energy saving improvements. It’ll also go toward the development of renewable energy projects and energy upgrades for state and local government buildings.
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TweetJohn Boehner has some stuff he wants to talk to you about
House Minority Leader John Boehner has been a multimedia machine lately. He was one of the first members whose staff got him on “Twitter,” the one-line blogging platform. Lately, he’s been releasing videos.
Here’s one where he’s asking for constituent input:
And here’s Boehner weighing in on the “Employee Free Choice Act,” introduced in the House this week:
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TweetDayton leaders want to add police, improve airport with stimulus funds
By Joanne Huist Smith
Staff Writer
DAYTON — The promise of millions of dollars in federal stimulus funds has Dayton city officials looking dreamy eyed and smiling.
Projects long in planning like building a new fire station, hiring additional police officers, and resurfacing all downtown streets could take years for the financially strapped city to fund on its own. Many of those initiatives could come together quickly if Dayton’s wish list is funded.
“We don’t know what we’re actually going to get,” City Manager Rashad Young said. I’m hopeful. This has been a huge work effort by the staff.” Young, on Wednesday, March 11, gave the Dayton City Commission an overview of projects he believes fit the criteria for stimulus funding.
He said projects like putting infrastructure on vacant property at Dayton International Airport would open up that land for development and, bring jobs to the city. “This is a tremendous opportunity for us,” Young said. A $3.5 to $5.3 million COPS grant could put 24 police officers on the streets of Dayton, in advance of significant, anticipated retirements in 2011, Young said. Other initiatives, like converting the city’s fleet to alternative fuels, may not sound glamorous, but it would save the city money in the long run and be better for the environment.
On April 10, the city plans to host a Stimulus Summit for key community partners such as CityWide Development Corp., the Greater Dayton Regional Transit Authority, Montgomery County, Dayton Metropolitan Housing Authority and Dayton Power and Light, to look at projects being proposed for the region.
“We want to look at what our partners are doing and what we can do to compliment them.”
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TweetBrunner gets Husted question
The Montgomery County Board of Elections just forwarded to Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner position papers on the question of whether State Sen. Jon Husted, R-Kettering, is a legal resident of Kettering for voting purposes, according to Betty Smith, deputy director of the board.
The board of elections matter goes to Brunner to break a tie vote. In February the board’s two Democrats said Husted did not prove residence and the two Republicans said he did.
Brunner’s legal counsel will review the documents, said Jeff Ortega, spokesman. There is no deadline for Brunner to rule, but she is aware that the matter needs resolved in a timely manner, Ortega said.
The local board began investigating in the wake of two complaints filed last year claiming Husted lives in Upper Arlington with his wife and kids, not in Kettering, where he is registered to vote.
Husted says he lives in Kettering, spends time at his wife’s house in Upper Arlington and, to the extent he does not stay in Kettering, it is a temporary absence allowed by law because he is a member of the Ohio General Assembly.
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TweetPlans unveiled for vote on four Ohio casinos
Backers of a plan to put casinos in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo on Wednesday, March 11, started the process of getting the proposal on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Principal backers are Penn National Gaming Inc. and Dan Gilbert, majority owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers NBA team.
A press release said that if approved by voters the proposal would result in $1 billion in “required new private investment, $200 million in licensing fees, $600 million annually in tax revenue - most of it for counties, cities and school districts - as well as create an estimated 20,000 new jobs for the state,” a press release said.
More information is available at www.ohiojobsandgrowth.org.
Voters four times since 1990 have rejected casino proposals but backers were optimistic.
“We are confident that Ohio voters will recognize that this is far and away the best and fairest proposal for casino gaming they have been asked to approve,” former Cincinnati Mayor Charlie Luken said in a press release. Luken is chairman of the Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee, formed to back the issue.
The committee submitted the proposal to Attorney General Richard Cordray to get the petition language approved. Once they get approval, backers will start gathering the more than 400,000 signatures from registered voters to get the plan on the ballot, the press release said. Deadline for submitting the signatures is July 1.
Here’s your chance to get in the casino debate.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Here’s where the casinos would be located, according to Bob Tenenbaum, spokesman for the committee:
*Cincinnati - On 20.4 acres in the Broadway Commons area in the eastern part of downtown.
*Toledo - On 44.2 acres along the Maumee River opposite the main part of downtown.
*Columbus - On 18.3 acres west of the Arena District which is at the northern end of downtown.
*Cleveland - On 87.5 acres, downtown adjacent to Quicken Loans Arena and along the Cuyahoga River.
Penn National Gaming was spent heavily last year to help defeat a proposed casino for Wilmington but wasn’t opposed to expanded gambling in Ohio, said Tenenbaum. The new proposal is “superior” to the Wilmington plan, he said.
David Zanotti, president of the Ohio Roundtable, a suburban Cleveland conservative research group that opposes gambling, predicted the new proposal would fail, as the previous four casino plans did. Zanotti predicted other gambling interests, including those based in Las Vegas, would oppose it.
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TweetStick a needle in it: more vaccines may be required
College students living in on-campus dorms and apartments would be required to be vaccinated for meningococcal meningitis and hepatitis B, unless they’re cleared for religious or medical reasons, if a bill introduced by state Sen. Gary Cates, R-West Chester, becomes law.
Cates pointed to recent meningitis cases at Miami University, Ohio State University and Ohio University in recent years as well as a recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that college students get vaccinated to protect against infection.
Meningitis can cause brain damage, hearing loss, learning disability and death.
“Meningitis and hepatitis B are both serious public health risks, particularly for Ohio college students living in the small, communal areas of a dorm or residence hall,” said Cates. “Vaccination is critical to prevent the spread of these life-threatening diseases and give our kids the opportunity to live and learn in a safe, healthy environment.”
