"Two Visions, One Choice" highlights the differences between the two presidential candidates on such important issues as class size, school funding and making college affordable.

Watch It:

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Every day, Catholic sisters help the less fortunate, and this week they'll cross Ohio to highlight the effects harmful federal budget cuts would have on those they serve. The Nuns on the Bus tour will visit social service agencies and local leaders to discuss the effects of the Republican Ryan budget and promote the need for a "faithful budget" that values solidarity, justice and the common good.

Sister Monica McGloin of Cincinnati says it's a budget that ensures the right of all people to have health care.

"A faithful budget would ensure that access to health care by investing in wellness and making needed improvements in the health-care system."

Sr. McGloin and others are concerned that a federal budget that slashes dollars to the states will cause Ohio to cut back on vital programs for seniors, children and people with disabilities. She says it's critical to not cut programs such as Medicare and Medicaid and instead to expand them, so all Ohioans can lead healthy lives.

We've been saying it for a while: Representative Renacci in Congress has voted to give giant checks in the form of tax cuts to the richest 2% that theydon't need and we can't afford.

That's why we're proud to announce the first web video we've produced in coordination with Americans for Tax Fairness Action Fund, titled "Checks for Millionaires".

Check out the video and sign up to learn more today.

Now with Congress back in session and scheduled to vote again on extending the Bush tax cuts for the richest 2% before the end of the year - it's time we send a powerful message to Representative Renacci, fat cat lobbyists and their millionaire donors that we are sick and tired of a tax system that hurts middle class priorities like Medicare and education while letting the rich get off the hook without paying their fair share.

We know that the stakes are too high to stay silent on this issue. People like you all across America have been attending events, and making calls to your friends and neighbors all summer. We know that the richest 2% and their friend Rep. Renacci want to extend the Bush tax cuts for the richest 2% indefinitely - and programs that millions of Americans rely on, like Medicare, will be tossed aside if they get their way.

Help us share this video  - and the message inside it.

We need to let people know exactly how Rep. Renacci in Congress Voted, and make sure he doesn't make the same vote this December: Let's get out there and make sure folks see this.

It's time the wealthiest Americans and big corporations paid their fair share of taxes. That starts with ending the Bush-era tax cuts for the richest 2%.

If we don't end these tax cuts, then checks will continue to be sent by politicians to millionaires in the form of huge tax breaks. At least $160,000 a year, on average.

Help us stop politicians from stacking the deck in favor of their wealthy campaign contributors and corporate interests while the middle class gets stuck with the tab.

Sign our petition today.

Mitt Romney has tapped Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan to be his VP running mate.

For the first time ever a presidential candidate will be running on his Veep's ideas.

Here's a snapshot of Paul Ryan's budget plan:

COLUMBUS--Today, members of the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus issued the following statements regarding the estimates released by the Office of Budget and Management indicating that Ohio will finish fiscal year 2013 with a $408 million surplus.

Minority Leader Eric H. Kearney (D-Cincinnati):

"This shows that Gov. Kasich's planning is poor. This money should have been used to assist Ohio schools or struggling local governments. To the extent the Ohio economy is rebounding it is attributable to President Obama's decisive action to save Ohio's auto industry and prevent the bottom from falling out of Ohio's economy."

Sen. Joe Schiavoni (D-Boardman):

"Governor Kasich's decision to cut local government funding by 50 percent has forced taxpayers to foot the bill through additional levies.  If this surplus holds, these funds could help struggling families and Ohio's children by restoring essential services and reinvesting in our public schools."

Sen. Nina Turner (D-Cleveland):

It is wrong to force local governments to ask their citizens to vote for tax increases while the state sits on a surplus of hundreds of millions of dollars. This is especially true if next year yields another surplus for the state's books. It is only right that the state return this money to cities, counties, and townships to provide relief to local taxpayers and support the critical services that these local governments provide.

Sen. Tom Sawyer (D-Akron):

"It's good to see continuing signs of economic recovery. It's also important to remember that we still face a number of fiscal obligations, and we are still months away from knowing how positive our actual fund balance might turn out to be. Meanwhile, state cuts have required local governments to cut services or pursue tax increases, thereby affecting local safety forces and infrastructure. Several major school districts, including Cleveland and Akron, have been forced to the ballot to make up for lost revenue. I am encouraged by this news, but recovery in state and local government revenue is still slow in coming. If we do have a significant fund balance next year, I would ask the Governor to reconsider his unwillingness to reverse the local government and education funding cuts contained in his last budget."

PARMA HEIGHTS, OH - Today, Congressman Jim Renacci showed Ohioans his true priorities, putting himself and his fellow millionaires before working families by voting for extended tax breaks for the super-rich, while voting to end targeted tax credits for middle-class families.
 
"Make no mistake, when Jim Renacci talks about tax cuts, he's not talking about you and your family, he's talking about himself, his millionaire friends, and Washington special interests," said Sutton. "I voted today to extend tax cuts for middle-class families because working Ohioans deserve a chance at the American Dream, and can help put our economy back on track."
 
While Sutton voted to extend tax relief for every working family, Renacci voted to end the American Opportunity Tax Credit, which impacts 11 million American families. According to the National Economic Council, a millionaire, like Jim Renacci, would receive an average tax break of $160,000 under the Renacci-plan.
 
Renacci's efforts to avoid paying taxes isn't new, in 2000 he failed to pay $1.4 million in back taxes, interest and penalties for misreporting his income. While he was eventually forced to pay the taxes, a spokesman at the time said Renacci was, "proud of his fight" to refuse to play by the rules and pay his taxes.
 
To read more about Betty Sutton's plan to put working families first, visit her website by clicking here.

COLUMBUS, OH - In advance of a scheduled vote tomorrow in the United States House of Representatives to preserve a middle class tax cut for 98% of American families, several Ohio-based Mayors, City Council members and County Commissioners are encouraging Speaker of the House, John Boehner, and his Republican colleagues in Congress, to reverse course and do the right thing for Ohio's middle class families.
 
Last week, the U.S. Senate passed the middle class tax cut extension. Upon passage, President Obama released a statement that said, in part, "...the House Republicans are now the only people left in Washington holding hostage the middle-class tax cuts for 98% of Americans and nearly every small business owner."
 
In their letter to Speaker Boehner, the Ohio-based city and county leaders remind Speaker Boehner that extending and preserving tax cuts for middle class families strengthens the local economy by putting more money in the pockets of families who are likely to spend more at the grocery store, the movies, or at local restaurants and stores.
 
But, if House Republicans refuse to act, the typical family of four will face a tax increase of $2,200 next year. Passing this bill will ensure that over 100 million families nationwide, and 97 percent of small businesses, won't face a tax increase on January 1st.
 
The Ohio leaders highlight that President Obama has already cut taxes for the typical middle class family by $3,600 by passing tax cuts that make college more affordable, helping couples buy their first home with homebuyer assistance, and assisting middle class families in affording child-care.
 
They write, "On the other hand, Mitt Romney has proposed a plan that would help only the wealthiest among us while exploding our deficit.  On top of making the Bush tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires permanent, Romney has proposed $5 trillion in new cuts weighted toward the wealthy - giving the typical millionaire a tax break 4,000 times larger than the average middle class family. With no way to pay for these, Romney's plan threatens to increase taxes on hundreds of thousands of middle class Ohioans in order to pay for even more tax breaks for the wealthy."
 
For a full copy of the letter that several Ohio city and county elected leaders have sent to Speaker of the U.S. House John Boehner, please see below.

New Website CutsHurtOhio.com Shows County-by-County Cuts to Schools and Local Governments

Columbus, OH - Local elected officials like Denny York, Shelby County Auditor, and Mayor Timothy Theaker of Mansfield have something in common with education advocates like Barbara Shaner from the Ohio Association of School Business Officials and Melissa Cropper, a Library Media Specialist from Georgetown Exempted Village Schools and President of the Ohio Federation of Teachers.  They're all speaking up about the effects of the current state budget cuts.
CutsHurtOhio.com was unveiled in the wake of the Local Government Fund cuts going from 25% to 50%, and several leaders used the launch as a chance to share their concerns.  All across Ohio, communities are feeling the pain after the $1.8 billion cut from K-12 education and $1 billion cut from local governments.

Shelby County's Auditor, Denny York said "We're expecting a 64% decrease in state funding from 2008 to 2013.  As of this week, the balance in our General Fund is not sufficient to meet our next payroll."  Mr. York went on to describe effects like "the local Agricultural Extension service and Senior Center cut 50%, community development cut 25%, and the County Park District and Historical Society cut 100%."

One Ohio Now, a broad-based coalition of over 60 organizations, is unveiling a new website which details the deep cuts Ohio communities are experiencing under the current state budget.

CutsHurtOhio.com has county-by-county breakdowns detailing the size of cuts to education and local government Ohio communities are facing under the state budget. Embedded in the local government numbers are cuts to health and human service levies, children's services, seniors services, public libraries and municipalities.  A second year of deeper cuts in revenue sharing went into effect this month.  The site also collects headlines from local papers that capture some of the ways these cuts are impacting local schools and communities.

Growth in population, jobs, trade and economic output in the nation's cities will dramatically increase congestion unless the U.S. commits to greater transportation investments over the next decade, according to a new report prepared for the U.S. Conference of Mayors.Released this morning, the report provides 2011 output numbers for the nation's 363 metro areas in addition to the 2012 economic outlook.

"Infrastructure repair and reinvestment is a crucial means of jumpstarting the U.S. economy and positioning the nation for future economic growth," the report says. "These investments stimulate our economy in two ways: first by creating jobs directly during planning and construction phases. Second, by creating jobs in the long-term by making the nation's transportation lines less congested, more efficient and more competitive."

The report comes days after the State Budget Crisis Task Force, co-chaired by former Federal Reserve Chairman Paul Volcker, warned of prolonged fiscal problems for states, many of which have cut infrastructure spending.

The conference of mayors' report also focused on the dominant role that U.S. cities play in international exports. It says improved ports and transportation lines are necessary to handle "booming trade across the globe."

President Obama is calling on Congress to end the Bush tax cuts for the richest 2% and extend them for the middle class.

To get our nation back on track we need everyone to do their part, and that includes the wealthy.

Americans don't begrudge financial success -- we admire it. But when the rich get special tax breaks they don't need, the middle class has to make up the difference.

The richest 2% have gotten the most tax breaks, but Republicans in Congress favor giving them even more while cutting middle-class priorities like education and Medicare. They are trying to give the wealthiest Americans another $300,000 tax break each, while actually raising taxes on millions of middle-class families.

Stacking the deck in favor of their wealthy donors and sticking the rest of us with the tab is not right. Americans who do well in America ought to do well by America. They need to pay their fair share.

A new analysis confirmed by nonpartisan tax experts has laid bare the Republican tax plan would give millionaires a tax cut of $300,000 but raise taxes on working Americans who make between $50K-100K by between $1,300 and $4,500.

Mitt Romney and Republicans in Congress want millions of hardworking Americans to pay more so the wealthiest few can pay less.

That's right. Tax breaks for them. Tax hikes for you. Their budget would cut taxes for hedge fund managers and trust fund kids, while raising taxes on the middle class.

They think the millionaire who's driving a red Ferrari should pay less taxes but the guy with grease under his fingernails who's fixing the brakes should pay more.

And as if being poor isn't hard enough work, Romney and Republicans in Congress would raise their taxes, too.          

Which America do we want: a nation where working families pay more so the wealthy can pay less, or one where everyone pays their fair share?

MBR Passes House Without Any Relief for Schools and Local Communities

COLUMBUS- Ohio House Democratic Leader Armond Budish (D- Beachwood) released the following statement on the passage of the Mid-Biennial Budget (HB 487) after Republicans excluded Democrats' Kids and Communities First initiative along party lines on the House floor and in Finance Committee.

No household making more than $1 million each year should pay a smaller share of their income in taxes than a middle class family pays. This is the Buffett Rule--a simple principle of tax fairness that asks everyone to pay their fair share.

ABOUT 55,000 MILLIONAIRES PAY A LOWER EFFECTIVE TAX RATE THAN MILLIONS OF MIDDLE-INCOME AMERICANS.

How many millionaires paid a lower effective tax rate than you?

Find your Buffett Number using the calculator below:

Big Corporation and Rich Ohioans Should Pay Their Fare Share to Provide for the Common Good

Columbus, OH - This weekend thousands of Ohioans will be scurrying to finish their tax returns before the April 17^th deadline. One Ohio Now is encouraging thankfulness for all the great public services that make stronger communities. We've already seen massive cuts to services after last year's budget, and there are even more to come in the next year. We can do better.

Breaks for big businesses shortchange students and defund the American Dream

WASHINGTON--As the deadline approaches for Americans to file their taxes, a significant portion of profitable corporations may not pay a dime. The reason? Corporate tax loopholes.

Through a new campaign, the National Education Association is exposing the true cost of corporate tax loopholes...a shrinking middle class and the erosion of critical services, including public education. Part of the effort includes a one-minute animated short called The Hole and an online petition for the public to show support for closing corporate tax loopholes.

Watch It:

"Students and working families are feeling the adverse effects of a carefully crafted, perfect storm," said Dennis Van Roekel, president of NEA. "At home, families are struggling to hold on to what they have. At school, students are confronted with cuts to the critical resources they need to succeed. Big businesses are sitting on record profits, and are taxed at historically low rates.

It is time we put people ahead of profits.

Savings should be directed to needed services, group says

Ohio Gov. John Kasich and House Republicans propose squeezing $95 million out of Ohio's current budget without using the money to restore critical services, according to a new analysis by Policy Matters Ohio. The bill does not include a defined plan for use of the funds cut from various agencies.

House Bill 487, one of the first bills out of the chute in the new Mid-Biennium Review process, contains a number of policy proposals and will likely be broken into separate pieces. While the bill includes budget corrections expected at this time in the budget cycle, the cuts are unusual because they would come at a time when the state is not facing a budget gap. While most of the savings come from debt service reduction and downsizing in federal lines, even agencies that would end up in the black contain programs that have been cut. The cuts are relatively small: in a $112 billion biennial budget, $95 million is about a tenth of 1 percent. However, the funds that would be cut in this bill could go far in meeting critical needs.

Republican budget would end Medicare as we know it while protecting millionaires

WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Congresswoman Betty Sutton (OH-13) released the following statement after House Republicans passed their proposed Fiscal Year 2013 budget:

"America's budget is not just numbers on a ledger sheet; it is a statement about our priorities and our values. Today, I voted against a budget which would slash protections for seniors to pay for tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires. These priorities do not fall in line with the values of the Ohioans I serve. Instead of empowering Americans and creating new economic opportunities to put people to work, this budget reduces critical investments in our roads and bridges. Instead of supporting our seniors, this budget ends Medicare as we know it, and as our seniors depend on it. Instead of promoting fairness and rewarding hard-work, this budget cuts funding to help our children access higher education so that multi-national corporations can have yet another tax break.

We need a budget that protects the Medicare guarantee and incentivizes companies to create jobs in America while asking millionaires and billionaires to pay their fair share. I call on Speaker Boehner to reach across the aisle and work with Democrats to create a budget that benefits all Americans, not just those privileged few at the top."

COLUMBUS- Ohio House Democratic Leader Armond Budish (D-Beachwood) released the following statement after the Ohio House concurred with the Senate and voted to create two primaries in 2012.  The March primary will be for local and state races, as well as the U.S. Senate race, while the June primary will be for congressional and presidential candidates.

"Once again the Republicans have done what is in their best interest and not that of Ohioans.  This is fiscally irresponsible and will cost the state millions in precious funds.  Not to mention the voter confusion this will cause," Leader Budish said.  "Just a few months ago Republicans claimed we didn't have the funds to mail absentee ballots, a measure that has saved county Boards of Elections money and diminished long lines at the polls on Election Day in large counties.  Yet today they have essentially handed over a blank check to Secretary Husted to hold two primaries.  This defies common sense."
 
Leader Budish continued by saying, "This extreme partisanship must stop now.  Yesterday, Sen. Minority Leader Cafaro offered an amendment that would have created one primary in June and it was immediately rejected by her Republican colleagues.  This is absurd.  Senator Cafaro's amendment would have saved the state an estimated $15 million and simplified next spring's primary."

Florida laid-off teacher urges Congress to put students ahead of politics

WASHINGTON--The National Education Association today launched a second, limited television ad campaign urging Congress to pass The Teachers and First Responders Back to Work Act. If passed, the proposal will help put first responders, teachers and support staff back to work.

"The Teachers and First Responders Back to Work Act is the right plan for the American people," said NEA President Dennis Van Roekel. "Congress can choose to put students ahead of political gridlock by supporting a bill that puts educators back in classrooms and off of the unemployment lines."

Teachers, education support professionals, parents and others in local communities are rallying behind President Barack Obama's bold proposal to get the economy moving in the right direction. The proposal would put approximately 400,000 educators back to work and help keep class sizes more manageable.

The new 30-second ad, which is micro-targeted in media markets in Alaska, Massachusetts, Nevada, and West Virginia, follows a similar 30-second ad buy that aired in media markets in Massachusetts, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Texas and the District of Columbia.

Watch It:

October 6, 2011

Honorable Members of the Ohio Congressional Delegation:

As Mayors serving in the great State of Ohio, we ask you to work with urgency to pass the American Jobs Act. The Act will help Ohio's cities and its citizens.

Only a few weeks ago, The Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services announced that the statewide unemployment rate for August was up again to 9.1%. That means that more than half a million Ohioans are out of work. Without proactive steps from our federal leaders, those numbers will only get worse.

The American Jobs Act provides $5 billion in funding to keep police officers and firefighters working. It will put Ohioans to work rehabbing distressed homes, small business, and schools. It helps employ people with a history of service, like veterans and teachers. The Act invests in cities by investing heavily in transportation infrastructure; putting Ohioans to work building roads, bridges and trains. It also provides much needed assistance to the long-term unemployed, helping them end the frustrating process of searching for a job. And, The American Jobs Act will help every Ohio worker by creating a tax cut of $1500 for the typical family.

Ohioans want to go back to work. Ohioans want to be a part of a stronger economy. The American Jobs Act is the right plan. Please act quickly to pass The American Jobs Act.

Sincerely,
Mayor Mark Mallory; Cincinnati, OH
Mayor Michael P. Bell; Toledo, OH
Mayor David J. Berger; Lima, OH
Mayor Michael B. Coleman; Columbus, OH
Mayor Warren Copeland; Springfield, OH
Mayor William A. Currin; Hudson, OH
Mayor Joan Dautel; Fairborn, OH
Mayor Dean DePiero; Parma, OH
Mayor Bill Flaute; Riverside, OH
Mayor Karen Fritschel; Stow, OH
Mayor William J. Healy II; Canton, OH
Mayor Frank G. Jackson; Cleveland, OH
Mayor Ed Kelley; Cleveland Heights, OH
Mayor Earl M. Leiken; Shaker Heights, OH
Mayor Gary Leitzell; Dayton, OH
Mayor Michael J. O'brien; Warren, OH
Mayor Gary Milner; Delaware, OH
Mayor Donald L. Plusquellic; Akron, OH
Mayor Bradley McCloud; Renyoldsburg, OH
Mayor Charles P. Sammarone;Youngstown, OH
Mayor Scott Schertzer; Marion, OH
Mayor Georgine Welo; South Euclid, OH
Mayor Paul Wiehl; Athens, Ohio

Speaker Batchelder rejected an increase in pension contributions for state employees because that meant he and his colleagues in the legislature would have to sacrifice, too!

