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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2009 > October > 15 > Entry
Watchdog growls at lawmakers: few laws, lots of fundraisers
A government watchdog on Thursday, Oct. 15, released a study that showed Ohio legislators and Gov. Ted Strickland this year have been busy with fundraisers, but not so busy when it comes to enacting laws.
The study from Ohio Citizen Action’s Money in Politics project found that since January the House and Senate have canceled 40 of 92 sessions but have held 243 fundraisers, while canceling just three fundraisers.
Also, since January just nine bills have been signed into law, the lowest total in the past four legislatures.
“We really have come to almost a standstill,” said Catherine Turcer, director of the Money in Politics project.
The price tag to taxpayers for paying lawmakers and legislative support agencies is more than $55 million a year, said Turcrer.
The responsibility to get things moving is shared by House Speaker Armond Budish, D-Beachwood, Senate President Bill Harris, R-Ashland and Gov. Ted Strickland, a Democrat, said Turcer.
Keary McCarthy, spokesman for Budish, said comparing “numbers to numbers” doesn’t reflect what’s been going on in the legislature.
The $50.5 billion state budget, House Bill 1, not only appropriated money but enacted significant policy changes, including an overhaul of K-12 education, McCarthy said.
It also included economic development provisions such as several tax credits aimed at spurring investment, McCarthy added.
Aides to Strickland and Harris had no immediate reaction.
Lawmakers are focused on next year’s elections, not this year’s problems, Turcer said. said.
“When push comes to shove, it’s all about election 2010,” said Turcer.
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Comments
By Watchdogalso
October 15, 2009 3:40 PM | Link to this
Ohio Citizen Action’s Money in Politics is funded by the Joyce Foundation, so it makes you wonder what their real agenda is. The Joyce Foundation gave millions of dollars to friends of Obama while Obama was on the Board of Directors,So complaining about lawmakers while taking money froma corrupt organization is kind of hypocritical isn’t it?
By Johnny Springfield
October 15, 2009 2:35 PM | Link to this
The other side of this coin is that the more laws they don’t pass, the less harm they’ll do, and the better off we will be for it. Let’s also note that the Statehouse gang has hardly bent its cost curve on the $55 million in expenses it takes just to keep the political football fields (Senate and House floors) it plays on during session days ready for the next big game. Let sleeping dogs fundraise. By the way, the watchdog referred to in this article, can growl and knows what to look for — but its big problem is that it’s a fenced-in dog. Quell domage.