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TweetState racing commission preparing proposal for slot machines at racetracks
The Ohio State Racing Commission this week plans to present a plan to state lawmakers to permit Ohio’s seven racetracks to operate slot machines, perhaps without a vote of the people, Sam Zonak, commission executive director Sam Zonak said on Tuesday, March 10.
“Our goal here is to help the state of Ohio and help horse racing,” Zonak said.
In a related development, state Rep. Clayton Luckie, D-Dayton, dean of the Dayton-area House delegation and a member of the Finance Committee, called for legalizing gambling. He said he supports gambling at the seven racetracks plus at casinos in the state’s eight major cities. He has not specifically endorsed the racing commission’s proposal, however.
“I’m tired of seeing money go across the border,” Luckie said.
The plan for the legislature to legalize slot machines at the racetracks without a vote of the people is based on an analysis by former Ohio Tax Commissioner Tom Zaino, now a member of the racing commission.
While the Ohio Constitution bans lotteries except the State Lottery, it does not prohibit other forms of gambling and slot machines have not been defined at lotteries, his analysis said. State law, not the Constitution, prohibits other kinds of gambling, the analysis said.
“…short of amending Ohio’s Constitution, the safest way for the General Assembly to insure the revenue stream from such slot machines is realized, would be for the General Assembly to empower an agency of the state to operate gambling,” the analysis said.
The agency could grant licenses to the track operators, the analysis said.
David Zanotti, president of the Ohio Roundtable, a suburban Cleveland research group opposed to gambling, said he doubted the validity of Zaino’s analysis and pledged that his group would oppose slots at the racetracks.
Zonak said it’s his understanding that Penn National Gaming, the group that helped defeat a ballot plan for a Wilmington casino last year, is about ready to announce a proposal to ask voters in November to approve four casinos - in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus and Toledo. A Penn National spokesman could not be reached.
Also, Gov. Ted Strickland “continues to believe expanded gambling is not the right economic development strategy for the state,” Amanda Wurst, Strickland’s spokeswoman said.
Ohio voters have rejected four casino gambling plans since 1990.
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Tweet16-year-olds could donate blood
State lawmakers are considering two bills that would allow kids as young as 16-year-old to donate blood as long as they have their parents’ consent.
The American Red Cross estimates that, if allowed, 16-year-olds across the state would donate 10,000 pints a year.
Mike Farley, lobbyist for the American Red Cross-Central Ohio, said high school students now account for 10 percent of all blood donations. Less than five percent of Americans donate blood but 85 percent will need a blood product at some point before they reach age 75, he said.
Do you think 16-year-olds should be allowed to give blood with their parents’ consent?
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TweetLetter warns Strickland budget “catastrophic” for poor
Cost-cutting plans in Gov. Ted Strickland’s proposed state budget would have a “severe and catastrophic effect” on needy Ohioans who rely on the state’s safety net.
That’s the warning shot that was fired on Monday, March 9, in a letter to Strickland from Joel Potts, executive director of the Ohio Job and Family Services Directors’ Association. Members of the group are directors of the job and family service agencies in Ohio’s 88 counties.
The group’s “most dire concern” is the plan to reduce to zero the money in a fund that county agencies use “almost exclusively” for the state’s child protection system, the letter said.
This would hurt the counties’ ability to investigate reports of abuse and neglect and to provide a safe living environment for children, the letter said. In a survey, some counties said they would lose as much as 75 percent of the staff responsible for providing services to abused and neglected children, the letter said.
Strickland spokeswoman Amanda Wurst had to make tough choices in his budget and prioritized using money for cash assistance and work support, including child care.
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TweetHearing on Strickland plan for schools set for Dayton
An Ohio House subcommittee on Monday, March 16, will hold a hearing in Dayton to review Gov. Ted Strickland’s education reform plan.
The Primary and Secondary Education Subcommittee of the House Finance Committee will meet at 4 p.m. at the Stivers School for the Arts, 1313 E. Fifth St. The hearing is open to the public.
Those submitting written testimony for committee records, should supply it to lauren.mcmillin@ohr.state.oh.us 24 hours in advance, a press release said. For questions, call 614-466-1790.
Strickland has proposed an “evidence-based” method of funding and overhauling schools which he says will make the system constitutional. Critics have raised doubts, however, about whether there is enough money in the budget to fund the plan and about how state money is distributed among schools districts. Backers of charter schools also have raised objections.
“This hearing will be an important outlet to discuss the future of education in Ohio,” Rep. Clayton Luckie, D-Dayton, a Finance Committee member, said in a press release on Tuesday, March 10.
Hearings already have been held in Akron and Marietta.
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TweetNational Association of Manufacturers digs Boehner yet again
House Minority Leader John Boehner racked up his sixth honorific from the National Association of Manufacturers, receiving its NAM Award Monday, March 10, at an event hosted in his district by AK Steel. John Engler, president and CEO of the association said Boehner, R-West Chester, has “demonstrated a true understanding of manufacturing’s key role in the strength of the American economy.”
Boehner is one of 43 U.S. Senators and 181 congressional representatives who earned the NAM Award for the 110th Congress.
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TweetMason math whiz scores trip to White House
A William Mason High School senior’s math skills earned him a trip to the White House Monday, as well as a handshake from the commander-in-chief.
Tong Zhan, 16, of Mason, was one of 40 finalists with the Intel Science Talent Search in the nation’s capital for the final’s of this year’s competition. The search, administered by the Society for Science and the Public, is America’s oldest and most prestigious science research competition for high school seniors, according to a press release sent out by the organization. Zhan was one of 1,608 to compete this year and will find out this week whether he won the competition.