Watch It:

Learn More:

Speaker Batchelder: The Ohio Legislature's Largest 'Double Dipper'

Is Speaker Bill Batchelder a hypocrite?

If nothing else, the Medina representative who championed the reduction of public worker's rights while having them pay more of their benefits costs is the Ohio legislature's biggest 'Double Dipper'.

What's a Double Dipper you ask?

Well, it's an employee who works for the state while also collecting retirement benefits from the state.

Turns out, Speaker Batchelder has collected over $500,000 in pension payments from Ohio Public Employee Retirement System (OPERS) all while collecting hundreds of thousands in legislative salary during the last five years.

Today, a group of Patriotic Millionaires released a video challenging several of Ohio's prominent politicians and their Republican Millionaire Politician colleagues for their opposition to the Buffett Rule. 

The message of their video is simple: Millionaire Politicians who vote for themselves over their country are unpatriotic and unworthy of the offices they hold.

Watch It:

WASHINGTON, D.C.--More than 9,000 Ohio seniors in Morgan, Washington, Belmont, Jefferson, Monroe, Noble, and Guernsey Counties participated in a tele-town hall with U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) yesterday. The call was the second in a series of tele-townhalls Brown will hold with constituents on a regional basis.

"Medicare and Social Security have allowed Americans to live longer, healthier lives and retire with dignity," Brown said. "We owe it to our children and grandchildren to reduce the deficit. But we need to do this in a way that doesn't undermine the Medicare and Social Security benefits their grandparents have earned."

Following threats to end Medicare as we know it and raise the retirement age for Social Security to age 69 or higher, Brown introduced a bill that would require Members of Congress to "walk in the same shoes" as working Americans. Brown's bill, the Shared Retirement Sacrifice Act of 2011, would amend the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) and Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) to directly tie the Social Security retirement age to current and future Members of Congress' access to their federal retirement benefits.

President Obama just visited the Brent Spence Bridge in Cincinnati. It's one of the busiest trucking routes in North America, but it is outdated and has been designated "functionally obsolete".

That's why the President has proposed investing $50 billion toward repairing and modernizing bridges, roads, and transit systems - such as this bridge - that would result in hundreds of thousands of jobs across the country.

But, some Ohio lawmakers - including US House Speaker John Boehner, Congressman Steve Chabot, and Congresswoman Jean Schmidt - are not convinced that Ohio could use the approximate 13,700 local jobs that would be created by this plans investment in infrastructure such as the Brent Spence Bridge.

Columbus - State Senator Eric H. Kearney (D-Cincinnati) issued the following statement today after President Obama visited Cincinnati's Brent Spence Bridge to urge support for the American Jobs Act:

WASHINGTON -- Drawing clear battle lines for next year's elections, a combative President Barack Obama on Monday demanded that the richest Americans pay higher taxes to help cut soaring U.S. deficits by more than $3 trillion. He promised to veto any effort by congressional Republican to cut Medicare benefits for the elderly without raising taxes as well.

"This is not class warfare. It's math," Obama declared, anticipating Republican criticism.

OHIOANS, STAND UP! BE COUNTED!

MEDICAID MATTERS!

MAKE A DIFFERENCE! WE NEED YOUR VOICE!

Medicaid is under attack. Talk of cuts are everywhere. Congress' "Super-Committee" will make decisions about the nation's debt in coming weeks that will have long-term impact on the lives of people with disabilities, the poor and the elderly.

Ohio Senator Rob Portman is part of Congress' "Super-Committee" He needs to know that Medicaid touches the lives of thousands of Ohioans.

Instead of "reforming Medicaid" by cutting services and shifting the costs to the states we need REAL Medicaid reform that not only contains costs but also protects the civil rights of the poor, of seniors and of people with disabilities.

A large group of national organizations representing a cross-section of populations including disability, aging and civil rights organizations are holding a "My Medicaid Matters" Rally in Washington DC, September 21, on Capitol Hill.

The American people understand that the economic crisis and the deep recession weren't created overnight and won't be solved overnight. The economic security of the middle class has been under attack for decades. That's why President Obama believes we need to do more than just recover from this economic crisis - we need to rebuild the economy the American way, based on balance, fairness, and the same set of rules for everyone from Wall Street to Main Street.  We can work together to create the jobs of the future by helping small business entrepreneurs, by investing in education, and by making things the world buys. The President understands that to restore an American economy that's built to last we cannot afford to outsource American jobs and encourage reckless financial deals that put middle class security at risk.

To create jobs, the President unveiled the American Jobs Act - nearly all of which is made up of ideas that have been supported by both Democrats and Republicans, and that Congress should pass right away to get the economy moving now. The purpose of the American Jobs Act is simple: put more people back to work and put more money in the pockets of working Americans. And it would do so without adding a dime to the deficit.

The American Jobs Act has five components:

Yesterday, President Obama submitted to Congress the American Jobs Act, a bill designed to jumpstart economic growth and job creation. Today, the President will visit the Fort Hayes Arts and Academic High School in Columbus, Ohio to highlight his proposal to put workers back on the job by rebuilding and modernizing schools across the country. 

The President is proposing a $25 billion investment in school infrastructure that will modernize at least 35,000 public schools.  This investment will create jobs, while improving classrooms and upgrading our schools to meet 21st century needs. It also includes a priority for rural schools and dedicated funding for Bureau of Indian Education-funded schools. Funds can be used for a range of emergency repair and renovation projects, greening and energy efficiency upgrades, asbestos abatement and removal, and modernization efforts to build new science and computer labs and to upgrade the technology infrastructure in our schools. The President is also proposing a $5 billion investment in modernizing community colleges (including tribal colleges), bolstering their infrastructure in this time of need while ensuring their ability to serve future generations of students and communities.

Turn on cable news (and these days, you don't even have to be on FOX) and you will hear pundits and elected officials talking about "high taxes" on "job creators" being the #1 drain on the economy.  Of course, in the real world, taxes are at their lowest level since the 50s, without even counting the loopholes and tax expenditures that actually make the effective tax rate much lower. 

This lie, straight from the playbooks of Americans for Prosperity, Grover Norquist, and ALEC, is now front an center in the mainstream political discourse so its time to get a little perspective.

Our friends over at ThinkProgress found a great report yesterday about CEO pay v. taxes paid and the findings will make you sick.   Read the highlights after the jump.

Brian Rothenberg of ProgressOhio made the following statement on the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas decision to not grant a Temporary Restraining Order on Kasich's prison privatization scheme lawsuit, ProgressOhio v. State of Ohio:

"This is just one act in a long journey through the Court system. We are disappointed in this initial ruling, but the Judge clearly indicated in this decision that the denial of the right of referendum is problematic for the Defendants.  We are confident going forward that there are significant Constitutional issues here that will be adjudicated and we look forward to the preliminary injunction hearing."

A full copy of the Court decision can be read here.

Link to the original story: ProgressOhio Files Lawsuit to Shackle Kasich's Prison Privatization Plan

JOIN THE NURSES TO MAKE WALL STREET PAY TO HEAL AMERICA

National Nurses United Painesville nurses to meet with Rep. LaTourette, speak out to Tax Wall Street this Thursday, September 1st at Congressman LaTourette's office.

Urge your legislator to support the tax on Wall Street for jobs, healthcare, and education on Main Street.

TOMORROW Thursday, September 1, 2011
11 am
Congressman LaTourette's Office
1 Victoria Place
Painesville, OH 44077
RSVP: 440-212-1574

Help make the future bright for Ohio's children. At the 2011 Children's Regional Briefings, you will:

- Learn about the outcomes for kids in the 2012-13 State Biennium Budget.
- Get information about the role of Educational Service Centers in Ohio.
- Receive an update of federal issues impacting children.
- Have an opportunity to provide feedback on impact of budget cuts in their local communities.
- Learn how to be a more effective advocate for children, including information on registering voters.
- Receive an overview of what's in the Affordable Care Act (Health Care Reform) for kids and Ohio's implementation plan moving forward.

SPECIAL GUEST: John McCarthy, Director, Office of Ohio Health Plans, Ohio Department of Job and Family Services

Ehh, sometimes you have got to wonder if John Kasich views the world through fox-colored glasses only. I mean after all, anyone watching Wall Street would know this is not exactly the time to sell key state assets for pennies on the dollar.

That's why you have to question Gov. Kasich's motives at this time for his never ending crusade to privatize practically every state asset and give it to investors, all in the name of fiscal responsibility.   Kasich is selling the Prisons and Liquor profits for pennies compared to their true value, allowing his investor friends to gain huge windfalls while shortchanging the citizens and hurting our communities.  Kasich signed HB133, which opens up our State Parks and other public lands, including schools and universities, to oil and gas drilling.  HB133 was a huge give-away to big oil while putting some of our best economic engines, tourism and travel, and our most protected environmental areas at risk.

Now Kasich has a new con to raise some "quick cash" for the state:  privatize the Ohio Turnpike.  Recently, Kasich held a press conference in Toledo to talk about his privatization plan and, once again, was not honest.  Kasich referred to Indiana's example of leasing their turnpike and how the residents of Indiana are "happy" about it.  In fact, this could not be farther from the truth.

In this week's episode of Kasich's Cons, we explore what actually did happen in Indiana and why selling off the Turnpike will be bad for Ohio businesses, residents, and economy. 

Columbus - State Senator Joe Schiavoni (D-Canfield) issued the following statement today after Ohio had missed the deadline to qualify for $176 million in unemployment benefits:

"It is a shame that this deadline has passed, because this is funding that could have helped unemployed Ohioans and their families.

"Senate Bill 13 would have modernized Ohio's unemployment system in order to qualify for part of $7 billion made available through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.  If we had made these much needed changes before today, thousands of struggling Ohioans could have benefited from $176 million in federal funding.  That money could have been spent in our communities to help strengthen our economy.

"Since introducing this bill in February, I've attempted to work with the Republicans through this process.  I was told that it would be included in the budget if I was patient.  That never happened.  On August 5th, Senator Capri Cafaro and I sent a letter to the Governor asking him for an emergency meeting to discuss the funding available for people who will be affected by his lack of action.  He declined to meet with us personally.

"Thirty-three states have implemented modernization and qualified to fully draw down funding.  It is unfortunate Ohio is not one of them."

Hundreds of demonstrators protested outside the West Chester, Ohio office of House Speaker John Boehner with some later going to the Muirfield Village country club in Dublin, Ohio after learning he was playing golf there today.

The protesters said Congress hasn't done enough to promote jobs and instead has focused on bailing out banks or cutting taxes for the rich.

"We don't want just low paying (jobs) with no health care," said Edwinna Davis, a communications worker. "We need jobs that are viable to take care of families with health care and pension protection."The unemployment rate in Ohio is 8.8 percent, but protest organizers said it's closer to 9.3 percent in Boehner's home district.

Upon arriving at the Dublin Country Club where Boehner was playing golf after holding a fundraiser, protestors were given a golf ball with Nancy Pelosi's face enblazoned upon it by what appeared to be a member of Boehner's party.

The new state budget calls for a massive sell-off of Ohio public assets worth billions of dollars. Among the properties that may be privatized are the Ohio Turnpike, six prisons and the liquor distribution business.

The budget also authorizes local and exempted village school districts to contract out their bus transportation, universities to enter into agreements transferring buildings and parking facilities to outside entities for up to 99 years, and cities to lease their parking meters for up to 30 years.

Little evidence has been put forward that the public will benefit from these privatization moves, which raise numerous questions.

Here's how the selling of the Indiana Turnpike is working out for that state.

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WASHINGTON, DC - Today, Congresswoman Betty Sutton (OH-13) released the following statement after voting "no" on legislation that raises the debt ceiling at the unfair expense of American working families and jobs:

"At a time when so many Ohioans are struggling, this raw deal is all sacrifice for Ohio's working families, but contains no sacrifice for millionaires, billionaires, or corporations that ship jobs overseas. Rather than addressing our crippling jobs deficit, this deal puts critical investments in infrastructure and research that would put people to work, along with Medicare and Social Security at risk, while once again letting the wealthiest keep their tax breaks.

I agree that our country does need to raise the debt ceiling and that is why I voted "yes" on a far more balanced bill just a few days ago; unfortunately a group of Republicans in the House have held reasonable efforts hostage, leaving the American people with a raw deal that does not create jobs."

Cincinnati --- To mark the 46th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, the Cincinnati retirees, members of the Ohio Alliance for Retired Americans and community allies from the Campaign for Better Care marked this important birthday in Cincinnati with a sidewalk celebration passing out birthday cake. As part of the celebration retirees and seniors asked area members of Congress about the future of Medicare.

"I'd ask some simple questions. Is it Medicare with a premium supplement? What happens to us and our medical treatment when the federal government reaches the spending limit? Isn't that rationing? It will be a different America when Medicaid no longer covers long-term care such as nursing homes? Will they evict us to the streets when the money is shut off?" asked Sally Steagall of Bond Hill, Treasurer of the Ohio Alliance.

"Retirees in Ohio are struggling to get by, but they know how much worse things would be without Medicare.  Without Medicare, all but the very wealthy would be without heath care as we age. Medicare is the United States of America's 46 year public healthcare insurance plan for Older Americans that is available, affordable, accessible, and comprehensive in the services it covers. Medicare is there when we need it, with low administrative costs and a choice of doctors and providers," said Steagall.

The sidewalk demonstration focused on the future of Medicare and Medicaid and the separate views about access to health care for older Americans that are being debated in the Congress. Seniors and retirees celebrated Medicare's 46 years of improvements in the health and longevity of retired workers who produced the wealth of the nation.

President Obama urges both Republicans and Democrats to take action to avoid defaulting for the first time in our nation's history.

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Watch President Obama's statement on the debt ceiling negotiations. The live event has concluded.  Below is video of that event.

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The budget bill approved by the Ohio General Assembly in June 2011 imposes devastating cuts on schools, local governments and health and human services. These cuts will hurt our economy and result in fewer jobs in the public and private sectors.

Yet elected leaders who tout the virtue of spending cuts are spending on the other side of the ledger - in the tax code. Legislators approved an array of new tax breaks, the bulk of them for wealthy Ohioans and special interests, that will add up to more than $400 million a year when fully implemented.

This July 2011 brief describes more than a dozen tax breaks the legislature authorized, expanded, extended or otherwise modified.

Last night, the President held a press conference to provide an update on the ongoing budget negotiations to get our fiscal house in order and reduce our nation's deficit to help our economy grow.  Unfortunately, Speaker Boehner walked away from these negotiations as they worked towards a big deficit and debt reduction package.

Today at the White House, the President will meet with members of both parties, including Leader Reid, Leader McConnell, Speaker Boehner and Leader Pelosi, to continue to hammer out a deal to ensure that Congress acts to reduce our deficit and prevent America from defaulting on its obligations.

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Group to protest Renacci stance on Medicare

JACKSON TWP. -- ProgressOhio has planned a protest for Thursday afternoon to express its unhappiness with what they believe is U.S. Rep. Jim Renacci's stance on Medicare and Medicaid.

The protest is planned for 2 p.m. outside Renacci's district office at 4150 Belden Village St. NW, Suite 408. Renacci, R-Wadsworth, represents Ohio's 16th District.

Denise Gastesi, an outreach coordinator for ProgressOhio, said the protest is a reaction to their belief that Renacci avoided questions about Medicare and Medicaid during a town hall event on June 30. ProgressOhio contends Renacci's staff barred some from commenting and steered questions away from Medicare and Medicaid funding.

"People didn't get as much of an option at the town hall to voice their opinion," Gastesi said. Plans are for people to gather outside the building to let Renacci know that they want their voice heard on Medicare.

ProgressOhio also is collecting stories from 16th District residents about Medicare and Medicaid and plans to deliver this information to Renacci's staff.

President Obama emphasizes the importance of compromise and shared sacrifice so that we can overcome our fiscal challenges and get our economy on a stronger footing going forward.

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Social Security belongs to the people who have worked hard and paid into it with every paycheck all their working lives, not to our government. It's a promise we make to all generations, and it's one we shouldn't let Washington politicians break.

For years, Washington Republicans have run up our debt with two unpaid-for wars and tax breaks for millionaires -- and they've tried to make the middle class pay for it by cutting Social Security or handing it over to their Wall Street donors who would make billions gambling our hard-earned savings on the stock market.

Social Security didn't contribute one penny to the deficit and politicians shouldn't be able to treat it like a piggy bank they can raid to cover their own debts.

When it comes to reducing the deficit, let's start by getting rid of the special tax giveaways to the richest among us who don't need the help, not Social Security that hardworking Americans have already paid for.

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Yesterday, President Obama delivered remarks to discuss the status of efforts to find a balanced approach to deficit reduction. The President stated that progress has been made, and though we still need to work through some real differences, that even greater progress is within reach.

That's why, even as we continue discussions today and tomorrow, it's my hope that everybody is going to leave their ultimatums at the door, that we'll all leave our political rhetoric at the door, and that we're going to do what's best for our economy and do what's best for our people.

And I want to emphasize -- I said this at my press conference -- this should not come down to the last second.  I think it's important for us to show the American people and their leaders that we can find common ground and solve our problems in a responsible way.  We know that it's going to require tough decisions.  I think it's better for us to take those tough decisions sooner rather than later.

That's what the American people expect of us.  That's what a healthy economy is going to require.  That's the kind of progress that I expect to make.

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President Obama addresses the need to reduce the nation's deficit while creating jobs across the country and wishes Americans a happy Fourth of July.

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We are watching a Mad Hatter Tea Party Congress. Instead of the adult behavior House Speaker John Boehner promised last December after his party's victory, the American people are left with political games that make the new ultra-conservative elite pleased, but put middle class Americans and the country we love at serious risk.

Last fall, Boehner and his allies, Karl Rove, the Koch Brothers, and the Tea Party, had attacked Democratic incumbents relentlessly on jobs, Medicare, and raising the debt ceiling. But Boehner had been around for a while and knew that after they were sworn-in, campaign rhetoric would be put aside for the sake of governing. At least he thought he knew that.

Interviewed by Peter J. Boyle on the heels of the November election, Boehner said, "This [the debt ceiling] is going to be the first really big adult moment" for the new Republican majority. "You can underline 'adult'...But we'll have to find a away to educate members and help people understand the serious problems that would exist if we didn't do it."