Zhan earned his place in the finals by studying Ramsey’s Theory, a branch of mathematics that studies the conditions under which order appear during chaos. He met with Obama on the front porch of the White House, and said Obama talked briefly about the importance of science and math education before adding that his oldest daughter was also interested in science.
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TweetLoans at 680 percent APR legal under Ohio loopholes
Rather than be hemmed in by the new voter-approved short term loan law, payday lenders are turning to two other state statutes that allow them to continue making high-interest, high-fee loans, according to a study released Monday, March 9, by the Housing Research & Advocacy Center in Cleveland.
Last year, lawmakers approved the short-term loan act, which capped payday loans at 28 percent annual percentage rate. The payday lending industry mounted a multi-million dollar campaign to defeat the law through a ballot initiative but the voters approved the law.
But even before the voters had their say, payday lenders started getting licensed through the Small Loan Act and the Mortgage Loan Act, which allow them to make 14-day loans with an APR of 423 percent to 680 percent, respectively, the study said.
Some stores even require that the loan be issued through a money order or check, and then charge a fee to cash the money order or check, the study said.
“While there is a need for short term loans, these kinds of rates are outrageous and shouldn’t be allowed,” said Jeffrey Dillman, author of the study.
State Rep. Matt Lundy, D-Elyria, agrees.
“Obviously that was not the intent or the spirit of the law,” said Lundy. He is working with consumer groups, the state Department of Commerce and the attorney general’s office to draft new legislation that would close off the loopholes, he said.
“We don’t want to be back here doing this a third time,” Lundy said. “We want to make sure we close all the doors and close all the windows.”
CheckSmart Chief Executive Ted Saunders, who runs a chain of pay day lending stores, could not be reached for comment.
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TweetState sues CertifiChecks
Dayton-based CertifiChecks Inc. is being sued by the state of Ohio for failing to honor its gift certificates and for misleading consumers, Attorney General Richard Cordray announced Monday, March 9.
The company is charged with violating Ohio’s Consumer Sales Practices Act for failing to honor gift certificates after accepting payment from consumers. Cordray also charges CertifiChecks with misrepresenting that consumers could submit unused gift certificates for reimbursement.
“This company shut down and left consumers with useless, unredeemed gift certificates,” said Cordray. “Consumers purchased those gift certificates thinking they could be redeemed at participating businesses, only to learn that now they can’t be used at all.”
CertifiChecks shut down late last month and said it would file for bankruptcy.
Consumers who lost money to CertifiChecks may file a complaint with Cordray’s Office at SpeakOutOhio.gov or by calling (800) 282-0515.
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TweetAbortion pill case goes to Ohio Supreme Court
The question of whether Ohio doctors have the flexibility to prescribe RU-486, the abortion pill, beyond 49 days into a pregnancy is going before the Ohio Supreme Court on Tuesday, March 10.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved RU-486 in September 2000, based on clinical trials involving women up to 49 days into their pregnancy receiving a 600 milligram dose plus a second drug two days later.
Since then, doctors have developed “off label” protocols that called for a 200 mg dose plus the second drug three days later for women within 63 days of getting pregnant. Planned Parenthood clinics in Ohio started using this method.
But in 2004, Ohio passed a law limiting doctors to prescribing RU-486 only in compliance with federal laws. It became a felony to do otherwise.
Planned Parenthood of Southwest Ohio sued to block the law and have it declared unconstitutional. Two questions in the case have made it to the Ohio Supreme Court: whether state law limits prescriptions for RU-486 to within the 49 day window and whether different off label doses are permitted under state law.
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TweetUPDATED: John McCain no fan of Dayton Society of Natural History earmark
Sen. John McCain, who visited Dayton last year to introduce vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin to the campaign, is no fan of a $143,000 earmark for Dayton in the omnibus appropriations bill currently stalled in the U.S. Senate.
He’s been “twittering” - that’s short of a one-line blog, for the technological newbies reading this - about his least favorite earmarks in the $410 billion bill.
Among those he’s picked on: “$143,000 for the Dayton Society of Natural History in Dayton, Ohio.”
He’s also tagged $75,000 for the “Totally Teen Zone” in Albany, Ga.; $385,000 for the Utah World Trade Center and $2.1 million for a ferry boat in San Juan, Puerto Rico.
UPDATE: The earmark is in a section of the bill devoted to education, among other agencies, and doesn’t list which member requested the earmark, which would go toward exhibits and the purchase of equipment. On the same page is an earmark for the Aviation Heritage Foundation worth $95,000. That, too, is a Dayton earmark - but it didn’t catch McCain’s eye.
Michael Gessel of the Dayton Development Coalition said the earmark will expand educational programs at the Boonshoft Museum.
“This is a terrific project that will benefit residents of the Dayton area,” he said. “It is educational and it’s the kind of educational funding that our federal government should be doing. We should be proud that our government is funding this kind of worthwhile project.”
The project cleared the Dayton Development Coalition’s process for requesting federal funds.
Mark Meister, president and CEO of the Dayton Society of Natural History, meanwhile, says the earmark, which has been in the works since at least last year, is only one part of a $4 million project to renovate portions of the museum’s space and science gallery, zoo and planetarium. The money is part of a big pot of federal money for libraries and education. Most of the money for the project will come from corporate and private foundations as well as individual contributions. This is the second time the museum has ever sought federal funds, he said.
Meister acknowledges that “there are clearly projects in the past that have not been a legitimate use of federal money,” but said his museum is not one of them. “It’s a very small amount of the total budget,” he said, “and far too much is made of it in this situation.”
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TweetUPDATED Obama lauds Columbus police cadets; says nation can emerge “stronger” from economic crisis
COLUMBUS - On a day the government announced that the national unemployment rate spiked to 8.1 percent in February, President Barack Obama said 25 new Columbus police recruits symbolized what his economy recovery plan is doing to revive the economy.
Doubters of his $787 billion plan should look at the recruits, he said Friday, March 6.
“I ask them to come to Ohio and meet the 25 men and women who will soon be protecting the streets of Columbus because we passed this plan,” Obama said at the officers’ graduation ceremony at the Aladdin Shrine Center.
He urged the audience of 1,000, to emulate the new officers’ spirit.
“Then I have no doubt we will emerge from this crisis stronger than before,” Obama said in his 12-minute speech.
Columbus is using $1.2 million from the stimulus plan to pay the officers for this year. Until the money became available, Mayor Michael Coleman had laid the new officers off.
Ohio Republican Chairman Kevin DeWine responded to the Democratic president’s visit in a press release:
“It’s great that we’re keeping more law enforcement on the streets, but this is a temporary solution to a long term problem.
President Obama is content to borrow money from the next generation to pay the current generation’s bills and someone at some point has to pay for it.”
It was Obama’s first trip to Ohio since his inauguration on Jan. 20.
He used his Columbus stop to announce that $2 billion in the stimulus plan will be allocated for state and local law enforcement assistance, including $61.6 for the state of Ohio. Law enforcement agencies in the Miami Valley are slated to receive some of the money.
Obama said the key to economy recovery was bold action.
”..I also know that this country has never responded to a crisis by sitting on the sidelines and hoping for the best. I know that throughout our history, we have met every great challenge with bold action and big ideas,” he said.
Miami County Democratic Chairman Kelly Gillis and his wife, Dee, a Tipp City city councilwoman, were invited guests. Both lauded Obama’s remarks and his decision to come to Ohio.
“I’m hoping and praying the stimulus works,” said Mrs. Gillis.
Katherine Cull, 26, of Columbus, came to see her brother Kyle graduate with the police class.
“His speech was very inspiring,” Cull said of Obama.
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TweetMiami County Dem chairman at Ohio Obama speech
Miami County Democratic Chairman Kelly Gillis was among hundreds of invited guests who began gathering this morning, March 6, outside the Aladdin Shrine Center in Columbus to hear President Barack Obama on his first visit to Ohio since his inauguration as president.
“I got an invitation. I’m really excited to be here,” said Gillis. “I would like to hear he’s bringing a whole lot of money to Ohio in the stimulus package,” said Gillis, accompanied by his wife Dee. “….I’m very proud of him.”
Obama is scheduled to speak about 10:30 a.m. at the graduation ceremony for 25 new Columbus police officers.
Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman had planned to lay off the new officers even before they hit the streets until $1.2 million from $787 billion Obama’s economic stimulus plan became available to pay them for the year.
Other funding will have to be found after that in Columbus, which is having budget problems.
Police Chief Pro Tem Walter Distelzweig, however, said “I’m pretty confident we’ll be fine.” Retirements will offset some of the costs for the new officers, he said. While presidents frequently have visited Columbus, this is the first time that the city’s police have hosted such a visit, he said.
“We are excited,” he said. He said the $1.2 million will pay the salaries of the new officers but the city will have to kick in additional money to cover all benefits.
An invited crowd of 1,000 was expected. Gov. Ted Strickland and U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, were expected to be here.
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TweetBrown and Obama: Total BFFs?
Sen. Sherrod Brown, who just this week moved into the office formerly occupied by President Barack Obama, capped the week by spending a whole lot of time with the new president.
Brown, D-Ohio, was among the attendees at the White House Health Care Summit Thursday.
And Friday, March 6, he’ll be among those attending the Columbus Police Academy Graduation with Obama. Obama’s coming to Columbus in part to tout his economic stimulus plan, which kept the 25 police recruits from being laid off.
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TweetJoe the Plumber on life after the election
Here’s “Joe the Plumber,” also known as Samuel Wurzelbacher, talking about life after the election.
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TweetU.S. House Republicans call for state oversight board on federal stimulus dollars
Ohio Republicans in the U.S. House want Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland to set up an “independent, bipartisan oversight board” to ensure “transparency and openness” as Ohio distributes federal stimulus dollars.
They made the request on Thursday, March 5, in a letter to Strickland.
Strickland said he already has thrown his support behind a proposal to establish a deputy inspector general to monitor how federal stimulus money is spent. The provision was included in the state transportation budget that the Ohio House approved on Thursday.
“I think the letter was unnecessary, given what we’ve already done,” said Strickland.
U.S. Reps. Mike Turner of Centerville, Steve Austria of Beavercreek, Jim Jordan of Urbana and John Boehner of West Chester were among those signing the letter to Strickland.
The board would be made up of no more than one elected official from the Republican and Democratic parties and Certified Public Accountants and auditors, the letter said.
The letter also asks that the state Web site for the stimulus, http://recovery.ohio.gov/ be updated with a detailed accounting of each stimulus expenditure within 24 hours or executive or legislative action appropriating the money.
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Tweet“Joe the Plumber” sues Jones-Kelley, two others
Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher - better known as “Joe the Plumber” - has sued Helen Jones-Kelley of Clayton and two of Jones-Kelley’s former top aides at the Ohio Department of Job an Family Services. Jones-Kelley of Clayton was department director.
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court in Columbus, on Thursday, March 5, charged that the three improperly searched “confidential state databases” to retaliate against Wurzelbacher for criticizing then presidential candidate Barack Obama. Their actions “are sufficient to chill or silence a person of ordinary firmness from future First Amendment activities,” the lawsuit said.