Yet that adult behavior has been completely missing from the charade discussions on the debt ceiling. Instead Republican leaders, with an ear to the demands of their newest members, walked out of the room when curtailing costly tax loopholes for special interests were proposed. These tax subsidies for the enormously profitable oil industry, or tax breaks for food-price-raising corn ethanol, are unsustainable tax deals that divert trillions of dollars from the U.S. Treasury. Yet Speaker Boehner's number two, Eric Cantor, played a child's game -- he took his ball and went home when he didn't get his way.

COLUMBUS - The Ohio House today approved Gov. John Kasich's two-year state budget on a straight party line vote.  The spending plan passed the Senate yesterday with bipartisan opposition and will likely be signed into law tomorrow.

The following is a statement from House Democratic Leader Armond Budish (D-Beachwood) on passage of the state budget: 
 
"Instead of responsibly addressing the state budget, Gov. Kasich has exploited a crisis to impose a radical political agenda on Ohioans.  He has exaggerated the budget deficit to make deep cuts to schools and local governments that will result in layoffs of cops, teachers and firefighters. 

Today's General Revenue Fund budget is the biggest in budget in Ohio's history. But the priorities are all wrong. Cuts to kids in schools, cuts to local safety forces, cuts to our elderly in need of care, yet massive giveaways to big Republican contributors and the most wealthy Ohioans.

The Governor's 'new way' is the wrong way.The impact of these cuts on local economies will be so dramatic it will undermine Ohio's steady economic progress and could reverse Ohio's 14 month trend of declining unemployment."

Ohio GOP cuts local dollars and revenue, balances state budget on back of families

COLUMBUS - State Rep. Dan Ramos (D-Lorain) stood alongside teachers, firefighters, police officers, local government officials and families around Ohio in opposition to House Bill 153, today.  HB 153, Ohio's biennial budget plan, cuts funding to schools by $2 billion, local governments by $455 million and mental health services by $243 million, and does so while maintaining extensive tax loopholes, permanently diminishing future revenues by $2 billion, creating new tax cuts for Ohioans wealthy enough to invest in Ohio businesses, expanding charter schools, and pawning off the Ohio turnpike, state liquor assets and several prison facilities in Lorain County and elsewhere.

"Without question, any reasonable person could look at this budget and find that it pushes the tough decisions onto the working families of Ohio.  The precious little that it does right is vastly outweighed by partisan actions that are aimed at minimizing the good that government can do in people's lives and undercutting Ohioans' ability to limit the influence of the rich and powerful in this state," said Rep. Ramos.  "{This very morning, 1,298,301 signatures were submitted to repeal Senate Bill 5.  Those voices, and so many others, continue to be ignored by this legislation."

"By cutting locally-directed state funds and eliminating local sources of tax revenue," Ramos added. "HB 153 will expand the budget crunch that we are feeling in this cycle into the next and thereafter - or until local officials are forced to raise the necessary replacement revenue to fund critical education and safety services by raising property taxes, sales taxes or increasing local fees.  This budget is not a job creator or a benefit to our communities; it is a shifting of costs from our wealthy few to our more vulnerable, struggling many."

"In its aftermath, I can only beg my colleagues to reconsider the value of the services that we provide locally and at the state level, and to come to honest terms with our need to maintain revenue that fully funds our civic and moral obligations," said rep. Ramos.

Columbus - Senate Democratic Leader Capri S. Cafaro (D-Hubbard) and the entire Senate Democratic Caucus today voted "no" on the final version of the biennial state budget (HB 153).  The budget imposes massive and devastating cuts on Ohio's public schools and local governments and gives the Governor broad powers to privatize valuable state assets.

"The state of Ohio has effectively balanced its budget by unbalancing the budgets for school districts and local governments across the state," said Senator Cafaro.  "It's pass the buck budgeting that sticks local tax payers with the bill.  I fear the result will be more layoffs, reduced public services and higher local taxes."

The budget plan slashes the local government fund by 50% in fiscal year 2013 and cuts funding for local schools by an estimated $2.8 billion over the next two years according to a coalition of school officials.

Senate Democrats offered an amendment in the budget conference committee that would allocate school funding on a fairer and broader basis.  However, majority Republicans rejected the amendment and chose to give additional money to wealthy school districts at the expense of urban and poor districts.

The 1951 war film, "Go for Broke!" introduced the American public to the nation's most decorated regiment in the history of the U.S., the 442^nd. It was comprised of mostly Japanese American soldiers, many of whom had family interned during World War II. Its motto was, "Go for Broke."  

That seems to be the motto for the Republican controlled state budget which came out of the conference committee late last night and will likely see floor votes this afternoon and tomorrow. But this legislature is not fighting for freedom; it's fighting for large corporate tax giveaways, and it's wagering everything presumably in the hope it will bring jobs.

GO FOR BROKE CHALLENGE #1: The Ohio legislature is poised to forgive millions in unpaid taxes by Ohio businesses under a new amnesty program that lets them off the hook if they file and just pay what they owe for 2010. It doesn't matter how many years before they didn't pay these taxes.  

"Use taxes" are essentially sales taxes that would have been paid if someone bought the goods or services in Ohio instead of another state. Bottom line--buying out of state may help some avoid the state's sales tax, but Ohio law requires that if the other state doesn't collect the equivalent of Ohio's sales tax, consumers and businesses who didn't pay it still owe it to Ohio as a use tax.  

In March of this year, the Ohio Department of Taxation had already begun an amnesty program for an estimated 380,000 businesses that had not been paying use taxes. Under that program, if they fessed up by August 1, 2011, they were subject to only three years of back taxes. Now the Senate says one year is good enough.

The final agreement on Gov. Kasich's jobs killing budget, worked out by conference committee last night, is the icing on the cake of Kasich's destructive and unpopular partisan agenda.  The pain from this budget will be felt by working families and the middle class in every corner of the state.

Local governments are already bracing for the effects of this draconian budget by announcing mass layoffs and cuts to education and other vital services our communities need.  At the same time, this budget is a boondoggle for corporate CEOs who will reap massive profits from Kasich's privatization schemes. 

Gov. Kasich was elected on the promise of creating jobs.  My question is how does killing tens of thousands of jobs and cutting billions in funding for schools, fire stations, and other services help to create jobs or make us Ohio's economy stronger?

The answer is obvious.  It doesn't and, with this budget, Kasich has proven that he cares more about satisfying an agenda to enrich his corporate CEO friends than helping the rest of us.

Update: Apparently embarrassed after having this video of Governor John Kasich Thanking the Union Busting Koch Brother's front group Americans For Prosperity that they tried to keep secret exposed to the public the AFP has removed the video.  We'll be posting the back-up we made later today!

Update II: Thanks to Rachel Maddow for picking up this story

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In an "unlisted video" which Gov. Kasich recorded using state resources, he tells the Koch Industries astroturf group Americans For Prosperity "... in the four months that I've been Governor, we've accomplished a lot in Ohio... in all of these efforts the strong support of Americans for Prosperity has made a really big difference. ...it's so important that Ohio's fighters for freedom, the grassroots leaders of Americans for Prosperity, continue to lend their support to the effort to get Ohio back on track."

Americans for Prosperity is Part of the Koch Industries Right-Wing Machine:

Koch's founder, Fred Koch, also helped found the John Birch Society, an ultraconservative organization that believed the U.S. government was controlled by a traitorous cabal of communist sympathizers. Koch Industries' charitable arm, the Koch Family Foundations, has provided over $120 million in the past 20 years to the Cato Institute (founded by Charles Koch), Citizens for a Sound Economy (founded by David Koch, now known as Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks), the Heritage Foundation, the Federalist Society, the Mercatus Center, North Carolina's John Locke Foundation, and dozens of other right-wing, anti-regulatory, and global warming-denial organizations. [Media Transparency]

Koch-Run Americans For Prosperity Has Bircher, Racist Roots:

From Jane Mayer's New Yorker story on the Kochs, billionaire bankrollers of Americans For Prosperity, elements of the Tea Party, and the CATO Institute:

In 1958, Fred Koch became one of the original members of the John Birch Society, the arch-conservative group known, in part, for a highly skeptical view of governance and for spreading fears of a Communist takeover. Members considered President Dwight D. Eisenhower to be a Communist agent. In a self-published broadside, Koch claimed that "the Communists have infiltrated both the Democrat and Republican Parties." He wrote admiringly of Benito Mussolini's suppression of Communists in Italy, and disparagingly of the American civil-rights movement. "The colored man looms large in the Communist plan to take over America," he warned. Welfare was a secret plot to attract rural blacks to cities, where they would foment "a vicious race war." In a 1963 speech that prefigures the Tea Party's talk of a secret socialist plot, Koch predicted that Communists would "infiltrate the highest offices of government in the U.S. until the President is a Communist, unknown to the rest of us."

Rep. Sykes Requests Cost-Impact Analysis of Kasich's New Tax Give-Away

COLUMBUS - State Rep. Vernon Sykes (D-Akron) requested today an analysis of a new proposal by Ohio Gov. John Kasich to give tax breaks to financial investors.  The proposal was reportedly provided to some members of the Ohio House and Senate Conference Committee to be included in the state budget at the request of Gov. Kasich.

"This tax breaks for big shots proposal could result in another devastating blow to middle class families facing massive budget cuts to their schools and communities," said Rep. Sykes. "Of course we want to encourage investment in Ohio companies but we shouldn't do it on the backs of hard working, middle class Ohioans."

Members of the Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus talk about why they voted against Governor Kasich's budget plan for the State of Ohio.

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A protest is being held today demand Verizon to be a good neighbor at multiple locations throughout Ohio.

In 2010, Verizon made roughly $12 billion in profits. But unlike others, Verizon was exempted from paying any federal taxes.  Not only did Verizon not pay any
federal taxes, the corporation actually received a refund of nearly $700 million dollars.  It's time for Verizon to start paying its fair share and become a good neighbor.

In Dublin, Ohio, local labor unions, community activists, and a reformed pig will protest outside of a local Verizon store located at 5520 Blazer Parkway, Dublin, Ohio.

ONN interviews ProgressOhio's Brian Rothenberg regarding the missing $3B in the administration's budget deficit numbers.

Grendell said there will also be debate over privatizing government, which could include everything from the Ohio Lottery to Jobs Ohio.

"One of two things will happen.  It will either be successful, thinking outside the box effort to save jobs in Ohio, or it's going to turn out ill fated effort that really ended up being a funnel for funds to cronies that embarrasses all of us," said Grendell.

Brian Rothenberg from the liberal think tank Progress Ohio has sued the administration over Jobs Ohio, claiming it's unconstitutional.

"If you're a citizen right now, you should be outraged," said Rothenberg.

He also said Republican lawmakers have been reckless with cuts.

"We started basically with them, claiming there was an $8 billion hole. Today we've learned it's probably $5 billion. So that means they filled an $8 billion  hole, but we're still cutting teachers, we're still cutting police officers, we're still cutting firefighters," said Rothenberg.

Grendell agrees the revenue picture is brighter than the one painted earlier this year by Kasich.

"It's probably closer to a $6 billion shortfall which is still a major shortfall," said Grendell.

"How do you explain all these cuts when admittedly now have filled an $8 billion hole but there's only $5 billion in debt?" responded Rothenberg.

Now that leading Republicans and Democrats agree that $8 billion budget hole is a lot less, the question is where will that additional money be spent?

Expect that to be a major campaign issue for those hoping to repeal Senate Bill 5 this fall, reported Heath.

Innovation Ohio, a progressive think tank headquartered in Columbus, released an analysis today which finds that Ohio's "budget hole" for FY 2012-13 is $5.1 billion, not $8 billion as Gov. Kasich and his allies routinely assert.

IO President Janetta King said:

"The games that Gov. Kasich, Budget Director Keen and their legislative allies are playing with the Ohio budget are both deceitful and shameful. They deliberately talk about an $8 billion hole they know does not exist --and they continue to use it as a scare tactic to frighten Ohioans and justify their extremist policy agenda. It is time for the people of Ohio to know the truth."

"Where's the money going? should be the real question going forward on this budget. It was balanced on the presumption of an $8 billion hole that isn't there.

The head scratcher is why public schools and first responders are being forced to continue laying off teachers, police and firefighters when question marks remain over this $3 billion dollar discrepancy," said Brian Rothenberg, Executive Director of Progressohio.org.
 
"If Governor Kasich and Tim Keen filled a $5 billion hole with $8 billion, then why all the cuts? This budget is balanced on dishonest accounting."

Related:

Youngstown Vindicator: ProgressOhio Is Right, Ohio Budget Deficit Needs Independent Investigation

Senate Democrats Offer Proposal to Increase Fairness in Education Funding

Senate Democrats Submit Over 300 Amendments to Restore Fairness and Accountability to State Budget

Kasich's Proposed Tax Cuts For Banks A Slap In The Face To Working Ohioans

When more than two million Ohio citizens voted to amend the Ohio Constitution to raise Ohio's minimum wage in 2006 as state issue 2, they made a clear statement that they approved of the measure. 

This week, however, Senate Republicans quietly inserted a provision into House Bill 153 that usurps the will of the voters by excluding certain workers from protections in the law that may include police officers, firefighters, homecare workers, farm workers, fishing industry workers and amusement park workers.

This provision clearly conflicts with the language and intent of the constitutional amendment that Ohio voters overwhelmingly approved. Issue 2 was very specific as to who qualified for minimum wage and who would be exempted.

Senator Seitz's amendment is attempting to expand the number of employee groups which will not be covered by the wage law, effectively denying those groups of employees their voter-approved right to be paid a minimum wage.

This provision is unfair to Ohio workers and the manner in which it was inserted in the 4,800 page bill without even a mention of it in committee hearings or in the overall debate on the spending package is disingenuous and a departure from our democratic process. 

Working families call on the Senate Finance Committee to remove the provision and stand up for Ohio workers and abide by the laws that Ohioans overwhelmingly support.

News report raises questions that demand closer scrutiny

Columbus - Senator Michael J. Skindell (D-Lakewood) today called for removing a provision from the state budget that would privatize the Ohio Lottery by June 1, 2012.  Senator Skindell will submit an amendment this week to strip the Lottery privatization proposal from the Senate's version of the budget.

"I have concerns about the timing and the manner by which this proposal was inserted in the budget," said Senator Skindell, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee.  "Members of the General Assembly have not had sufficient time to determine if this is a good idea or simply a sweetheart deal for private companies that want to take over management of the Lottery."

The Cleveland Plain Dealer reported today that language included in the Senate's version of the budget is nearly identical to legislation drafted by a company that hopes to take over day-to-day management of the Lottery.  In addition, the Chairman of the Ohio Lottery Commission told the Plain Dealer he was not consulted about the proposed legislation.

"Any discussion about privatizing the Lottery should have full transparency and much greater scrutiny than this proposal has received so far," said Senator Skindell.

Senator Skindell also pointed out that the most recent state audit praised the Lottery's operations.  Last year Lt. Governor Mary Taylor, in her previous role as State Auditor, determined the Ohio Lottery "performed well" and its management practices were consistent with other U.S. Lotteries.

The proposed state budget passed recently in the Ohio House includes an obscure provision that will allow student groups at taxpayer-funded state universities to discriminate and exclude students from membership and leadership positions based on religious beliefs or standards of conduct (Ohio Rev. Code §3345.023).  This means that our state universities will not be able to withhold funding from student groups who exclude LGBT people; Jewish, Christian or Muslim people; women; people who have had premarital sex; and, anyone else that a particular religious student group deems unworthy of membership.  Fair-minded Ohioans do not want taxpayer dollars to fund discrimination.

Last year, the U.S. Supreme Court issued an opinion in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez upholding the constitutionality of a state law school's "all-comers" policy because it is reasonable and viewpoint neutral.  Justice Ginsburg wrote that "by bringing together students with diverse views, [the policy] encourages tolerance, cooperation, learning, and the development of conflict-resolution skills."  After Ohio State University changed its policy recently to require student groups to accept all-comers as members, the Christian Legal Society Chapter at OSU stated it was "yet one more opportunity to welcome all students to attend CLS's meetings and activities."

COLUMBUS - An amendment to the Senate's version of the budget bill released yesterday would take millions from a fund that provides housing for poor, elderly and disabled Ohioans, and funnel it to county recorders offices for "general purposes."

Bill Faith, Executive Director of the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO) called the amendment "unacceptable" and "contrary to Governor Kasich's budget, which was framed around doing no harm to the most vulnerable in these times of economic uncertainty."

"It makes no sense to take money from a program that helps grow our stagnant housing industry, stimulates our struggling economy, and serves increasing numbers of poor people and give it to county recorders to beef up their local bureaucracies," Faith said. "This move does not square with Governor Kasich's framing of the budget to do no harm to the most vulnerable and it does not pass the smell test among advocates for the poor."

Last week, Republicans in the Senate rejected a bill that would've cut about half of the $4 billion-a-year in tax breaks and subsidies to the five largest oil companies. 

The Close Big Oil Tax Loopholes Act called for the repeal or revision of several tax rules that allow oil companies to deduct a portion of their costs for such endeavors as oil exploration and drilling. The savings would have been used to help reduce the deficit.

The measure also was aimed at closing a tax loophole that lets U.S. oil companies disguise royalty payments to foreign governments as foreign taxes, thus allowing them to lower their tax bills in the United States.

The administration strongly supported the bill, whose main sponsor was Sen. Robert Menendez, New Jersey Democrat. Sen. Sherrod Brown was a co-sponser of the bill.

Officials from the five oil companies - Shell Oil Co., ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, BP America and Chevron Corp. - defended the tax breaks at a Senate hearing two weeks ago, saying they just want the same tax advantages enjoyed by other industries.

Read More:

Sen. Brown Announces 'Close Big Oil Tax Loopholes Act'

Can Oil Subsidies And Off Shore Drilling Make Gas Cheaper?

Sen. Brown: Cut Subsidies for Big Oil Before Making Cuts that Could Cost 27,000 Ohio Jobs

Columbus - The Ohio Senate Democratic Caucus is submitting more than 300 amendments today to add much-needed fairness and accountability to House Bill 153, the proposed biennial state budget for fiscal years 2012-2013.  The amendments reflect the Caucus' commitment to protecting good-paying jobs, strengthening families and empowering communities.

"Our priority is to protect taxpayers and address some of the devastating cuts proposed by the Governor and House Republicans," said Senate Minority Leader Capri S. Cafaro (D-Hubbard).  "We should not balance the budget on the backs of the vulnerable or local governments.  Unfortunately, that's what will happen if we don't make considerable changes to the current budget plan."

The budget amendments protect taxpayers by strengthening oversight and accountability for charter schools and by ensuring there are no "sweetheart deals" to sell state prisons or lease the Ohio Turnpike at less than fair market value.

In a strategic move by Democrats, the Senate held a vote yesterday on the controversial Paul Ryan budget proposal, which would restructure Medicare. All but 5 Republicans voted for it--votes that are sure to make their way into campaign commercials in the next election cycle.

Do you think Republicans can win in 2012 with their Plan To End Medicare As We Know It as part of their platform?

The current proposed budget does not reflect the balanced approach that is needed to address the state's historic shortfall. Instead, this budget relies on proposals that hurt Ohio's ability to create jobs and harm Ohio families through deep cuts in education, transportation, human services, local government, and many other areas.