The three also violated Wurzelbacher’s right to privacy, the lawsuit added. Wurzzelbacher has “suffered substantial damages, including emotional distress, harassment, personal humiliation and embarrassment,” the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit demands unspecified damages “as the Court deems just and proper. It sues the three defendants in their “personal capacity” and does not name the state as a defendant.
Jones-Kelley’s lawyer, Ritchey Hollenbaugh, had no immediate reaction.
“We havent’ had a chance to read it (the lawsuit),” said Hollenbaugh.
Jones-Kelley resigned last December in the wake of the controversy. The other two defendants are Doug Thompson, who formerly worked in Montgomery County, and Fred Williams. Thompson had his job as ODJFS deputy director revoked and Williams, an assistant director, resigned.
Wurzelbacher, of suburban Toledo, became known around the world after he questioned Democrat Obama and Obama’s tax policies and endorsed Republican John McCain for president.
Ohio Inspector General Tom Charles found in an investigation that Jones-Kelley improperly authorized state database searches for personal information about Wurzelbacher.
McCain welcomed Wurzelbacher’s support and gleefully referred to him as “Joe the Plumber.” Wurzelbacher had worked in the plumbing business, but was not a licensed plumber.
Judicial Watch, a conservative ublic interest group that investigates government corruption, announced a press conference at 2 p.m. Thursday at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. to discuss the lawsuit.
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TweetHunters beware: wildlife officers have room to roam
The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Thursday, March 5, that state wildlife officers have the authority to enter private land when doing their jobs, regardless of whether they have “good cause” to believe that a law has been violated.
The ruling stems from an incident in September 2006 when an Erie County wildlife officer saw three people hunting for mourning doves in a rural field. The officer entered the field to check their licenses and make sure they hadn’t exceeded the bag limit. The officer then found piles of wheat seed, which is used to bait the birds. However, baiting game birds is illegal in Ohio so the officer cited all three hunters.
The hunters tried to get the case thrown out, arguing that the officer’s entry onto the field was illegal. The trial court agreed but the 6th District Court of Appeals overturned the trial court. The Supreme Court affirmed the appeals court decision.
Chief Justice Thomas Moyer, who wrote the decision, said state law authorizes wildlife officers to enter private land during the normal enforcement of fish and game laws.
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TweetOhio homeowners enjoy low rates
Ohioans paid a tiny bit less for homeowners insurance in 2006, compared with 2005, the state Department of Insurance announced Thursday, March 5.
Ohio’s homeowners insurance premiums are the sixth lowest in the country, based on a report by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
In 2006, Ohio homeowners paid an average of $542, down from $545 in 2005. The national average in 2006 was $801, up from $767 in 2005.
Fluctuations in premiums are due mostly to building and material costs and weather-related insurance claims.
The 2006 figures are latest available but Ohio Department of Insurance spokesman Jarrett Dunbar said it looks like 2008 insurance premiums in Ohio went up slightly.
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TweetBy 2-1 margin, American voters OK Afghan troop buildup
By a 2-1 margin, American voters approve of President Barack Obama’s decision to send 17,000 more combat troops to Afghanistan, but they’re less enthusiastic about the possibility of sending yet another 13,000 troops to the war zone.
Those are key results of a national Quinnipiac University poll released on Thursday, March 5.
Voters approved sending the additional 17,000 troops, 62-31 percent. However, by a much closer 47-43 percent margin they said Obama should approve a request by military commanders to send another 13,000 troops.
Here’s a chance to get in the foreign policy debate.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Overall, voters approved of how Obama is handling foreign policy, 56-21 percent, with Democrats supporting the president, 78-6 percent and Republicans disapproving, 43-31 percent. A slim majority of independents supported how the president is conducting foreign policy, 51-21 percent.
Younger voters, 18-29 - a group that supported Obama - favored the 17,000 troop buildup 54-45 percent but disapproved the call for 13,000 more troops, 54-39 percent.
Also, Democrats, women, blacks, Hispanics, voters older than 65 and voters earning less than $50,000 annually supported the 17,000 troop buildup but opposed the additional request.
The poll surveyed 2,573 voters across the nation from Feb. 25 to Monday, March 2, and had a margin of error of plus or minus 1.9 percentage points.
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TweetCiting lobbyist ties, Coburn unsuccessfully seeks to strip Ohio earmark out of spending bill
Earmark hawk Sen. Tom Coburn of Oklahoma Wednesday unsuccessfully sought to strip 14 earmarks affiliated with troubled lobbyist PMA out of a $410 billion omnibus appropriations bill. One of those earmarks was pushed by Sens. George Voinovich and Sherrod Brown, who are among the very long list of Capitol Hill lawmakers whose campaigns have received money from PMA.
Their earmark, pushed in the House by fellow PMA campaign contribution recipient Marcy Kaptur, D-Toledo, would provide more than $1 million million to Xunlight, a Toledo company that creates flexible solar glass panels. Voinovich, approached Wednesday on Capitol Hill, was very familiar with the earmark. But not so much with PMA.
“TMA?” he replied, when asked about the company, which has given his campaign $9,000 throughout his career. After a reporter described the lobbying firm, Voinovich seemed no less befuddled. “I don’t even know who PMA is,” he said.
But he was all too familiar with the earmark itself, describing at length the company’s plans to expand the program and create more jobs. He said the company aims to hire displaced automotive workers.
As for PMA: the FBI reportedly raided their offices in November. It was the second lobbying firm with ties to U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, that the feds have raided in the last year. Murtha is the chairman of a House subcommittee that doles out Defense dollars.
In Ohioans, almost half of the state’s congressmen’s campaign committees have received PMA contributions. Among the leading recipients are Kaptur, D-Toledo, and Tim Ryan, D-Niles, another Appropriations committee member. Also on the list: U.S. Reps. Steve Austria, R-Beavercreek, Mike Turner, R-Centerville, John Boccieri, D-Alliance, Mary Jo Kilroy, D-Columbus John Boehner, R-West Chester and Charlie Wilson, D-Bridgeport.
U.S. Rep. David Hobson, who retired from Congress at the end of last year, meanwhile, received $88,000 from PMA throughout his career, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Brown, meanwhile, received $1,500, according to the Center.
PMA and its representatives have not been charged with any crime, and watchdogs as well as published reports say any federal investigation seems most likely focused on Murtha.
As for Voinovich, he said he opposed the idea of stripping federal dollars from the Toledo company, saying it’s doing the kind of work that will help create jobs in a struggling economy.
“The real issue is the quality of the project,” he said. “And that’s the whole thing about earmarks. Some earmarks are good and some earmarks are not good.”
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TweetElections Commission hearing on Dann cases delayed
The Ohio Elections Commission is delaying a hearing on two cases involving former Attorney General Marc Dann until March 19, Philip C. Richter, commission executive director said on Wednesday, March 4.
The hearing had been set for Thursday, March 5. The cases involve allegations that Dann illegally converted campaign cash for his own personal use.
The delay is to give commission members more time to consider Dann’s arguments and for new Attorney General Richard Cordray to respond to issues that Dann has raised, Richter said in a press release.
Columbus Bureau reporter Laura A. Bischoff has been following the case and provided this background:
Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and state Inspector General Tom Charles both filed complaints against Dann, who resigned in May after a sexual harassment scandal involving his appointees and admitting his own affair with a junior staff member.
The General Assembly passed a law last year that granted temporary authority to Charles to investigate the attorney general’s office. The law sunset as soon as Charles submitted his report to the governor and General Assembly.
Dann and his attorney, Donald J. McTigue, raised three arguments with the Ohio Elections Commission:
*That the legislation didn’t give Charles the authority to file a complaint with any agency.
*The elections commission doesn’t have jurisdiction without receiving a sworn affidavit based on complainant’s personal knowledge — and Charles’ report wasn’t based on personal knowledge.
*The legislation is unconstitutional because it’s tailored for one person, rather than general application, and the provision was tacked onto an unrelated bill.
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TweetBrown moves into Obama’s old office
Time was, Sen. Sherrod Brown’s greatest brush with senatorial fame was the fact that his desk on the floor of the Senate was once used by former attorney general Robert Kennedy.
Now, he’s got something else to trumpet: Brown, D-Ohio, last night moved into offices once occupied by President Barack Obama. Brown left his Russell Building offices (ornate, very formal) for the more modern-confines of the 7th floor of Hart. Sen. George Voinovich, R-Ohio, also has offices in that building.
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TweetIt’s official: Obama coming to Columbus Friday
President Barack Obama will return to Ohio Friday for the first time since he was inaugurated, making remarks at the the Columbus Police Graduation Exercises. He’ll be accompanied by Attorney General Eric Holder.
The visit is being used to tout the economic stimulus bill that passed last month. Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman said last week he would use money from that stimulus bill to keep new policemen and women in their jobs.
What’s unclear is what will happen in 2010, when funds from that stimulus bill run out.
Friday’s events are not open to the public. Obama is set to arrive late Friday morning and leave Columbus early Friday afternoon.
This will mark Obama’s second visit to Ohio since the state helped win him the presidency. He visited Cleveland’s Cardinal Fastener Company in January four days before his inauguration.
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TweetAmerican voters: Neither Obama nor federal government can fix economy in two years
American voters don’t believe President Barack Obama or the federal government can fix the nation’s economic crisis in two years, but they like the job Obama is doing as president.
Those are key results from a new national Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday, March 4.
In the poll, half the voters were asked: “Do you believe the federal government will be able to fix the economic crisis in two years?” They said no, 68-26 percent.
The other half were asked: “Do you believe President Obama will be able to fix the economic crisis in two years?” They said no, 64-28 percent.
However, voters approved of the way Obama is handling the economy, 57-33 percent. Also, they trusted the president more than Republicans in Congress to handle the economy, 56-26 percent.
You can join the debate about economic crisis and Obama and the federal government.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]Also in the poll, most voters supported Obama’s $75 billion mortgage rescue plan - 57-35 percent - but also said it wasn’t fair to those who pay their mortgages on time, 64-29 percent.
Still, they believed the plan would stabilize home prices, 55-37 percent. Also, 72 percent of renters backed the plan, compared to just 53 percent of homeowners.
“Our dual question on whether Obama or the ‘government’ can fix the economic crisis in two years shows some Obama magic has faded, leaving him with only a little more credibility than ‘the government’,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac Polling Institute, said in a press release.
“But by an impressive 56-26 percent margin, voters trust the president over congressional Republicans to do a better job of handling the economy.”
The poll was taken from Wednesday, Feb. 25, to Monday, March 2, with 2,573 American voters and had a margin of error of plus or minus 1.9 percentage points.
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TweetTurner wants a commission to study foreclosure crisis
U.S. Rep. Mike Turner, R-Centerville, has introduced a measure seeking to create a congressional commission to study the root causes of the nation’s foreclosure and mortgage lending crisis.
He tried to have the amendment attached last week to a bill that would allow bankruptcy judges to modify loans on primary residences, but will likely push the bill as a standalone measure this week.
His proposal would create a bipartisan commission of 10 members, including two co-chairmen, that would study the current legal and regulatory framework governing housing mortgage lending markets.