Find out the Latest and How You can Influence the Budget

When: Wednesday, May 25, 2011 at 7:00 pm

Where: Call 1.877.340.7912, code 1739779. Join us from wherever is convenient for you. You just need access to a phone.

RSVP here

Why: As debate on the budget continues, the Senate should seek solutions beyond "cuts only" and ensure accountability, equity and balance.

Hear an update on the budget and learn what you can do to make an impact.

We will be giving you the tools and information needed to contact your state legislator so you can make your voice heard about how this budget hurts Ohio's ability to create jobs and harms families through deep cuts in education, local government and human services.

RSVP Today

Submit questions in advance to andrea@oneohionow.org or 614.221.4570.

One Ohio Now (www.OneOhioNow.org) is a coalition of 45 member organizations including those involved in health and human services, faith, education, public transportation, and labor. The coalition calls for a balanced approach that includes revenue to meet Ohio's needs, promote jobs, and maintain the quality of life that Ohioans expect and deserve.

Prevailing wage helps ensure that decent wages are paid to skilled workers and that taxpayer value is provided on public construction projects. This law protects good jobs in Ohio and prevents contractors from sacrificing the quality of construction projects for lower wage and less skilled workers.

But the state budget is being used in a sneaky, back door attempt to strip this law away - even though prevailing wage has no effect on the state budget.

Simply put, prevailing wage helps keep skilled trades in Ohio.

Call Ohio Senator Chris Widener, Chair of the Ohio Senate Finance Committee, at 614 466-3780 and tell him not to use the budget to gut the prevailing wage law. Our budget should make Ohio stronger, not rob us of good, skilled jobs in our communities.

Chris Widener's office - (614) 466-3780

Thanks for all that you do.

Lawmakers say selling prisons would be bad for Ohio and its citizens

COLUMBUS - State Representative Ronald V. Gerberry (D-Austintown) and Representative Robert F. Hagan (D-Youngstown) have jointly sponsored legislation that bars the Governor from selling any state correctional facility without first getting approval from the General Assembly.

"It is imperative that we try and put the brakes on the Governor's pending proposal, for the good of this state and for the good of Ohioans as a whole," said Rep. Hagan, who noted that the one-time, short-term cash infusion for a tight budget could be detrimental to Ohio in the long run.

Rep. Gerberry explained that  many states have already privatized their prison system in hopes of alleviating tight budget concerns only to find "heartache, headache,  little cost savings,  and a whole lot of public safety problems."

"Selling off state prisons might provide a short-term infusion of cash, but there are definite negative impacts to consider," said Rep. Gerberry. "Taxpayers will lose potential proceeds from these facilities in the future, correction workers will earn less, thereby damaging our tax base, and many times private owners care little about the communities they are in, thereby creating serious accountability and public security problems."

Gov. Kasich has included the sale or privatization of state prisons in the biennial budget, and has indicated that his targets are the Marion, North Central, and Grafton facilities.  Reps. Gerberry and Hagan hope their legislation will bring public pressure to remove the provision from the budget before it is finalized by the June 30th deadline.

BREAKING NEWS:  SHADOWS COLUMN LEADS TO FEDERAL PROBE OF CHARTERS:  Newsnet5.com in Cleveland is reporting that a Turkish Islamist organization first reported on by Shadows on High, September 15, 2010 is now the subject of a federal probe of Ohio taxpayer money moving to Turkey. PO will report more as details become available.

SHADOWS ON HIGH: With Charters, the Greedy get Greedier

"No group should use political influence to run public policy in the state of Ohio," Gov. John Kasich recently told the Columbus Dispatch.

For Shadows readers, the sad intersection of Ohio's brand of profiteering politics and the availability of school funds has long been exposed as a toxic mix.

Back in the mid-1990s, when even Senate GOP members were balking at Ohio's first foray into voucher schools, then-Governor George V. Voinoivich made a rare appearance at his party's own club room on the north side of the Senate Building's 2^nd floor. 

Shortly after vouchers were passed, largely at the behest of Akron financier David Brennan. During the next General Assembly session, charter schools emerged. For Brennan, the crusade was based on claims of failing schools and the need to give desperate parents a "choice."  But, the opponents of the legislation were able to see the truth:  this legislation was about money, it was about allowing outside businesses to become rich from funds that should have gone into Ohio's classrooms. 

There can be little surprise that Voinovich's son George F. Voinovich went on to work with Brennan's law firm or that senior Voinovich operative Tom Needles now is a lobbyist with charter schools for clients.

Brennan was helped along by the intellectuals of the Buckeye Institute and Fordham Institute. They provided valuable cover for free-market "education" plans, and eventually these institutions proliferated in Ohio more than in any other state in the union.

It was not enough though for David Brennan and fellow businessmen like Bill Lager, who is to Ohio charter schools what the University of Phoenix is to colleges and universities. This year, emboldened by the right-wing tea-party make-up of the Ohio House, they stripped away all pretenses and in the process got too greedy, even for Fordham.

Gone were oversight rules to require educational performance, along with any semblance of accountability and transparency with state tax dollars. A provision giving all assets purchased with state money to, you guessed it - the for-profit holding companies owned by folks like Brennan and Lager. And therein lies the dowry for the GOP's unholy marriage between the profiteers and ideologues.

When Gov. Kasich vowed to fight the influence of individual groups, his target wasn't the charters but Ohio's for-profit nursing homes. They think they should win every legislative battle, Kasich said. Their supporters contribute millions to political candidates and causes, he said. The money Ohio spends on nursing homes is "through the roof.''

Substitute "for-profit charter schools" for "for-profit nursing homes" and Kasich is eerily silent. Never mind that charter schools already have won virtually every legislative battle, their supporters give millions to political candidates and causes - and most are paid to deliver poor results.

The difference between Kasich's  outcry over nursing homes but quiet encouragement of charter schools was the topic of the latest report by Innovation Ohio, a progressive think tank that believes Ohio's limited tax dollars should be spent wisely and reserved for programs that help move Ohio forward.

The study showed most charter schools waste money and set Ohio back.

The report focused mainly on electronic schools - known as "e-schools.'' These entities market themselves as on-line alternatives for students who want an education without walking through a school house door.

On May 11, 2011, Dublin City Schools held an open town hall on John Kasich's proposed budget for the State of Ohio. The budget includes over $13.7 million in cuts to Dublin City Schools over two years.  

You wouldn't know it from the crowd's response but Dublin is a conservative stronghold that Kasich won in November of 2010 with 64% of the vote.

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Kasich's budget passed the House on May 5th and is now under consideration in the Ohio Senate.

Please call your State Senator at 800-282-0253 and tell them that balancing the budget on the backs of workers and at the expense of our children is not in our "best interest".

State Reps. Denise Driehaus and Mike Foley At Sleepout at the Statehouse

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The Columbus Dispatch Reports:

The signs dangling from strings around their necks told the story.

Mother. Father. Son. Daughter.

Every person wearing a sign at yesterday's "Sleep Out for Mental Illness" at the Statehouse had a family member with mental illness - a tiny fraction of the estimated 2.3 million Ohioans with a diagnosable mental disorder.

Several hundred people from across the state came to Columbus to sit on the Statehouse lawn on blankets, sleeping bags and in cardboard boxes to highlight awareness of mental-health programs and funding. The idea came from Terry Russell, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness Ohio, who worries about people with untreated mental illness who often sleep outside in all sorts of weather.

Read The Full Story at The Columbus Dispatch

Mental health has not fared as badly as expected in Gov. John Kasich's proposed biennial budget, receiving an increase of about 4.5 percent in the first year, but losing it in the second.

More harmful, Russell said, is the loss of $16 million in non-Medicaid funds earmarked for community services for the mentally ill, including housing, transportation and other support programs.

Speakers on both sides of the political aisle spoke in support at yesterday's event.

Breast cancer survivors and advocates from the four Ohio Affiliates of Susan G. Komen for the Cure® today expressed their concern with the budget approved by the Ohio state House of Representatives, which cuts more than $228,000 out of the general revenue fund for breast cancer screening for low-income women.  As the budget debate moves to the state Senate, the Komen Affiliates urge senators to explore all options to maintain level funding for this program so that access to its life-saving services is preserved.
 
"We fully understand the difficult challenges our state faces due to the economy and the tough choices that must be made," said Megan Knapke, Director of Community Outreach with the Komen Columbus Affiliate. "Yet we also know first-hand how important this program is to the thousands of women in our state who find themselves with nowhere else to turn for the cancer screenings that may save their lives. This situation could not be more serious and the consequences of further cuts more devastating. "
 
The budget passed by the Ohio House would result in a cut of more than 70 percent since FY 2008-2009. This would leave the program trying to serve a growing population of women in need with just a quarter of the funds it previously had to work with.

Legislation Would End $4 Billion in Tax Giveaways to Big Oil, Use Savings to Reduce Federal Deficit

Ohio Senator Sherrod Brown outlined a bill Monday aimed at ending the more than $4 billion in tax deductions, subsidies, and royalty relief to big oil companies each year.

Brown announced his plan Monday at a gas station in Cleveland. It would end $4 billion annually in tax breaks, subsidies and royalty waivers for the five largest oil companies, his office said. "It's bad enough that Ohioans have to pay more than $4.00 a gallon at the gas pump because the price of crude oil rises due to price fixing by OPEC," Brown said in a statement.

"They shouldn't need to subsidize the oil industry through the tax code as well. Big Oil is reaping big profits while working- and middle-class Ohioans struggle to make ends meet," he said.

The bill targets the companies' ability to claim a lucrative deduction based on manufacturing and production income and quickly write-off certain drilling costs, among other provisions.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced $2 billion in high-speed rail awards today providing an unprecedented investment to speed up trains in the Northeast Corridor, expand service in the Midwest and provide new, state-of-the-art locomotives and rail cars as part of the Administration's plan to transform travel in America.

Twenty-four states, the District of Columbia and Amtrak submitted nearly 100 applications, competing to be part of an historic investment that will create tens of thousands of jobs, improve mobility and stimulate American manufacturing, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Already, high-speed rail upgrades are employing workers laying 96 miles of track on the Chicago-St. Louis run.  Workers in Maine are also laying track--welded in America--between Boston and Portland.  And in Sacramento and San Jose, construction workers are building intermodal stations that will be home to California's high-speed corridor.

A strict "Buy America" requirement for high-speed rail projects ensures that U.S. manufacturers and their workers will receive the maximum economic benefits from our investment. In 2009, I also secured a commitment from 30 foreign and domestic rail manufacturers to employ American workers and locate or expand their base of operations in the U.S. if they are selected for high-speed-rail contracts.

There are other early signs of high-speed rail's economic promise: In Brunswick, Maine, private investment has already gravitated toward the Brunswick Station neighborhood.  Economic development there includes a number of businesses, residential condominiums, a new hotel, and a modern medical center.  And along every planned corridor, cities and towns are clamoring for intermodal rail stations because they know it will boost development in their communities.

Gov. John Kasich completely de-railed plans for high speed trains in Ohio.

The leader of Ohio's Poverty Fighting Network today urged Ohio lawmakers to enact policies that will allow more Ohioans to be self-sufficient.

"Too many of Ohio's residents are unable to support their families without help from government programs," said Philip E. Cole, Executive Director of the Ohio Association of Community Action Agencies (OACAA). "As Ohioans, working together, we can rebuild this economy into one that works for all of us."

Cole made the statement as OACAA released two reports that broaden the understanding of what it means to be poor in Ohio: The State of Poverty in Ohio 2011: A Path to Recovery and The Self Sufficiency Standard for Ohio 2011.

The State of Poverty in Ohio 2011: A Path to Recovery was prepared by Community Research Partners, headed by Executive Director Roberta Garber. This is the third year CRP has prepared the report.

According to the Federal Poverty Measure, there are 1.7 million people living in poverty in Ohio. Community Research Partners of Columbus used the Federal Poverty Measure or Federal PovertyLine (FPL), among other measures, to demonstrate which Ohio populations have the highest percentage of people living in poverty. The FPL defines poor as earning $22,050 or less for a family of four and that only begins to tell the story, Cole says.

"The Federal Poverty number is really an understatement because we know it takes more than that threshold amount to meet basic needs in most communities in our state," Cole said.

When the Self Sufficiency Standard is applied, many more Ohioans fall below it, he added. In 58 of Ohio's 88 counties, the Standard is 200% or more of the FPL. The Self Sufficiency Standard was created by Dr. Diana Pearce, Director of the Center for Women's Welfare at the University of Washington. It is calculated based on a "no frills" budget.

The Ohio Legislative Black Caucus (OLBC) voted in opposition to the state budget today after hours of debate on the House Floor.  The budget (House Bill 153) prioritizes the state's spending for the next two years.   The legislation, despite an estimated eight billion dollar deficit, increases state spending by five billion dollars.

"This budget slashes necessary services such as childcare vouchers, education funding and senior services, yet the Republicans have added 5 billion dollars in spending," President Williams remarked. "By shifting the burden onto local government and communities, the middle class and minorities are disproportionally affected.  This budget does nothing to address the underlying funding gaps, but increases them."

OLBC members blasted the bill's spending priorities and noted that very few provisions within it were geared towards promoting job retention or growth. Areas of particular concern include the 300 million dollar cut to counties to fund Medicaid, disability and child protection over the biennium.

"It is another sad day in Ohio for the middle class and working families of this state," Said State Representative Tracy Maxwell (D-Columbus).  "There is such an obvious intent to dismantle anything that could potentially support the stabilization, elevation or mobilization of the middle class.  Education, transportation and compensation are all under assault by this legislation.  The failure to recognize that sabotaging the middle class is a detriment to the stability of the entire state is both selfish and short sighted"

COLUMBUS - The Ohio House Democratic Women's Caucus today raised serious concerns with the state budget passed by the House. The caucus points to a series of provisions that slash funding for programs and services for women and children despite a state spending increase of $5 billion. The budget passed by a vote of 59-40.
 
"In these tough economic times, it is more important than ever we focus on policies that create jobs, promote quality education and strengthen the middle class to position Ohio for success moving forward," said Rep. Nancy Garland (D-New Albany), Chair of the Women's Caucus. "The budget House Republicans passed today does not accomplish any of these goals. Instead, it makes deep cuts to schools, local governments and other programs that primarily serve women and children. This is a jobs loss bill and not a jobs bill, especially for women."
 
Among the budget provisions that will be most harmful to women and children are:

Celebrate the one day this week central Ohio isn't expecting rain by getting outside and making a difference.

At 5 pm this Thursday, Ohioans from every walk of life will join together at the Statehouse to rally for Good Jobs and Strong Communities. Help make Ohio the best place to live, work and raise our families.

Join with thousands of others who will be telling our elected officials we want a strong Ohio with good jobs and good benefits, a quality education system, clean air and affordable housing in every corner of our state. So come on out tomorrow, May 5th at 5:00pm to the Ohio Statehouse, 1 Capitol Square in Columbus.

There will also be a mass signing of the petition to repeal SB5. If you haven't signed yet, after work Thursday is your chance. If you can't make it, click here to get a list of locations in central Ohio and across the state.

Additional cuts will negatively impact local communities already suffering in proposed state budget

COLUMBUS -State Reps. Mike Foley (D-Cleveland), Nickie J. Antonio (D-Lakewood), Roland Winburn (D-Dayton) and Robert F. Hagan (D-Youngstown) today criticized Republican plans to eliminate the estate tax. The proposal is included in House Bill 153, the state budget bill. Citing poor timing due to extensive cuts to local government funding, the Democratic members agreed it was time for Republicans to stop giving favors to their wealthy friends at the expense of middle class taxpayers.

"Republicans are participating in class warfare, and they're backing the rich," said Rep. Foley. "Ending the estate tax is just another in a long line of actions that benefit  the wealthy, from Senate Bill 5 to tax cuts for the rich,  at the expense of middle class workers and local governments."

The estate tax began in 1968 and only affects Ohio's most wealthy residents with estates valued over $338,333. In fiscal year 2009 the estate tax generated $333.8 million in revenue. Most of the dollars are distributed to local governments (80%), with the remainder (20%) going into Ohio's General Revenue Fund. In fiscal year 2009, $269.4 million was allocated to local governments from the estate tax.

Data from the Ohio Department of Taxation shows that in fiscal year 2009 only 8,003 estates fell into the tax brackets which require payment of the estate tax, most with net taxable value of above $500,000.  Over 2,000 estates had taxable values of between $1 million and over $3 million.

At a time of high gas prices and massive oil industry profits, the President renews his call to end the $4 billion-per-year subsidies for oil and gas companies and invest in clean energy.

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Lundy says Kasich's Bus Runs Over Consumers

COLUMBUS - State Representative Matt Lundy (D-Elyria) expressed disappointment today that Ohio House Republicans are refusing to restore Gov. Kasich's proposed budget cuts for the Ohio Consumers' Counsel. The substitute budget bill cuts the OCC budget in half (by $4.5 million).

"This is a public mugging of consumers," said Rep. Lundy, past chairman of the former Ohio House Consumer Affairs and Economic Protection Committee. "The governor and the Republican majority are sending a clear message that consumers don't count, but campaign contributors do. There is no other way to explain why they would totally abandon the consumers they are elected to represent."
 
The Consumers' Counsel receives its funding through an assessment on utility companies, so the proposed cuts will have no impact on the state's General Revenue Fund.
 
The proposed budget also prohibits the Consumers' Counsel from advocating or promoting positions contrary to the development of competitive markets in Ohio, including state policies pertaining to natural gas.
"Over its lifetime, OCC has saved utility consumers $10 billion dollars. Now the governor and Republican majority want to muzzle OCC from being a voice for consumers," said Rep. Lundy. "When I look around I don't see a competitive utilities market, but I do see plenty of monopolies throughout the state."
Rep. Lundy says he will continue to push to restore OCC's funding, and to remove the "gag order" that would muzzle the Counsel as an advocate voice for consumers in rate cases.

Budget changes include an addition $69 million in more spending and additional tax breaks

"Today's proposed changes to the state budget continue the trend of increased spending while further devastating Ohio's schools and local communities.  It's clear that the Republican agenda for Ohio is to give tax breaks to their friends while balancing this budget on the backs of middle class families, our oldest and most disabled citizens and our children.

Not one change made today helps to create jobs. In fact, more jobs will be lost as a result of changes in the Commercial Activity Tax. And this Republican budget continues their attack on worker's rights to collectively bargain.

Instead of improving Ohio's schools and giving our children a better opportunity to succeed, the best the House Republicans could do is to limit Gov. Kasich's massive funding cuts to schools by 20 percent!

While struggling families cope with high gas prices, this budget now decimates public transportation. Unless there is some change of course and new-found  desire to work across the aisle, the impacts of this budget will be felt in every community across the entire state for years to come."

"We don't pay taxes. Only the little people pay taxes," billionaire hotelier Leona Helmsley famously (and allegedly) sniffed. She wasn't entirely correct: The superrich do still pay taxes. The wealthiest 1 percent of taxpayers pay 32 percent of all income tax collected by the federal government.