The commission would also study how the current framework contributed to the boom in foreclosures. The commission would also craft recommendations aimed at preventing future crises.
The commission, he said, would “lead to real bipartisan work and solutions for working American families.”
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TweetState Senate says good-bye to Tom Roberts
The Ohio Senate on Tuesday, March 3, bid Democrat Tom Roberts of Dayton a fond, bipartisan farewell.
Roberts resigned to take a position on the Ohio Civil Rights Commission. Members of his family were in the Senate chambers for the tributes.
“He’s just a person who conducted himself with a lot of class, a lot of integrity,” said Sen. John Carey, R-Wellston, Finance Committee chairman.
Sen. Keith Faber, R-Celina, said he and Roberts each represented part of Darke County and often attended events together.
“Tom has always commanded respect,” said Faber.
Sen. Ray Miller, D-Columbus, like Roberts a protege of the late state Rep. C.J. McLin of Dayton, said Roberts was “as solid as a rock.”
“He’s a doer, not just a talker,” said Miller. “He gets the job done.”
Roberts appeared touched by the tributes.
“I will miss this place,” said Roberts, who served more than 20 years in the legislature. “I will miss both sides of the aisle.”
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TweetHouse, Senate differ on tax credits for movie-making
The House and Senate both want to lure movie-makers to Ohio but they’re millions of dollars apart when it comes to the tax credits needed to do the luring.
The Democratic-controlled House on Tuesday, March 3, passed House Bill 6, which would provide up to $20 million in refundable credits over two years, with a limit of $5 million per production. If the amount of a refundable credit reduces the taxpayer’s liability to less than zero, the taxpayer gets a refund for the difference.
Also Tuesday, the Republican-controlled Senate approved Senate Bill 9, patterned after a bill Democratic Gov. Ted Strickland vetoed last year. Their plan would provide up to $100 million in nonrefundable, transferable tax credits per year, with a limit of $25 million per production. A transferable credit may be bought, sold or traded between taxpayers.
Strickland supports the House version, said Amanda Wurst, his spokeswoman.
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TweetVets’ bonus plan approved for Nov. 3 ballot
Ohio voters on Nov. 3 will decide whether veterans of the Persian Gulf War and continued fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan should receive cash bonuses from the state, as veterans of other wars did.
The House voted 92-3 on Tuesday, March 3, to put the issue on the ballot. The Senate already had approved the ballot plan in February. Gov. Ted Strickland’s signature is not required, but Strickland supports the plan.
Rep. John Adams, R-Sidney, cast one of the “no” votes.
“I”m opposed to the irresponsible fiscal side of it,” said Adams. The proposal calls for borrowing money to pay for the bonuses by issuing bonds. Strickland last year vetoed a bonus plan that called for using cash from the “rainy day” fund to pay for the bonuses. Bonuses after previous wars have been financed by bonds.
The proposal would provide $100 a month - up to a maximum of $1,000 - for veterans who served in the conflicts and bonuses of $50 a month - up to a maximum of $500 - for veterans who served elsewhere during the conflicts.
Also, family members of those killed in action would receive $5,000.
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TweetConcealed weapons more popular in Ohio
County sheriffs issued 53.2 percent more concealed weapons permits in 2008 than they did in 2007, according to an annual report released by Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray this week.
Last year, 33,864 permits were issued, compared with 22,103 in 2007 and 18,781 in 2006.
Ohio began allowing adults who pass a background check and required training to carry concealed weapons in April 2004. Since then, 142,732 CCW permits have been issued statewide.
Ohio also honors permits issued in 18 other states.
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TweetVets’ bonus proposal appears headed for ballot
A proposal to give Ohio voters the chance to approve cash bonuses for veterans of the Persian Gulf War and the continued fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan appears headed for final legislative passage on Tuesday, March 3.
If, as expected, the House approves the resolution, Sen. Tim Grendell, R-Chesterland, the original backer of the plan, said he would begin working with veterans groups and Bill Hartnett, director of the veterans’ affairs department, to lead a campaign to win passage on the Nov. 3 ballot. The Senate approved the resolution in February.
In normal economic times getting voter approval wouldn’t be a problem but with the economy in tatters, “we better make sure we spend …time making sure the message” gets out, said Grendell. He took up the cause in 2007 after the proposal first came from then state Treasurer Richard Cordray, a Democrat who’s now attorney general.
Gov. Ted Strickland does not have to sign the resolution to get it on the ballot but has indicated he supports the effort.
The plan would provide up to $100 a month - up to a maximum of $1,000 - for veterans who served in the conflicts and bonuses of $50 a month - up to a maximum of $500 - for veterans who served elsewhere during the conflicts. The state would borrow money by issuing bonds to pay for the bonuses.
Last year Strickland vetoed legislation that called for using money from the state’s “rainy day” fund to pay for the bonuses. The “rainy day” fund money now is included in Strickland’s proposed two-year budget proposal.
The state previously has approved bonds to provide cash benefits to veterans of World War I, World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, but none since then.
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TweetOn 2nd anniversary of Bluffton accident, Brown pushes motorcoach safety bill anew
Sens. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio and Kay Bailey Hutchison, R-Texas, got as far as a hearing last year on their bill aimed at beefing up motorcoach safety.
But they ran out of time, and the legislative year ended before they could get their bill on the floor. So Monday, the two senators reintroduced the bill, which would require safety belts on motorcoaches, anti-ejection window glazing to keep passengers from being thrown through windows and crush-resistant roofs, among other safety provisions.
The bill was inspired in part by the March 2, 2007 accident of the Bluffton University baseball team, which resulted in the death of five members of the baseball team, the wife and his driver and injuries to the other 33 passengers on board.