But the superrich don't pay as much as they used to--and thanks to a combination of tax cuts and preferential tax policies, their tax obligations can be less demanding than the so-called little people's.

In fact, the very wealthiest Americans' tax burden has been steadily dropping for years, even as they've enjoyed astounding income growth not seen by the vast majority of Americans.

And then there's the corporations.

Corporations exploit various loopholes and tax breaks to reduce their IRS bills Though the corporate tax rate is 35%, here's 10 that paid nothing (or close to it) last year.

Several paid nothing and yet got a tax rebate from the US Treasury.

After 10 years, Ohio has no reliable comparison with public facilities

A study released today finds that cost calculations performed over a number of years by the State of Ohio have not reliably demonstrated the private-prison savings required under Ohio law.

Since the first private prisons were opened here in 2000, Ohio law has required that any private operator produce savings of at least 5 percent compared to what it would cost the state to run the same facility. According to previous calculations done by the state, the savings have exceeded that threshold by as much as a factor of three.

But the study, written by journalist Bob Paynter for Policy Matters Ohio, found that as of last month - 10 years into the privatization experiment, and one day before Gov. John Kasich announced a plan to sell five state-owned prisons - Ohio officials still hasn't developed an accurate, reliable way to compute how much, if anything, they had actually saved.

The President discusses his plan for our fiscal future. It is a comprehensive and balanced approach to achieve $4 trillion in deficit reduction over twelve years, based on the values of shared responsibility and shared prosperity.

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The Ohio Education Association has compiled data on potential job losses and economic impact considering reductions in State funding that will take effect in the next fiscal year.

Given the fact that districts cannot operate in a deficit for an extended period of time, cuts in staff are likely. Potential staff cuts are figured by looking at the average cost of salaries and benefits in each district.

Every dollar lost in school funding translates in to more than a dollar lost in the local economy. For example, a school employee losing a job also means a local restaurant or business also loses money because they lose a customer. This tool also allows see the compounded impact from those losses on the local economy.

The OEA tooll enables you to look at potential job cuts and dollars lost in the local economy by the district, county, senate, and house district levels by using drop down menus.

Visit OEA to use the calculator to see how the economy in your area will be negatively impacted by the Kasich cuts in the education budget.

Columbus - State Representative Vernon Sykes (D-Akron) today requested that the administration of Gov. Kasich provide vital budget information that has not yet been released. Rep. Sykes is the Ranking Minority member of the Ohio House Finance and Appropriations Committee, and he and other members have been asking the Administration for this information and public records throughout the hearing process.

Frustrated by this lack of information and the Administration's unwillingness to provide the requested data, Rep. Sykes sent the following letter:

Timothy Keen, Director
Ohio Office of Budget & Management
30 East Broad Street, 34th Floor
Columbus, Ohio 43215-3457

Dear Mr. Keen,

I write to you today on behalf of the taxpayers of Ohio who are tremendously concerned about the impacts of the proposed state funding cuts. As a representative of those taxpayers I am apprehensive about the lack of available data necessary to reach a comprehensive understanding of potential impacts to our schools, businesses, and communities.

In order to carry out our responsibilities as State Representatives to review, analyze, amend, and ultimately to vote aye or nay on the state's biennial budget, it is imperative that my fellow members of the General Assembly and I receive the proper information and detail to make informed decisions. Despite having asked for this information during the House Finance and Appropriations committee hearings on the budget and faced with an impending amendment deadline, as of this date we have not received this information. Therefore I am making this request for information and public records so that we will receive the necessary information and may feel comfortable with our analysis of this complex and important piece of legislation.

As ranking member of the House Finance and Appropriations Committee, I am requesting the following information and public records in an attempt to elicit greater detail about the impact of Governor Kasich's proposed budget on the people of Ohio. Given that almost all of this information has previously been requested over the past few weeks, I respectfully request you provide the following information by the close of business on Friday, April 15, 2011 and that you appear before the House Finance and Appropriations committee this week to discuss these issues directly with members of the committee:

• What is the effect of the language allowing OBM to enter into contracts that outsource public services to private entities in terms of the division of liquor?  Would Jobs Ohio be able to outsource or sell the division or its operations or profits to a private entity without the legislature's consent?

• What is the policy reason behind making Jobs Ohio, a private entity, exempt from paying Ohio taxes?  If Jobs Ohio did have to pay Ohio taxes, what would be the revenue from those taxes?

• What % of projects will be affected by the prevailing wage exemption? How many projects currently exceed the $5 million threshold?  How many projects will be affected by the prevailing wage prohibitions in the budget?

• How much money is being used to balance the budget using money made available to the state due to the Affordable Care Act? Are these funds tied to federal requirements in order for the state to receive them?

• What is the actual dollar amount of funding cuts to Ohio's hospitals? Please provide this information on a hospital by hospital basis.

• How is the $119.5 million in savings calculated for the hospital non-contracting language included in the budget?

• What are the actual dollar amount funding cuts, including when applicable revenue losses due to TPP and KwH policy changes in the budget, for local developmental disabilities boards, mental health boards, Area Agencies on Aging, PASSPORT providers, county JFS offices, child support enforcement, and children services and child care providers? Please provide this information statewide and on a county by county basis.

• What specific effects will the cuts to the Ohio Civil Rights Commission have on their ability to process cases? Could their workload be further exacerbated by the changes made in SB 5?

• What is the revenue impact due to the closure of 7 taxpayer service centers?  Currently, it is estimated that they bring in $73 million in revenue each year and closing the 7 centers would save approximately $29 million.

• The Ohio Farm Loan Revolving Fund is taking an 85% cut in the executive budget.  Yet the Director of Agriculture said that the fund is not actually taking that cut.  Please substantiate this statement.  Will less money be available for loans than was available in FY10-11?  If so, how much less?

• What will be the financial impact associated with requiring courts as opposed to the Adult parole Officers to prepare pre-sentence investigation reports?

In addition to the information above, I request the following public records:

• Please provide public records containing data compiled by your office used to estimate how much money would be generated by leasing state parks for drilling purposes.

• Please provide public records compiled by your office to estimate how much money is being used to balance the budget using money made available to the state due to the Affordable Care Act. Are these funds tied to federal requirements in order for the state to receive them?

• Please provide public records containing data that shows the value of the 5 facilities that DRC is looking to sell (including land, fixtures and furniture). Has the state conducted such an appraisal, and if so, what are the details of the appraisal contract (in addition to the results of the appraisal)?

• Please provide public records containing data that shows the amount of remaining debt the state has incurred on these 5 facilities. Will any of the proceeds of the sale of these facilities go to retiring the related debt to ensure that our children will not have to pay for assets that the state no longer owns?

• Please provide public records compiled by your office estimating the number of employees that will be laid off due to the closing of the DYS facility.

I also call your attention to a similar request made to Robert Sommers on April 6th for information related to Governor Kasich's K-12 education budget. We have yet to receive a response to this inquiry (attached).

If you need any additional information about these questions or requests for records, please don't hesitate to contact my office.

With Renewed Attacks on Medicare, Brown Organizes Senate Effort to Protect Affordable Healthcare for Retirees Over 65

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today released a letter he is circulating among his Senate colleagues that urges President Obama to reject new threats to transform Medicare into a voucher system, as proposed under the House Republican's Fiscal Year 2012 budget. Brown reached out to Senate colleagues to join him in urging President Obama to protect America's seniors and oppose any attempts to dismantle Medicare.

According to the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), in the first year of the voucher program, out-of-pocket expenses for seniors would double under the Republican plan to more than $12,500 annually, and increase steadily thereafter.  The average Social Security benefit is $14,000 per year. 

Full text of the letter is below:

President Obama will lay out his long-term vision for reducing the country's debt this afternoon in a speech, with massive implications for the coming debt ceiling fight in Congress as well as the 2012 presidential race.

Watch Live at 1:35pm. EDT

After weeks of negotiations, President Obama and leaders from both the Democratic and Republican parties in Congress found common ground in an agreement about the United States' budget.  This means the government will remain open to serve the public, including small businesses who need need loans to grow, families who've applied for mortgages and others who are visiting national parks and museums.  It also means that hundreds of thousands of Americans - including brave men and women in uniform - will get paychecks on time.

In his Weekly Address, the President discusses the importance of the bipartisan budget agreement that represents both a significant investment in the United States' future - and the largest annual spending cut in our history.

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Get ready to see a lot more of this

Unless Ohio's two-year budget undergoes major changes, public schools will face cuts in programs and larger class size - and property owners will face more tax levies.

Those predictions came today from Columbus attorney Nick Pitter, who led four successful efforts to have Ohio's method of paying for public schools declared unconstitutional.

Pittner took part in a budget briefing today hosted by Innovation Ohio, a progressive think tank based in Columbus.

IO posted an outline that explains how the funding system works and lists proposed changes included in  the two-year spending plan making its way through the state legislature.

The changes include:

• Local school districts would receive $3.1 billion less in the next two years from the state, including federal monies.

• Funding for charter schools and vouchers would be increased.  The budget calls for lifting the cap on charter schools and doubling the number of vouchers used to enroll students in religious and other private schools.

• Education for gifted children in the classroom would be eliminated. County boards, known as Education Service Centers, would receive about $8 million to assist with gifted programs.

Although state budget writers insist that schools can operate more efficiently, Pittner said years of lean budgets have taken their toll on schools.

"If there ever was fat in the system, it's safe to say it is long gone,'' he said.

Officials appear at the invitation of State Rep. Antonio

COLUMBUS - City officials from Cleveland and Lakewood today testified at the Statehouse about the dire impact the budget proposed by Gov. Kasich would have on their cities. They spoke before an Ohio House committee at the invitation of State Rep. Nickie J. Antonio (D-Lakewood).

Valarie J. McCall, Chief of Government Affairs of Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson's office, testified that the "the City of Cleveland has been good stewards of the tax payers resources and that the City has consolidated, collaborated and eliminated everywhere possible to maintain and provide services to constituents.  This budget as proposed nullifies a lot of those efforts and would 'gut constituent services'."

Lakewood Mayor Michael P. Summers told the panel that "additional cuts will be at the expense of diminished services" in his city.

"This is a clear case of pass the buck budgeting, and it is distressing to hear how John Kasich's plan will create hardships in our communities," said Rep. Antonio at today's hearing. "Billions of tax dollars will be taken from schools and local communities to balance the state's budget. This pass the buck budgeting will result in major service cuts to local communities or higher taxes for middle class families."

The Governor's budget proposes cutting over $555 million (25 percent in 2012 and 50 percent in 2013) to local governments.

"The proposed state budget creates a systemic disinvestment in cities like Cleveland," Mayor Jackson wrote in a letter to the committee delivered by McCall. "As proposed, the state budget will reduce the City of Cleveland's general fund revenue by a minimum of $65.2 million between now and 2013 because of proposed cuts to the local government fund, the commercial activity tax and the public utilities tangible personal property tax."

Responsible budget management requires difficult decisions.  In the public sector, it also requires a focus on our bottom line:  service to our constituents.  The state budget as proposed will gut constituent services in cities throughout Ohio, particularly if funding reductions begin during 2011."

Lakewood Mayor Summers made several points during his testimony, including that "further cost reductions start from an already very lean operations platform." He also complained about what he calls a "disconnect between the magnitude of revenue reductions imposed on local governments compared to the expected benefits gained by utilizing the new 'tools' Governor Kasich keeps referring to."

Think Tank says losses could derail Ohio's economic recovery

Innovation Ohio, a progressive think tank headquartered in Columbus, released an analysis today which finds that passing the Kasich Administration's proposed two-year budget could mean a direct loss of 51,052 existing Ohio jobs. The study, including the methodology used to calculate the losses, is posted here.

Job losses of that magnitude--which are more than double the 22,000 jobs that have been created since Gov. Kasich took office--could easily stall the state's still-fragile economic recovery.

IO's study is believed to be the first to project the total number of direct job losses that would result from the Administration's proposed cuts to K-12 education, higher education, state personnel, and local governments. Indirect job losses--which would occur as the decreased spending of newly unemployed workers rippled throughout the state economy--would have an added impact, as will the job losses from cuts to nursing homes and hospitals.

COLUMBUS -Today State Reps. Debbie Phillips (D-Athens) and Matt Lundy (D-Elyria) requested Governor Kasich's office to provide vital budget information that that has yet to be released to Finance Committee members.

As members of the Primary and Secondary Education Subcommittee, Reps. Phillips and Lundy requested this information in committee, but have yet to receive any answers from the Governor's office.

Today's public records request follows weeks of testimony on the budget by staff in the Governor's office. Some staff members appeared before the committee without written testimony and were unable to answer committee member's questions.

Frustrated by this lack of information and unwillingness to provide the requested data, Reps. Phillips and Lundy sent the following letter.

One Ohio Now held a rally Invest In Ohio's Future today on the west lawn of the Statehouse.

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Members ask Attorney General to request that funding be restored

COLUMBUS - State Representatives Denise Driehaus (D-Cincinnati) and Stephen Slesnick (D-Canton) today sent a letter to the state Attorney General asking him to join their call to restore funding to the Ohio Consumers' Counsel. Reps. Slesnick and Driehaus are both members of the Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee of the Ohio House Finance and Appropriations Committee hearing the OCC budget.

"I think it's important to understand that the money saved through this budget cut goes back to the utility companies, not to fix the budget deficit," said Rep. Driehaus.  "We need to continue investing where it counts and where it's going to help the most.  There is not one single person in this state that doesn't benefit from the Ohio Consumers' Counsel advocating on their behalf.  The OCC protects all utility consumers and makes sure that the state is advocating for its citizens."

"Given the current economic climate, Ohio residents need a watchdog like the Ohio Consumers' Council advocating on their behalf now, more than ever," said Rep. Slesnick.  "For the agency to effectively represent and save money for utility customers, the OCC budget must be restored. With this letter, we look forward to working with Attorney General DeWine towards achieving our mutual goal of protecting Ohio taxpayers."

The text of the letter from Reps. Driehaus and Slesnick to Attorney General Mike DeWine is below.

Tell Congress to vote NO on H.R. 1. Now is not the time to cut investment in business and jobs.

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Call your member of Congress at 888.494.8956 and enter your zip code to be connected directly.

It's time to stand up in Ohio.

The Ohio Senate recently passed a bill that would strip 350,000 public servants like teachers, firefighters and police of their collective-bargaining rights, rights that our faith traditions teach us are fundamental to a just society.

And Gov. Kasich has released a budget that will dismantle our social safety net, burden middle-class families, and slash critical investments in our children's futures, while the wealthy and special interests keep every dime of their tax breaks.

As people of faith, we know budgets are moral documents. Help us send a message to Gov. Kasich that a budget that hurts families is unacceptable.

Send a message to Gov. Kasich -- people of faith want a moral budget!

Gov. Kasich budget makes drastic cuts in vital programs like education, healthcare, and child care programs. But his claims that we can't afford these programs ring hollow as he spends millions of dollars on tax cuts for the wealthy.

These are tough times for families across Ohio. We're all going to need to pull together to get out of this recession, but we won't make any progress if the wealthy and special interests don't pay their fair share.

Our faith traditions are clear on where our economic priorities should lie, and Gov. Kasich's budget just doesn't measure up.

Over 500 Ohioans of faith have already told Gov. Kasich his budget has a moral deficit and demanded that he put families first. That's more than halfway to our goal!

Join One Ohio Now, a state budget coalition of over 27 organizations advocating for a balanced approach to solving budget issues, on Tuesday, April 5th at the Statehouse to send a message to Gov. Kasich and Ohio's general assembly that they need to find a middle ground instead of reducing vital services and programs that will further hinder Ohio's economic vitality.

Gov. Kasich's budget proposal relies on massive cuts to balance the state budget. Even though during his very own State of the State Address he told Ohioans that, "we can't cut our way to a balanced budget", that is exactly what he is trying to do with cuts that will come at the expense of vital services including public schools, human services, and local governments.

We can't let Gov. Kasich balance a projected $8 billion budget deficit on the backs of Ohio's children, seniors, sick and our hard working middle class.

Invest In Ohio's Future Rally

Tuesday, April 5th at 12pm

Ohio Statehouse

1 Capital Square, Columbus, OH 43215

(North Plaza/Broad Street)

COLUMBUS-- In Columbus and throughout Ohio, OEA members and other public employees denounced the Ohio House's amended version of Senate Bill 5 (SB 5) as bad legislation made even worse. In addition to approving SB 5 in House committee action today, legislators released thousands of pages of new State Budget language, including 10%-plus cuts to both public schools and state colleges.

"Combined with this state budget proposal, SB 5 will lead to an ongoing crisis in schools and public services for every Ohio community. We believe the people of Ohio will reject SB 5 through a citizens' referendum," said OEA President Patricia Frost-Brooks. "We do not believe the people of Ohio elected leaders with a mandate to cut school funding, take away collective bargaining rights and privatize public schools, but that is the sum effect of legislation now moving so quickly through the Ohio General Assembly."

"Nothing is more essential than creating jobs and providing high-quality educational opportunities for children. But our legislators are ignoring and short-changing these essential functions of state and local government and schools," Frost-Brooks said.

Amendments in the House version of SB 5 are designed to restrict union funding, curb political freedoms of members and impose a one-size-fits-all approach to school districts on performance pay measures.

"These amendments really shine the light on what this bill is all about, which is silencing the voice of people who collectively bargain on behalf of their members and, in our case, on behalf of the children we work with," OEA Vice President Bill Leibensperger said.

SB 5 is expected to go to a House floor vote today.  A Senate floor vote to concur with House changes to the bill is expected on today or Thursday.  If the Senate concurs with House changes to SB 5, the bill would go to the Governor for his signature.

COLUMBUS - State Representatives Denise Driehaus (D-Cincinnati) and Stephen Slesnick (D-Canton), members of the House Finance Committee, released the following statement following today's hearings on Gov. Kasich's budget proposal.

"We are appalled that the Governor has been touting reduced spending in our government when in fact he himself refuses to be held to the same standards.  As members of the Finance Subcommittee on Agriculture and Natural Resources, we heard testimony from the Governor's office today.  It is clear that while Governor Kasich is reducing the budgets of nearly all of Ohio's agencies and commissions, his office's operating budget is increasing.  Ohio's chief executive should be leading the example of the shared sacrifice that we all need to make in order to balance this budget deficit, not requiring others to play by rules that he refuses to abide by himself.

"Not only has Governor Kasich's operating budget increased from the previous administration, but he has added staff to his personal office and increased his chief of staff's salary by nearly $50,000 a year as compared to Governor Strickland's chief of staff.  It seems completely unreasonable that his top staffers should receive salary increases over their counterparts in the previous administration, when there are employees also working in the Governor's office that make $25,000.  This is yet another shining example of why this administration is anti-middle class.

 

Ohio House Democratic Representatives Debbie Phillips (D-Athens) and Matt Lundy (D-Elyria) today expressed their disappointment with the Kasich administration on the lack of a budget bill, clear school district by school district funding formulas and other K-12 funding information that is still not available. As members of the House Budget Sub-Committee on Primary and Secondary Education, they continue to question administration officials testifying before Finance Committee, but have yet to receive any concise, substantial information.

"As legislators reviewing the education budget, we have a very important task before us," said State. Rep. Phillips. "It is nearly impossible to do our job without a budget bill and a clear breakdown of district funding. We are facing unprecedented cuts to primary and secondary education, but rather than crunching the numbers, we are being forced to deal in hypotheticals and meaningless rhetoric. Flexibility and creativity are great, but mean nothing to school districts as they begin to deal with drastic cuts in state aid."

Wednesday, Kasich administration official Robert Sommers, Director of the Office of 21st Century Education, testified before the full Finance Committee and suggested that districts could reduce their cuts by opting into the state health insurance pool. However, when further questioned about it, he couldn't confirm whether districts would be allowed to do so. He also argued that class size has nothing to do with student achievement and mentioned 50-to-1 student to teacher ratios as a possibility.

"My school districts deserve certainty and need to know as soon as possible what their funding scenarios look like," said Rep. Lundy. "I continue to ask tough questions that don't get answered, plus I have no bill to consult for information. From day one the Kasich administration has struggled with openness and transparency. This is just another case of 'trust us', which simply isn't good enough for the taxpayers of Ohio. Further, the Governor believes a student to teacher ratio of 50-to-1 is a formula for success.  I believe it is a formula for failure and unfortunately, it is our children who will suffer.  Maybe if we spent more time focusing on public education and less time on expanding charter schools, we could find a more workable approach to help our children succeed."

Last week Governor Kasich unveiled his budget proposal, which relies on massive cuts to balance the state budget. Gov. Kasich is attempting to balance a projected $8 billion budget deficit on the backs of Ohio's children, seniors, sick and our hard working middle class.

Join One Ohio Now and others from all over Ohio on Tuesday, April 5th at the Statehouse to send a message to Gov. Kasich and Ohio's general assembly that they need to find a middle ground instead of reducing vital services and programs that will further hinder Ohio's economic vitality.

Tuesday, April 5th at 12pm

Ohio Statehouse

1 Capital Square, Columbus, OH 43215

(North Plaza/Broad Street)

Please let us know that you're coming.

This is how Ohio Senate Bill 5 affects the families of Fire Fighters and Police Officers.

NO on SB 5!

Watch It:

Documents show closed Toledo school re-opened with new name, same staff

The Leona Group, a Phoenix-based for-profit charter school management company, has evaded Ohio law by opening a new school to replace a school closed by the state at the end of the 2009-10 school year for poor academic performance.

Paul Laurence Dunbar Academy, a K-8 school located at 3248 Warsaw St. in Toledo and operated by the Leona Group, appeared on the state's closure list and was required to close by June 2010. But by July 2, 2010, the Leona Group had taken steps to open a new school, Northpointe Academy, at the same address with the same phone number and much of the same staff. Leona operates nine schools in Ohio, according to its web site. (www.leonagroup.com)

"Until Ohio overhauls charter school law and creates an effective oversight system, this kind of abuse will not be resolved," said Piet van Lier, Policy Matters researcher. A September Policy Matters report documented other evidence that charter management companies in Ohio are operating with little oversight.

"At their best, charter schools can provide options for students seeking a good education and serve as a proving ground for innovative education models," said van Lier. "This example, of weak oversight and inappropriate behavior by a for-profit management firm, shows how some charters fail miserably to meet that standard."

Accompanying this press release are two PDF files containing staff lists for Dunbar and Northpointe,  both downloaded from the Leona Group web site. The Dunbar staff list was downloaded in July 2010; the Northpointe list was downloaded in February 2011. These staff lists show that Andre Fox served as Dunbar principal and continues to serve in that capacity at Northpointe, according to the staff lists; all but four of the teaching staff listed for Northpointe also appeared on the Dunbar list from last year.

As of February 1, 2011, Northpointe Academy enrolled more than 270 students and had collected more than $2 million in state money for the 2010-11 school year, according to state records. The Toledo-based Ohio Council of Community Schools was Dunbar's sponsor and serves as Northpointe's sponsor as well. In Ohio, charter school sponsors are responsible for authorizing new schools and monitoring them once they are open.

Beginning in 2008, Ohio law required charter schools to meet certain academic standards on their state report cards or face closure. While this law was a positive step toward improving accountability for Ohio's charter schools, the case of Dunbar/Northpointe shows that oversight of these publicly funded, privately operated schools remains inadequate.

Decision hurts city and county, leaves void for inpatient mental health treatment

CLEVELAND - Ohio House Democratic Leader Armond Budish (D-Beachwood), Cleveland Mayor Frank G. Jackson, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald, ADAMHS Board of Cuyahoga County Chief Executive Officer William M. Denihan, State Representative Sandra Williams (D-Cleveland), Cleveland City Councilman TJ Dow and members of the Ohio House Democratic caucus stood united today in their call for Governor Kasich to reconsider his decision to remove inpatient mental health care from Cuyahoga County. At a press conference held in Cleveland on the previously agreed upon Euclid Avenue Site for the new Cleveland Mental Health Hospital, state and local officials expressed their concerns over the impact this will have on patients and the community.

"Cancelling a $100 million project in the heart of Cleveland will hurt the mental health community and will cost Cuyahoga County jobs," said House Democratic Leader Budish. "This decision not only impacts the families in need of inpatient mental health treatment, it also drives economic development out of Cleveland and Cuyahoga County. The Governor should not renege on the state's commitment to properly serve Cuyahoga County's mental health community."

The City of Cleveland and the Ohio Department of Mental Health had an agreement to build a new mental health hospital at the Euclid Avenue site featured in today's press conference. Nearly $84 million was set aside in the capital budget for construction of the new facility. In addition, the City of Cleveland has already spent $4 million to prepare the site. Earlier this year the state notified the city that they would not be moving forward with their plans, rather they would consolidate services in Summit County.

"Government's bottom line is service not profit. The State's decision to move the Cleveland Campus of Northcoast Behavioral Healthcare out of Cleveland may save on cost but it compromises our ability to deliver service to people who need it and use it the most," said Mayor Frank G. Jackson.

By locating the new facility on Euclid Avenue, the new hospital would have offered improved services with closer access to more doctors.  The Euclid avenue site is situated between downtown county agencies and Metro Health Hospital to the west and the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospitals to the east. Patient statistics show that most of the patients seeking inpatient mental health services in Cleveland are from Cuyahoga County. The Governor's decision will force 97% of treated patients to travel to another county for services.

Cuyahoga County Executive Ed Fitz Gerald added, "This decision places an additional burden on Cuyahoga County families already coping with mental illness. Virtually all of the patients in the existing Cleveland hospital live right here in Cuyahoga County. Why move it further away from the people it serves?"

Representative Marcy Kaptur askes when we're going to get some of that shared sacrifice from Wall Street and the oil company executives instead of balancing the budget off of the backs of the working class.

Watch It:

Columbus, OH - Working families to protest Thursday morning after the recent announcement from Governor Kasich's Office of Economic Development that millions of dollars in giveaways to corporations - including $8 million to the Bob Evans corporation - to move their headquarters 20 miles closer to the home of their CEO Steven Davis, at a cost of roughly $400,000 in tax payer dollars per mile.

What: Protest of Governor Kasich's Corporate Welfare in moving Bob Evans Headquarters

Who: Working families against corporate welfare in Ohio

When: Thursday, March 17 at 10:30AM

Where: Bob Evans Restaurant
1445 Olentangy River Rd
Columbus, OH 43212

"The ax is out. So called, 'Jobs Budget' is a job killer. Our Governor is putting Ohio up for sale and working families will pay the price."

WASHINGTON D.C. - Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) issued the following statement today upon learning of the two year state budget unveiled by Ohio Governor John Kasich.

"I am extremely disappointed that Governor Kasich prefers to balance the state of Ohio budget on the backs of school children, libraries, local governments and public workers. His proposed budget for 2012 and 2013 reduces funding for our schools by $3 billion dollars," said Congresswoman Fudge.

"What's more, every Ohioan should be concerned by the Governor's sleight of hand in claiming this is a 'Jobs Budget' and taxpayers will receive a tax cut.  The budget outline includes crippling cuts to local communities, $1.3 billion less in reimbursement fund payments and a $555 million dollar reduction in the Local Government Fund.  Cuts of that magnitude will certainly lead already strapped communities to reduce services, lay off workers or force them to seek higher tax revenue and fees to meet their obligations."

While realizing the state of Ohio faces a significant budget shortfall, Congresswoman Fudge also expressed concern at the scope of attempts by the Kasich Administration to sell public assets and privatize control of resources that belong to the people of Ohio. "Businesses exist to make a profit and generate a return for their owners and shareholders.  The priority of those entities who acquire public assets is not to share money with the true owners-- the people of Ohio.  Experiments with privatization in other states have often led to more job losses, less accountability and working families picking up the tab."

When you hear Gov. Kasich say more drilling of the shale deposits located in Ohio would be "a Godsend", make no mistake he's talking about his plan to use the hydraulic fracturing method called "fracking".

This is not the same as vertical drilling which has been used in the past.

Fracking can cause long-term health and environmental problems affecting everyone in our state and beyond.

Some Facts About Fracking:

• A loophole in the 2005 Energy Bill exempts gas drillers from EPA guidelines like the Clean Water Act

• Drilling emits Nitrogen Oxide and Volatile Organic Compounds, resulting in destructive surface smog

• Researchers suspect that 65 of the compounds found in fracking are hazardous to human health

• Over 80,000 pounds of chemicals are injected into the earth's crust to frack each well

• Upward of 70% of the Fracking Fluid remains in the ground and is not biodegradable

• Fracking fluids calls for 2 million gallons of water transported by up to 100 water carriers.

So, how is the sellout of our health and water supplies to work?

First, limit the ability of the Ohio EPA to stand up against it by cutting their budget:

In Kasich's budget released yesterday, environmental protection would be cut by a total of $73.2 million in the next fiscal year.

Then you pass a bill through the Republican controlled legislature:

House Bill 133, introduced by Rep. John Adams, a Sidney Republican, is similar to one lawmakers advanced, but did not pass in 2008.

It would allow leasing state land, such as parks and universities, for natural gas and oil drilling.

In that bill you stack the decision makers in your favor:

The bill would create a five-person board that would include two voting members from the oil and gas industry and three members appointed by the governor.

Do you think, the environmental issues surrounding "Fracking" are bound to get the attention they deserve with that makeup?

The Fracturing Responsibility and Awareness of Chemicals Act (H.R. 2766), (S. 1215)--was introduced to both houses of the the United States Congress on June 9, 2009, and aims to repeal the exemption for hydraulic fracturing in the Safe Drinking Water Act.

It would require the energy industry to disclose the chemicals it mixes with the water and sand it pumps underground in the hydraulic fracturing process (also known as fracking), information that has largely been protected as trade secrets.

"There are corporations in this nation, some of the biggest corporations in this nation, who do not pay taxes."

Early this month, Democratic Rep. Marcia Fudge of Warrensville Heights appeared on C-SPAN's "Washington Journal," public affairs television program where viewers phoned in to ask her questions.

A caller who identified himself as James, an Akron small-business owner, discussed some of the tax write-offs he uses as a small businessman, and said larger businesses "game the system" by writing off things like parties, food and clothes.

Fudge agreed with him, calling for an overhaul of corporate tax policy, saying: "There are corporations in this nation, some of the biggest corporations in this nation, who do not pay taxes."

"It is not that they are cheating," Fudge continued. "It is not that they are doing something wrong. We have given them tools."

We thought examining Fudge's tax claim would be worthwhile, since representatives of some of the nation's biggest companies, such as Cincinnati's Procter & Gamble, argue that Congress should be cutting business taxes.

In January testimony on behalf of the Business Roundtable, P&G CEO Robert A. McDonald told the House Ways and Means Committee that too-high corporate taxes are costing American jobs and making U.S. companies less competitive in the global marketplace.

Are some large U.S. businesses not paying taxes, as Fudge claims? [...]

Our research finds solid ground beneath her claim that some large U.S. companies don't pay taxes. That's why we rate her statement as True.

Read The Full Story at PolitiFact Ohio

With a looming gap between revenues and expenditures in the upcoming budget, there has been significant attention to likely spending cuts. It is easy to forget that Ohio's state budget already has been squeezed, with major reductions to basic services that Ohioans expect from government.

This paper reviews some state services that have eroded including the Board of Tax Appeals, where the caseload has tripled while 60 percent of staff have been axed; the Division of Weights and Measures where funding crashed by 81 percent from over a million dollars to just $200,000; the Division of Parks and Recreation where there's been a 45 percent staff reduction, a $556 million backlog in maintenance, and proposals to drill and log on parkland; the Ohio Civil Rights Commission which has dropped from 199 to 94 employees with more cuts looming; the Ohio Ethics Commission which has seen an average 18 percent annual increase in cases amid a 19 percent decline in funding; the Environmental Review Appeals Commission where staff has fallen from 14 to 2; and our libraries, known as the nation's best, where funding has been chopped by 23 percent, and libraries have reduced hours, closed branches, reduced purchasing, cut programming, shed staff, and shifted reliance to local (and inequitable) levies.

Executive Summary

Full Report

WASHINGTON, D.C. - As Congress continues negotiations on the Fiscal Year 2011 budget, U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) called for an end to tax handouts for "Big Oil: and to corporations that ship jobs overseas instead of a Republican budget proposal that could--as an independent, nonpartisan report has estimated--destroy 27,000 Ohio jobs. The Republican budget passed by the U.S. House of Representatives would also eliminate workforce investment programs, which helped up to an estimated 134,000 Ohioans train for new jobs and secure employment last year alone.

"We need to get serious about reducing the deficit, but let's do it by cutting corporate handouts instead of efforts that promote job creation and economic development," Brown said. "Following 14 consecutive months of private-sector job growth, now is not the time to turn our back on policies that will set back the economy as we are building traction. And as thousands of Ohio workers seek retraining assistance, we should not deny them the opportunity to gain the skills they need to get new jobs. The best approach to deficit reduction is job creation, and there are 15 million out-of-work Americans who would be delighted to pay taxes again."

According to independent, non-partisan analysis released by Moody's Analytics - whose chief economist Mark Zandi advised Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign - the Republican budget proposal is expected to eliminate 700,000 jobs through 2012. It s estimated that Ohio would lose 27,000 jobs over this period. Goldman Sachs also stated that slashing spending by $61 billion--as proposed by the Republican plan--could reduce economic growth by as much as two percent.

Brown contrasted Republican proposals that will reduce economic growth with sensible ways to reduce the deficit responsibly while creating jobs immediately and continuing to strengthen Ohio's economy. Last week, new jobs figures showed the creation of 192,000 new private sector jobs in February - marking 14 consecutive months of private sector job creation.

From the Center for American Progress:

Federal public work programs pulled families out of hardship and the economy out of the Depression in the 1930s, and it could do the same today. As Ohio closes in on a second year unemployment rates that have hovered around ten percent, a trickle-up, job-led recovery strategy makes sense from a fiscal and social point of view.

The costs of lingering high unemployment are amplified by lost value of foreclosed homes and bankrupt business, stress on unemployed workers and families, and ongoing erosion of the local and national economy. In Ohio, nearly one out of five workers is unemployed, underemployed, or too discouraged to look for work. Some demographic groups - men who worked in construction and manufacturing, young workers under 24, people without a high school degree or post-secondary education, African Americans and Hispanics - are bearing the brunt of the problem.

People want to get back to work. The federal government needs to move swiftly and decisively to staunch the damage and respond to the urgent need for jobs. An investment of $46.4 billion federal dollars, smaller than the proposed tax cuts for the wealthy and further reduced to $28.6 billion from reduced outlays and increased tax revenues, could create a million jobs very quickly, boosting business and restoring home values through earned income. This kind of stimulus trickles up through the economy. It leaves families and communities served better off.

In this report, Policy Matters Ohio examines the high costs of lingering unemployment. Labor market conditions in Ohio are reviewed. Public works programs from the past are reviewed. Recommendations for public works jobs are outlined. A sketch of the administrative structure of a public works program is provided.

Executive Summary

Full Report

Mayor Michael B. Coleman will forward legislation to City Council Monday that would lead to the creation of 384 new employment opportunities while retaining 254 existing jobs. Mayor Coleman's proposals include incentives for a West Virginia company, Simonton Windows, to relocate to Columbus bringing 95 new jobs to the city.
 
"Because of our high quality of life and our diverse economy, Columbus continues to be an oasis of economic activity in a tough climate," Mayor Coleman said. "I thank all these businesses for working with us to expand employment opportunities to our residents."
 
Council will consider legislation for:

• Simonton Windows, Inc., which produces vinyl-replacement and new construction windows and patio doors, is proposing to relocate its corporate headquarters from West Virginia to the City of Columbus at 3948 Townsfair Way. A total of 46 new permanent full-time positions will be created, and 49 full-time permanent jobs will be retained--all of which will be new to Columbus--as a result of the project. The city recommends a 25 percent, seven-year Jobs Growth Incentive.
• Apelles,LLC., a leading provider of outsourced collections and customer service solutions nationwide, will locate is corporate headquarters and client support operations to 3700 Corporate Drive. The company will create approximately 17 new full-time permanent positions and retain 29, all new to Columbus. Apelles will invest approximately $505,000 in personal property, machinery and equipment. The city recommends a 25 percent, five-year Jobs Growth Incentive.
• Momentive Specialty Chemicals, Inc, formerly known as Hexion Specialty Chemicals, is proposing to consolidate and expand its corporate headquarters located at 180 East Broad Street. The company will retain 243 existing jobs and create 89 new full-time permanent positions by 2013. The city recommends a 50 percent, eight-year Downtown Office Incentive
• Frank Brunckhorst Co., LLC, which distributes meats, and cheeses, will create 93 new permanent full-time positions at 2225 Spiegel Drive in Columbus. The Brunckhorst Co. will make a fixed-asset investment of approximately $21.6 million for land, facilities, equipment and furnishings. The city recommends a 65 percent, six-year Job Creation Tax Credit.
• The city recommends a 50 percent, three-year Downtown Office Incentive for CoverMyMeds, LLC, which provides a web based tool that allows healthcare professionals to quickly submit prior authorization forms for all drugs and all drug healthcare plans. The company will create 61 new full-time positions with an annual payroll of $3,945,000. The company has 11 retained employees with an annual payroll of $1.1 million. 

"These companies will continue the surge of momentum in the job creation and retention effort in Columbus," said Councilmember Zachary M. Klein, chair of the Development Committee.  "We, as a city, are investing in our Development Department so we can aggressively build upon the growth in the business sector that we are experiencing."  

For Richer and Poorer - Teachers and Wall Street

When will America's teachers follow the lead of Wall Street and start making some sacrifices for the children?

Jon Stewart & Company go to town on the blatant hypocrisy and utter foolishness of Wisconsin's class war on teachers.