“In the two years since the Bluffton University bus crash, it has become clear that we need motorcoach safety reform and we need it now,” Brown said. “This bipartisan legislation will help prevent bus trips from becoming tragedies.”
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TweetWhite House: Community Health Centers of Greater Dayton, other health centers get stimulus cash
Ohio will get $6.3 million for five health centers in Ohio under the economic stimulus bill passed last month, the White House announced Monday, March 3.
Among them: Community Health Centers of Greater Dayton and Rocking Horse Center in Springfield
That health centers, and others, are aimed at helping people in need, including those with no health insurance, and the money would serve 25,950 state residents and create 190 jobs, according to the White House’s release.
Money would also go to Lorain County Health and Dentistry in Lorain; Fairfield County Combined General Health District in Lancaster and Lower Light Christian Health Center, Inc. in Columbus.
The money is part of $155 million that will help 126 health centers nationwide provide health care to an estimated 750,000 low-income people.
The grants are administered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Resources and Services Administration and are aimed at creating 5,500 jobs at the new health centers across the country.
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TweetAuditor Taylor: Strickland tardy in turning over records for audit
Auditor Mary Taylor on Monday, March 2, said she can’t audit the state’s books for the last fiscal year because Gov. Ted Strickland’s administration so far hasn’t turned over the necessary financial records.
Taylor, Ohio’s only Republican statewide executive officeholder, said the delay appears “unprecedented” and calls into question Democrat Strickland’s commitment to being transparent and accountable to the voters.
“How will the governor know where to go fiscally if he doesn’t know where he’s been?” Taylor asked at a press conference at her office.
The financial records she needs detail how much money the state took in, how the money was spent and how much was on hand on June 30, 2008, the end of the last fiscal year.
Taylor sent a letter to Strickland, House Speaker Armond Budish, D-Beachwood, and Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland outlining her concerns. She also sent the letter to William Shkurti, Ohio State University senior vice president and chairman of the State Audit Committee.
Strickland spokeswoman Amanda Wurst said that Strickland was “concerned about the delay and has asked the Office of Budget and Management and other agencies to pull this information together as quickly as possible.”
Taylor said she understands there have been problems with the state’s $158 million OAKS payroll and accounting system but added that her office had been able to pull the data it needed for its audit from the system.
Strickland understands that state agencies are completing their financial reporting with this system for the first time, said Wurst.
“I am aware of the burden of implementing a new accounting system, however, failing to prioritize preparation of financial statements stands in the way of a timely audit and I believe the taxpayers of Ohio deserve nothing less,” Taylor said in the letter.
The auditor also said the lack of an audit on the state’s financial condition could affect the bond rating, which determines how much it costs to borrow money.
If a school district or local government had been this tardy in providing the records, Taylor said she would have declared it “unauditable” which in some cases would have resulted in financial penalties. There is no deadline for the state to provide the financial records for the audit, she said. She said she might discuss establishing such a deadline with the legislature.
Taylor’s letter comes with the current fiscal year set to expire June 30, 2009, and the legislature now working on a new two-year budget in the midst of a major economic slowdown and decline in state revenues.
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TweetOhio National Guard to get $8.5 million in stimulus money
The Ohio National Guard will receive $8.5 million in federal stimulus money for capital improvements to 22 facilities across the state.
The money will be used for roofing and energy efficiency projects, including adding solar panels at guard facilities in Columbus, Toledo and Newton Falls.
“These projects will save the National Guard about $78,000 in utility costs within the first year of operation, and will generate about 375,000 Kilowatt hours of electricity per year,” said Maj. Gen. Gregory Wayt, the adjutant general.
The federal stimulus bill includes $266 million for roofing and energy efficiency projects at the state National Guards’ facilities.
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TweetApply to be an Ohio Senator
Persons wishing to be appointed to replace Ohio Sen. Tom Roberts, D-Dayton, should submit a letter of intent and resume to the Montgomery County Democratic Party by Friday, March 6, at 5 p.m., according to Mark Owens, party chairman.
The Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus will choose someone to replace Roberts, who is leaving his 5th District seat to become a member of the Ohio Civil Rights Commission. His resignation was effective Feb. 28.
The local party will submit up to three recommendations for a replacement to the Minority Leader’s office by Friday.
Applicants must live in the Senate 5th District, which covers parts of Montgomery and Darke counties and all of Miami County.
Interested parties should contact Democratic headquarters for information. Call 222-4007.
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TweetDann case goes to Elections Commission
The Ohio Elections Commission will hear the case against former attorney general Marc Dann on Thursday, March 5, that he illegally converted campaign cash for his own personal use.
The Elections Commission isn’t moving the meeting to a larger venue so seats are expected to be filled quickly for the 10 a.m. hearing.
The five-member bipartisan commission has the power to dismiss the complaint or make findings, issue fines and refer the matter to the Franklin County prosecutor for possible criminal charges.
The complaint, filed by the secretary of state, alleges that Dann personally benefitted from $40,610 in security improvements to his Liberty Twp. home in Trumbull County that was paid for by the Dann campaign committee. The expense wasn’t related to his official duties or to influence an election, as state law requires, the complaint said.
Dann’s attorney, Donald McTigue, disagrees and says the expense wouldn’t have been needed had he not been attorney general.
The secretary of state’s office is also questioning $4,369 in cell phone bills paid directly by the campaign committee. The phones were used by Dann, his wife and their children for personal and campaign calls.
Dann, a Democrat, resigned in May after a sexual harassment scandal involving friends and neighbors he had appointed to his administration. He also admitted having an affair with a staff member 18 years his junior.
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