For Richer and For Poorer (Part 2)

The President calls for Democrats and Republicans to come together on a budget that cuts wasteful spending without sacrificing job creating investments in education, innovation, and infrastructure.

Watch It:

John Kasich's war on Ohio unions was given a boost yesterday when the Ohio School Facilities Commission today repealed policies requiring the payment of prevailing wages and the use of project labor agreements mandating the employment of union workers.

The Columbus Dispatch Reports:

In another blow to organized labor and the legacy of former Gov. Ted Strickland, the Ohio School Facilities Commission today repealed policies favoring unions for school-construction projects.

The commission, now controlled by appointees of GOP Gov. John Kasich, unanimously approved a resolution stating it no longer would approve contracts in which those bidding for projects were required to designate who would do the work, how much they would be paid or other mandates.

The move reverses policies enacted under the former Democratic administration that allowed districts to require the payment of prevailing wages and the use of project labor agreements mandating the employment of union workers.

The commission hired Richard M. Hickman Jr. as its executive director. Hickman, assistant director of the Department of Administrative Services, headed the commission from June 2005 to February 2007.

His salary has not been set but will not exceed $110,000 a year.

Today's must read of the day . . .

Wisconsin Power Play
by PAUL KRUGMAN

Why bust the unions? As I said, it has nothing to do with helping Wisconsin deal with its current fiscal crisis. Nor is it likely to help the state's budget prospects even in the long run: contrary to what you may have heard, public-sector workers in Wisconsin and elsewhere are paid somewhat less than private-sector workers with comparable qualifications, so there's not much room for further pay squeezes.

So it's not about the budget; it's about the power.

In principle, every American citizen has an equal say in our political process. In practice, of course, some of us are more equal than others. Billionaires can field armies of lobbyists; they can finance think tanks that put the desired spin on policy issues; they can funnel cash to politicians with sympathetic views (as the Koch brothers did in the case of Mr. Walker). On paper, we're a one-person-one-vote nation; in reality, we're more than a bit of an oligarchy, in which a handful of wealthy people dominate.

Given this reality, it's important to have institutions that can act as counterweights to the power of big money. And unions are among the most important of these institutions.

You don't have to love unions, you don't have to believe that their policy positions are always right, to recognize that they're among the few influential players in our political system representing the interests of middle- and working-class Americans, as opposed to the wealthy. Indeed, if America has become more oligarchic and less democratic over the last 30 years -- which it has -- that's to an important extent due to the decline of private-sector unions.

And now Mr. Walker and his backers are trying to get rid of public-sector unions, too.

There's a bitter irony here. The fiscal crisis in Wisconsin, as in other states, was largely caused by the increasing power of America's oligarchy. After all, it was superwealthy players, not the general public, who pushed for financial deregulation and thereby set the stage for the economic crisis of 2008-9, a crisis whose aftermath is the main reason for the current budget crunch. And now the political right is trying to exploit that very crisis, using it to remove one of the few remaining checks on oligarchic influence.

So will the attack on unions succeed? I don't know. But anyone who cares about retaining government of the people by the people should hope that it doesn't.

Please read the entire piece at The New York Times

GOP forces are trying to deflect attention from the growing wealth transfer to the richest 1 percent while the jobs and wages of everyone else languish.

The Republican strategy is to split the vast middle and working class - pitting unionized workers against non-unionized, public-sector workers against non-public, older workers within sight of Medicare and Social Security against younger workers who don't believe these programs will be there for them, and the poor against the working middle class.

By splitting working America along these lines, Republicans hope to deflect attention from the big story. That's the increasing share of total income and wealth going to the richest 1 percent while the jobs and wages of everyone else languish.

Republicans would rather no one notice their campaign to generate further tax cuts for the rich - making the Bush tax cuts permanent, further reducing the estatetax, and allowing the wealthy to shift ever more of their income into capital gains taxed at 15 percent.

The strategy has three parts.

• The battle over the federal budget

• The assault on public employees

• The distortion of the Constitution

WASHINGTON, D.C . - On Tuesday, February 22, the President and members of his cabinet will travel to Cleveland, Ohio, where the White House will convene a Winning the Future Forum on Small Business in association with Cleveland State University and northeast Ohio economic development organizations JumpStart and NorTech.  In his State of the Union address, President Obama spoke of the need to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build our competitors in order to sustain our leadership and secure prosperity for all Americans.  The Forum will be an opportunity for the President and his economic team to hear directly from small business owners and leaders about their ideas for how America can continue to grow the economy, put Americans back to work, and win the future.
 
President Obama will deliver opening and closing remarks at the forum.  In between, there will be breakout sessions - some of which the President will participate in - hosted by cabinet members.  Topics will include:

• Entrepreneurship

• Access to Capital and Tax Breaks for Small Businesses

• Exports

• Clean Energy

 Council of Economic Advisers Chairman Austan Goolsbee will also hold a live online discussion from Cleveland State University that anyone can tune into at www.whitehouse.gov/live at 1:00 p.m. Tuesday.

Washington D.C. - Congresswoman Marcia L. Fudge (OH-11) stated today Congressional Republicans introduced a dangerous spending bill that cuts jobs, threatens American innovation and reduces investments in rebuilding America. She participated in a news conference convened by the Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) to announce creation of their own debt commission and comment on the Republican Continuing Resolution to keep the federal government running.

"We are the conscience of the Congress and my conscience is bothering me today." Congresswoman Fudge reassured Americans that "If no one speaks for the least & the last of these...[Just know] we will."

Republicans have proposed a budget that will add $5 trillion to the deficit, and have not presented a serious plan for actually addressing the deficit. Worse than that, their plan would cut jobs instead of creating them.

An analysis by the Democratic staff of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee estimated Ohio stands to lose 2,500 jobs and $89.6 million dollars in lost improvements through GOP proposed cuts for roads, bridges, transit and rail projects.

Congresswoman Fudge commented that the "Republican CR (Continuing Resolution) gives thousands of Americans a pink slip in a time when this nation's citizens cannot afford another lay off or door closed in their faces."

Just a few weeks ago, in my State of the Union Address, I spoke about how America can win the future by out-educating, out-innovating and out-building the rest of the world.  I also talked about taking responsibility for our Nation's deficits, because we can't win the future if we pass on a mountain of debt to our children and grandchildren.

Yesterday, I sent my budget proposal for 2012 to Congress, and I wanted to take a moment to explain some of the tough choices we had to make so we can afford to invest in our future.

Like American families, the Federal Government must live within its means. That means eliminating wasteful spending and cutting programs that aren't working.  It also means that programs, like Community Development Block Grants, which I care about deeply, need to be scaled back to confront the crushing debt we face.

Getting our fiscal house in order requires shared sacrifice. But even in these tough times, we have a responsibility to make smart investments in our Nation's future.

That's why we must invest in innovation to ensure that the jobs and industries of the future are built right here in America.  It's why we need to invest in roads, bridges, high-speed rail and high-speed Internet to help our businesses ship their goods and ideas around the world.

The President released his fiscal-year 2012 budget today -- an ambitious roadmap of his priorities with necessary investments in education, innovation, and infrastructure that will help America win the future.

His budget also takes responsibility for our deficit and puts the nation on a path to live within its means by shrinking non-security discretionary spending to the lowest level since the Eisenhower administration.

Overall, it reduces the deficit by $1.1 trillion over the next decade, fulfilling a key pledge President Obama made -- to cut the deficit he inherited in half by the end of his first term.

But the budget is also a vision to win the future. It provides funding for ambitious projects such as expanding a next-generation wireless broadband network to 98 percent of Americans, providing access to high-speed rail to 80 percent of Americans within 25 years, and training 100,000 new science and math teachers.

Jack Lew, director of the Office of Management and Budget, has put together a White House White Board to explain both the investments and the deficit reduction measures in the budget.

Watch It:

President Obama used his weekly address to preview his budget saying that it will help the government live within its means, while still investing in the future. 

In addition to stripping out waste, his budget includes a freeze on annual domestic spending over the next five years--even for programs he cares deeply about--which will reduce the deficit by more than $400 billion over the next decade.  And, it will make investments in the future, by supporting what will do the most to grow the economy in the years to come. 

This means investing in things like infrastructure, research, and education.

Watch It:

After months of working on anything but jobs legislation, GOP lawmakers got an opportunity this week to actually address the crisis. Tomorrow, the Trade Assistance Adjustment (TAA) Program and the Health Care Tax Credit (HCTC) will expire. TAA helps retrain and re-employ workers who have lost their jobs due to foreign trade. HCTC provides compensation to help unemployed workers afford private health insurance. While 72 percent of Americans oppose cutting such critical unemployment assistance, the GOP is seemingly insistent that it expire.

On Tuesday, the House GOP's plan to extend TAA was pulled from the House floor due to conservative backlash against the government "getting too involved in the economy." That left the typically obstinate Senate as the last hope to extend the much-needed aid. Together on the Senate floor yesterday, Sens. Robert Casey (D-PA) and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) offered three different proposals to extend both benefits for 18 months, 4.5 months, and just the HCTC for 18 months by unanimous consent. However, each time, Sen. John Barrasso (R-WY) was there to block it.

Increasingly incensed over each of Barrasso's obstructions, Brown expressed anger uncommon on the Senate floor at Barrasso's final objection to the HCTC extension. Offended by the apparent GOP hypocrisy in enjoying taxpayer-funded benefits while refusing to aid those "who don't dress like this everyday" and "don't make $170,000 a year," he blasted Senators for "turning our backs" on the American worker.

Watch It:

Brown's anger is certainly justified. Ohio alone has "208 groups with 26,427 workers certified for TAA." About 280,000 workers across the country stand to lose these benefits. Brown's anger is only likely to grow as it appears that the GOP is holding these benefits hostage in "an effort to pressure the administration" on free trade agreements that helped generate this unemployment issue in the first place. Indeed, Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) said "he will block TAA until the White House vows to move the free trade agreement with Colombia."

Yesterday, Brown's GOP counterpart Sen. Rob Portman also "voiced his disappointment" at the House GOP's obstruction of the TAA "safety net," promising affected Ohio workers he would "remain committed to [them] and [is] doing all that I can in order to ensure that they receive the benefits they need during tough economic times." But when his Senate colleagues blocked the extension, Portman was demonstrably silent.

~ Think Progress

Related:

Aid To Jobless Workers Harmed By Trade Expires Saturday Unless Congress Acts

Republicans Pull Assistance for Workers Affected By Outsourcing

Ohio estate tax: Fair and equitable
Published: Sunday, January 23, 2011
by Mike Foley State Representative

I strongly disagree with weakening or eliminating what I think is one of the fairest taxes we as a people impose on ourselves.

Ohio's estate tax only affects the value of estates over $338,333. For example, if you had an estate valued at $339,000, the heir would only be charged 6 percent of the $667 above the $338,333 threshold, or $40. (The rate rises to 7 percent above $500,000). That's a pretty good deal for someone inheriting a large amount of money or property.

Right now, the richest 1 percent of Americans control 33.8 percent of private wealth in this country. That's the greatest income discrepancy since before the Great Depression. I tend to agree with a quote associated with Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis: "We can have concentrated wealth in the hands of a few or we can have democracy. But we cannot have both."

We should keep the estate tax.

Mike Foley State Representative - District 14 Cleveland

Right-wing media and politicians are twisting the facts to blame our economic problems on public workers.  

Firing cops, nurses and firefighters doesn't make us stronger - it puts our communities at risk. The banking crisis put us in a deep economic hole, and we need leadership to get back on track.  Instead, politicians who raked in millions from corporate CEOs to get elected are now blaming middle class Americans for our economic problems - demanding deep cuts in their hard-earned pay and benefits or firing them altogether.  States are in deep financial trouble because of the economic downturn, not because hardworking Americans are paid a fair wage. Firing cops, nurses and firefighters doesn't make us stronger - it puts our families and communities at risk and means more people out of work. Solving our budget problems means restoring balance to our economy by putting more people back to work and eliminating tax breaks for corporations and CEOs that outsource our jobs.

Almost nothing was spared in the GOP's proposed budget target list, including the Centers for Disease Control, the FBI, job training, alternative energy research, and green jobs initiatives. In fact, the only thing that was actually spared was the budget deficit, because while the GOP targeted 70 different programs, they only managed to shave $23 billion in spending. (View the list in spreadsheet form.)

As things now stand, the budget deficit will be $1.500 trillion for this fiscal year. If the GOP has their way, it will be $1.477 trillion. That's a cut of merely 1.5% . Despite everything the GOP is going after, our budget deficit will be 98.5% of what it would have been otherwise -- virtually unchanged. In other words, the only thing they didn't slash was the budget deficit.

What this exercise proves is that the Republican approach doesn't represent a serious effort at deficit reduction. Instead, it's an exercise in targeting programs that help the kinds of people Republicans don't like. They really don't care about deficit reduction: the GOP's precious tax cuts for the wealthy added nearly twice as much to the deficit as the total amount of cuts in this proposal.

Senator Brown shows how to save $20 billion in one fell swoop by stopping corporate welfare for the oil campanies.

House Republicans have released a list of proposed budget cuts -- not specific proposals of course, just a broad laundry list of red meat for their base -- and what's particularly striking about this list is what it says about the so-called "pro-life" party:

• $758 million from WIC (Women, Infants and Children):

  WIC provides Federal grants to States for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk.

• $1.3 billion from Community Health Centers:

  To improve the health of the Nation's underserved communities and vulnerable populations by assuring access to comprehensive, culturally competent, quality primary health care services. Individual health center grant mechanisms include: (1) Community Health Centers; (2) Migrant Health Centers; (3) Health Care for the Homeless; and (4) Public Housing Primary Care Program.

• $210 million from Maternal and Child Health Block Grants:

  The Maternal and Child Health Block Grant to States is a public health program that reaches across economic lines to improve the health of all mothers and children ... train providers and support services for children with special healthcare needs, newborn screening and genetic services, lead poisoning and injury prevention, and health and safety promotion in child care settings.

In the few weeks that the GOP has controlled the House, the lion's share of their time has been spent trying to roll-back reproductive rights because, "our members feel very strongly about the sanctity of human life."

But with these cuts, we once again see that those strong feelings Republicans' profess to have for life stops at the delivery room door ... assuming you can afford to go to the hospital, of course.

Working people overflow Statehouse hearing room to protect their voices

COLUMBUS, OHIO - An overflow crowd of over 800 concerned Ohioans packed the halls of the Ohio Statehouse today in opposition of Senate Bill 5, a job-killing, anti-worker bill that would silence the voice of Ohio's public servants. If passed by the Ohio legislature, Senate Bill 5 would eliminate collective bargaining for Ohio's public employees and make it more difficult to attract and retain quality staff.

"Today, Senator Shannon Jones and her anti-worker allies jump-started their job-killing vendetta against Ohio's middle class," said Becky Williams, President of SEIU District 1199 which represents over 9,000 public sector workers in Ohio. "Reducing government, cutting taxes for the rich, and taking rights away from workers might sound good to Jones, but when you talk about taking safety forces off of our streets, educators out of our communities and leaving criminals unsupervised in our towns - it's just not practical."

While working under the misrepresented premise of "transparency" and "reducing the size and scope of government," Jones openly admits that there will be no direct financial benefit to the taxpayers after her exhaustive one-year research of collective bargaining. To the contrary, a report published by Policy Matters Ohio found that "allowing public sector workers to bargain collectively reduces labor strife, reduce the likelihood of strikes and can lead to better training and higher productivity for public sector workers."

Ohio House of Representatives Education Committee members called a press conference today to raise concerns about House Bill 30, which would dismantle the Evidence Based Education Model passed in the last general assembly. Their point: Rolling back these reforms will not only degrade the quality of education for the children of Ohio, but will also hurt Ohio's economic recovery.  

Businesses are drawn to Ohio because of our educated workforce.  In this tough economy, we need to be doing everything we can to bring build upon our strengths, not dismantling them.  Further, if our workforce is less educated and less employable, then more people will receive assistance, growing the budget and increasing our deficit.   

This is not a big vs. small Government Issue.  This is a question of making targeted investments to grow the economy now or paying more in the future by lowering job creation and increasing the need for public assistance.

At a time when its seems every 2nd line from a legislator is "creating good paying jobs", rolling back the proven reforms that make Ohio appealing to employers may be penny wise and please a small subset of activists, but is pound (and dollar) foolish.

Third Round of National Emergency Grant Funding Will Aid Redevelopment of Clinton County Port Authority Airpark Following Closure of DHL Wilmington Hub in May 2008

WASHINGTON, D.C.  - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today announced that the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services will receive $2,932,835 to provide reemployment services to 729 workers affected by layoffs at Wilmington Air Park in Wilmington. The funding is distributed through the U.S. Department of Labor's National Emergency Grant (NEG) Program. This is the third round of NEG funding for Clinton County, following $3.8 million in Nov 2008, and $4.4 million in November 2009.

"It is critical that we redevelop the Clinton County Port Authority Airpark to attract new business and put southwest Ohioans back to work," Brown said. "I am committed to working with federal, state, and local officials to establish a clear path toward recovery and renewed growth for Wilmington. Today's funding is a significant step toward that goal."

More than 35 organizations and hundreds of individuals gathered in Columbus on January 14 to launch a new coalition that argues for a balanced approach to the Ohio budget that relies in part on raising more revenue for needed services.

Learn about One Ohio Now and the human service advocates, faith-based leaders, working people, community organizations, educators and citizens that are united to fight devastating budget cuts and preserve a stronger Ohio.

Some of the press: an Akron Beacon Journal Editorial a Columbus Dispatch story, a Cincinnati Enquirer Op-Ed, and a clip from Ohio Public Radio.

On Fox News Sunday, House Speaker John Boehner continued to claim that House Republicans will cut spending and reduce the deficits but yet again refused to name a single thing he would be willing to cut.

The question wasn't a surprise, earlier in the year Speaker Boehner was unable to name one area of government that he would cut. House Republicans began their term in Congress by breaking their pledge to cut $100 billion from the budget in the first year.

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives made the first of many votes that could break the federal government's commitment to the health, education, and safety of children.

The result of this vote would be to slash the portion of the budget that funds children's programs by as much as $80 billion dollars. This would threaten not only the future of our children, but any hope of economic recovery. It would also do little to reduce the federal debt as the recent tax cuts adds almost $500 billion to the deficit in this year alone

The House voted to reduce federal spending to 2008 levels. Spending on Pentagon programs would be left alone. Education, health, nutrition, and child welfare services -- all of which are vital to children and families -- would sustain huge reductions.

As a result millions of children could lose their health coverage and their favorite teachers would be at risk of being arbitrarily fired. Specifically, the share of dollars going to children in special education grants would be cut by 53 percent. Head Start would be cut by 27 percent. Adoption incentives would be slashed by 89 percent.

Some in Congress simply want to balance the budget on the backs of some of the neediest Americans.

Ohioans advocate for a balanced approach to Ohio's budget crisis that includes new revenue to meet Ohio's needs and build a stronger economy.

Watch It:

Akron Beacon Journal Editorial on Speaker Batchelder's cuts only approach to balancing Ohio's budget:

Yet the state must do more, knowing that such efforts won't come easily or soon. Neither will a slimmer state government alone close the looming deficit. The speaker isn't correct in insisting the state cannot raise taxes. It could examine the $7 billion in annual tax credits, deductions, exemptions, many long on the books. Even a 10 percent reduction would yield significant savings. The state could return the top income tax rate to 7.5 percent, touching a tiny percentage of taxpayers.

Fat chance? Perhaps. Yet without such a balanced approach, local governments will bear an increasing burden -- even if they consolidate aggressively. The state? It still will lack the resources to invest adequately in what matters.

OneOhio Now is a coalition of over 30 groups across the state of Ohio proposing a balanced approach to balancing Ohio's budget:

Action is needed to move Ohio forward and promote the well-being of our communities and their residents. By investing in our families, communities, natural resources, and existing assets, we all share the potential to guide our state to renewed prosperity. The following principles must guide Ohio policymakers as they build a budget aimed at a better Ohio for all.

View More Images Of The One Ohio Kick-Off Here

Ohio in the balance

The governor and Republicans should be alert to the reality: The state cannot cut its way to greater prosperity

Relying entirely on spending cuts to balance the next state budget risks damaging the state's economy in the long run. That is the worthy argument of One Ohio Now, voiced during a rally at the Statehouse last week. The group, representing more than 30 health and human services, education, transportation and labor interests, rightly called for a ''balanced approach.'' In other words, additional revenue also must be part of the budget solution.

The perspective is a valuable one to bring to the coming budget debate. Gov. John Kasich and the Republican majorities in the House and Senate are charting a different course as a projected deficit ranging from $4 billion to $8 billion looms for the next biennium. Kasich and his allies propose cutting taxes, for example, letting the final phase of an income-tax cut go into effect and eliminating the state's estate tax. That means deeper spending reductions.

Billions already have been cut in recent years. Slash billions more? The fear is a further weakening in areas such as education, mental health services and job training, harming Ohio's ability to lay a stronger economic foundation and to assist the poor and vulnerable. Erasing the jobs of teachers, safety forces and state employees also has a downside, the loss of solid, middle-class jobs, contributing to an unemployment rate that remains stubbornly high.

Read the full editorial at The Akron Beacon Journal

Columbus, OH -Ohio needs a balanced approach to the current state budget crisis that includes revenue to overcome the impact of the worst national recession in a lifetime. -Relying solely on spending cuts will damage the state's economy, says a growing coalition of organizations concerned about the state's future prosperity.

One Ohio Now (www.OneOhioNow.org) launched its effort today at a Statehouse press conference followed by a kick-off event outside. The coalition has 30 member organizations ranging from those involved in health and human services and education to public transportation and labor.

Coalition members have come together over the past year to support common sense solutions. Like other states, Ohio suffered an unprecedented collapse in state revenues at the same time that public needs have been rising. Many states have taken a balanced approach that included revenue instead of trying to solve a problem this big only with cuts in necessary services.

One Ohio Now's work is based on the following principles: a balanced approach; productive, stable revenue solutions that reflect today's economy; building on sound and sustainable public investments; and addressing the immediate crisis and planning for the future.

Ohio has faced recessions before and every governor over the past 40 years, whether a Democrat or Republican, has responded with a plan that includes revenue. A balanced approach has helped before and we need it again.  The combination of massive declines in revenue from the recession and substantial cuts in state taxes have dug a hole for Ohio that we can't cut our way out of. One Ohio Now's approach will meet today's growing needs and build a foundation for tomorrow's prosperity.

View More Images Here

This morning during an appearance on MSNBC's Morning Joe, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) argued that the Tucson tragedy highlighted the the poor state of the nation's mental health safety net and said that the shooter, Jared Lee Loughner, "should have been identified at the community college when he was thrown out":

BROWN: It's only going to get worse because of state budget cuts. That's a pretty easy place for people to go after, let's cut some of the mental health outreach. Might mean some more homelessness but most people that dress like this in politics don't see them, don't talk to them, don't 'know them. We passed mental health parity, with the health care bill that should help, but most of this is state level mental health programs and we really got to guide against shredding them more than they've been shredded.

Q: You'd really put more money into mental health?... Over what though because then you have to cut something on the other end?

BROWN: Well, I'd say over the war in Afghanistan, we should withdraw troops sooner, I mean if you want to go into that kind of sort of macro discussion. But mental health services and issue are just as important as physical issues.

Watch it:

Read More at Wonk Room

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and U.S. Representatives Marcy Kaptur (OH-9) Jim Jordan (OH-4) sent a letter this week to President Barack Obama urging him to prevent the Department of Defense from cancelling the Expeditionary Fighting Vehicle (EFV) program. The EFV is manufactured by General Dynamics, which has a plant in Lima.

 In the letter, Brown, Kaptur, and Jordan argue that the EFV is essential to the U.S. Marine Corps' operations--operations that are "vital to the success of the United States' military operation. The members urged the President to support the continuation of the EFV program at least until a critical testing program, currently underway, is complete. 

 Brown, Kaptur, and Jordan also wrote that the cancellation of the EFV program would lead to serious job losses in Ohio.

- 32 million Americans will lose coverage compared to current law: "Under H.R. 2, about 32 million fewer nonelderly people would have health insurance in 2019, leaving a total of about 54 million nonelderly people uninsured. The share of legal nonelderly residents with insurance coverage in 2019 would be about 83 percent, compared with a projected share of 94 percent under current law (and 83 percent currently)." (p. 8-9)

- Increases deficit by $230 billion over 10 years: "Consequently, over the 2012-2021 period, the effect of H.R. 2 on federal deficits as a result of changes in direct spending and revenues is likely to be an increase in the vicinity of $230 billion, plus or minus the effects of technical and economic changes to CBO's and JCT's projections for that period." (p. 5)

- Huge deficit increases over next decade: "Correspondingly, CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 2 would increase federal deficits in the decade after 2019 by an amount that is in a broad range around one-half percent of GDP, plus or minus the effects of technical and economic changes that CBO and JCT will include in the forthcoming estimate. For the decade beginning after 2021, the effect of H.R. 2 on federal deficits as a share of the economy would probably be somewhat larger." (p. 7)

- Individuals would pay more for health insurance: "Although premiums in the individual market would be lower, on average, under H.R. 2 than under current law, many people would end up paying more for health insurance-- because under current law, the majority of enrollees purchasing coverage in that market would receive subsidies via the insurance exchanges, and H.R. 2 would eliminate those subsidies." (p. 9-10)

- Average health care benefits would be worse: "In particular, if H.R. 2 was enacted... the average insurance policy in this market would cover a smaller share of enrollees' costs for health care and a slightly narrower range of benefits." (p.9)

- Premiums for employer-sponsored insurance would increase: "Premiums for employment-based coverage obtained through large employers would be slightly higher under H.R. 2 than under current law, reflecting the net impact of many relatively small changes." (p. 10)

The GOP is excluding the vote from its new cut-go rule -- under which increases in mandatory spending would have to be paid for but tax cuts would not -- and dismissing the CBO's estimates of savings in the health law by claiming that the initial savings from reform are largely imaginary. But this now places the new majority at odds with the 'gods' at the CBO -- who they've routinely cited to bolster their own proposals -- and its repeated pledges to lower spending in the new Congress.

Social Security, Medicare Cuts Would Hurt Current and Future Retirees

"The co-chairs of the Commission on Federal Fiscal Responsibility walked in the room with a preconceived notion that Older Americans ought to bear the cost of the federal fiscal mess. The Commission's recommendations turn a blind eye toward tax cuts for millionaires, and borrowing from the Social Security Trust Fund and instead choose to callously make workers and retirees pay the price for our nation's badly flawed tax and spending policies.

The irony is that by aggressively targeting retirees and seniors, the Commission is going after one of America's greatest success stories, Social Security that its members and even co-chairs admit has not contributed a single penny to our budget deficit.

"Increasing the Social Security retirement age to 69 and reducing monthly benefits would be devastating for current and future retirees. Today's workers would have to stay on the job longer, only to receive lower benefits when they retire. This would cause far more pain for blue collar and service sector workers on Main Street than it would for speculators on Wall Street. The proposal surfaced is built on assumptions to satisfy a perceived need to placate the financial services community that got theirs.

"The Commission's proposed cuts to Medicare, including long-term care, would further hurt retirees who will enter their retirement years later and in worse economic and physical health.

"Retirees know that it is not what you say, it is what you do. Since Commission members of all ideologies acknowledged this week that Social Security does not add to the deficit, why are these callous, draconian cuts the centerpiece of the Commission's recommendations?

"Ohio's retirees want to lower the deficit. They do not want a large debt to be the legacy they leave behind to their children and grandchildren. But the Commission recommendation, forcing younger workers to work longer for less, is the wrong way to go about it. The members of Ohio Alliance for Retired Americans urge the Congress to reject these recommendations when they are presented to this Congress and the next."

Call your Senators RIGHT NOW at 1-866-529-7630!

Putting our nation on a path of broad prosperity will require generating new jobs, investing in key areas, modernizing and restoring our revenue base, and greatly increasing the cost efficiency of the health care system. Achieving these goals, however, will require an informed and engaged public to help set national priorities.

The following report puts forth a blueprint that invests in America and creates jobs now, while putting the federal budget on a long-term sustainable path. We document the hard choices that need to be made and suggest specific policies that will yield lower deficits and a sustainable debt while preserving essential initiatives and investments.

WASHINGTON D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today applauded Ohio's inclusion in the federal "Race to the Top" program.  The program, administered by the U.S. Department of Education, awards Recovery Act funds to schools that measurably improve their quality of education. 

"By including Ohio in the Race to the Top program, the U.S. Department of Education is providing a mark of confidence to the hardworking teachers, school administrators, and parents who work day in and day out to make Ohio schools some of the best in the country," said Brown. "These critical Recovery Act funds will not only improve our education system for today's students, but lay the groundwork to provide a world-class education to future Ohioans. I applaud Governor Strickland and his administration-in addition to Superintendent Deb Delisle and the State Board of Education-for putting together a strong application for the program and working tirelessly to improve our state's schools."

More than 530 Ohio school districts signed on to the state's application for funding.  In January, Brown wrote to U.S. Department of Education Secretary Arne Duncan urging that Ohio's application be given strong consideration.

"Ohio has commenced its new biennium with a comprehensive education reform plan," Brown wrote. "Funding provided through the Race to the Top program would accelerate the state's existing agenda to strategically address gaps in delivering a highly effective learning experience to all students."  The same month, Ohio's education system was rated the fifth-best in the nation by Education Week, the state's highest rating yet from the publication.

The full text of Sen. Brown's letter can be found here.

WASHINGTON D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today announced that Ohio will receive $148,728,864 in funding for foreclosure-prevention assistance from the Housing Finance Agency Innovation Fund for the Hardest Hit Housing Markets ("Hardest Hit Fund") and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's Emergency Homeowners Loan Program. The program, which uses leftover funds from the TARP program passed in 2008, will provide additional assistance to 17 states - including Ohio.

"This is a victory for Ohio communities," Brown said. "Ohio's cities have been on the frontline of the foreclosure crisis for over a decade and should have all the resources necessary to rebuild our communities. Too many Ohioans are trying to modify their mortgages so they can hold onto their homes, but getting nothing but the run around from their lenders. Too many communities are seeing vacant and abandoned properties that lower surrounding property values and compromise both safety and economic development. These homeowners and communities deserve more assistance than they have been receiving from the HAMP program, and today the federal government is giving it to them."

HFAs gathered public input and designed programs to meet the specific challenges facing struggling homeowners in their states.

Ohio will use the funding to assist homeowners through targeted programs, which will:

• help unemployed borrowers pay their mortgage for up to 12 months while they search for a new job
• provide assistance to bring delinquent mortgage payments current for borrowers who experience hardships due to a reduction or loss of income or other unforeseen circumstances
• create a mortgage modification program to incentivize lenders to reduce homeowner's mortgage principal value to 115 percent or less of the loan-to-value
• provide an incentive payment to the servicer as well as relocation aid to the borrower and payments in exchange for the release of second liens, in order to facilitate short sales

President Signs Bill Into Law

U.S. President Barack Obama signs the Education Jobs and Medicaid Assistance Act in the Oval Office today August 10. 2010 in Washington, DC.

According to reports, the $26 billion jobs bill will save 300,000 police, teachers and other public service jobs from layoff and provide state governments with needed financial support.

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi called the US House of Representatives back from summer recess for an emergency vote, likely to happen tomorrow, for education jobs and Medicaid funding for states.

Last week, the US Senate passed a state aid package that will translate to Ohio receiving over $500 million in federal funds to support Medicaid programs, including programs for our most vulnerable populations and 5,000 education jobs. The US House will be voting on this funding during an emergency session that will likely be taking place tomorrow.

Call your member of Congress today and tell them that Ohio needs this critical funding for teaching jobs and Medicaid programs. Tell them these are well worth the trip back to Washington to get this bill passed.

(202)224-3121

“This is a bitter pill to swallow,” Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said in a statement to The Hill. “I fought very hard for the food assistance money in the Recovery Act and the fact is that participation in the food stamps program has jumped dramatically with the economic crisis, from 31.1 million persons to 38.2 million just in one year.

“But I know that states across the nation and my own state of Connecticut also desperately need these resources to save jobs and avoid draconian cuts to essential services for low income families,” she added. “As you can imagine, for me personally, it’s like ‘Sophie’s Choice.’”

DeLauro oversees annual spending on the food stamps program as chairwoman of the House Appropriations subcommittee for Agriculture. Asked if she would try to restore the food stamps money in future legislation, DeLauro said, “Yes, absolutely, I will be fighting for these funds.”

Retiring Sen. George Voinovich (R-Ohio) is pressing his case for an increase in the gas tax as a way to help close the federal budget deficit and create additional jobs.

In a letter to members of President Obama's debt commission, Voinovich laid out his argument for the increase.

"Fuel taxes today fund the vast majority of the federal government's investment in infrastructure projects," Voinovich wrote in the letter. "Due to dwindling fuel tax receipts, Congress has had to transfer billions of dollars from the General Fund to the Highway Trust Fund to maintain our current level of federal involvement."

Voinovich said the tax hike is needed to help keep the Highway Trust Fund afloat.

"The lack of investment in our crumbling bridge, highway, and transit systems is a missed opportunity for the creation of thousands of well paying jobs and long term economic growth for our Nation," said Voinovich.  

The federal fuel tax has not seen an increase for nearly two decades. It's currently 18.4 cents a gallon, which it was set at in 1993.

The Obama administration has come out against the idea of raising the gas tax.

Voinovich, the ranking member on the Senate Transportation and Infrastructure Subcommittee, has been pushing the idea of a hike for a while.

“I believe Americans are willing to pay a higher gas tax to create jobs, improve our infrastructure and better our climate," Voinovich said at a business conference in Ohio last month. "And many of my conservative colleagues do not consider that gas tax as a tax, but as a user fee.

It's the same argument Voinovich made back in April when he called for a fuel tax increase. Voinovich said the money would help jumpstart the economy by helping fund transportation projects.

It's not an idea lawmakers of either party are likely to embrace and Voinovich certainly isn't known for toeing his party's line in the Senate. 

A billboard along Interstate 75 is getting a lot of attention for attacking House Minority Leader John Boehner.

The billboard asks the question, "When was the last time you golfed 119 times in one year?" while showing a picture of Boehner golfing. The billboard also includes the address of a website, BeatBoehner.com, which boasts a picture of his opponent, Democrat Justin Coussoule.

Minority leader Boehner could not be reached for comment on the billboard.  Likely, he is out of the state somewhere on a golf junket paid for by his PAC.

However, Boehner did comment on the Senate finally approved $26 billion in funding to bolster state budgets, including $10 billion meant to prevent massive teacher layoffs.

Boehner Derides Police Officers And Teachers As ‘Special Interests’

The Senate has been grappling with this funding for months, but two Republicans senators — Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Olympia Snowe (R-ME) — voted to move forward once the bill was fully paid for with spending offsets.

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has announced that she will interrupt the House’s August recess in order to hold a session to pass the bill, instead of waiting to pass it in September. But House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) slammed Pelosi’s decision to call the House back into session, calling the funding a “payoff to union bosses and liberal special interests“:

The American people don’t want more Washington ‘stimulus’ spending – especially in the form of a pay-off to union bosses and liberal special interests. This stunning display of tone-deafness comes at the expense of American workers, who will be hit by another job-killing tax hike because Washington Democrats can’t kick their addiction to more government ‘stimulus’ spending. Democrats should be listening to their constituents – who are asking ‘where are the jobs?’ – instead of scampering back to Washington to push through more special interest bailouts and job-killing tax hikes.

First, the stimulus spending that Boehner is so quick to deride will have saved or created 3.7 million jobs by September, according to the Congressional Budget Office (with which Boehner has an on-again, off-again relationship). And this bill actually reduces the deficit by $1.3 billion dollars, so Boehner is simply incorrect to claim that a tax hike will be necessary to pay for it.

But more importantly, does Boehner really consider teachers, firefighters, and police officers to be “liberal special interests”? Overall, it is estimated that the funding will save the jobs of about 300,000 workers, including about 140,000 school employees. According to the Department of Education, 5,000 teaching jobs in Boehner’s home state of Ohio will be preserved by the funding.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) today announced that more than 208,000 newly hired Ohio workers are eligible for tax credits under The Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (HIRE Act). The HIRE Act, which Brown cosponsored, provides tax credits to businesses that hire workers who have been unemployed for eight weeks or longer. Across the nation, businesses have hired an estimated 5.6 million workers who have been unemployed for eight weeks or longer since February 2010.

"We passed the HIRE Act as a way of working with the private sector to bring Americans back to work," Brown said. "In Ohio, more than 200,000 workers who were unemployed for at least eight weeks are back on the job since the HIRE Act was passed. But we've got more work to do. We need to pass the Small Business Jobs Act, which would help our nation's small businesses - which create nearly two-thirds of the new jobs in our economy - have access to credit. By working together, we can continue to revitalize Ohio manufacturing and bring Ohioans back to work."

According to today's report, from February 2010 to June 2010, 208,726 Ohio workers who had been unemployed for eight weeks or longer were hired by employers who are eligible for the HIRE Act payroll tax exemption.  If these newly hired employees remain employed for the rest of the year, their employers would be eligible for an estimated $390 million in payroll tax savings. The HIRE Act tax exemption is still available for the remainder of 2010 to employers who hire unemployed workers. To read the full report, click here.

The HIRE Act provides a payroll tax holiday to businesses for each worker they hire who has been unemployed for at least 60 days, allows small businesses to write-off expenses so they can expand operations and hire new workers, and creates jobs through investments in highway and transportation infrastructure.

A more detailed summary of the legislation can be found below:

Congressional Republicans – eager to return to the “exact same agenda” of failed Bush economic policies that put us into this mess – continue to call for an extension of the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest few despite the staggering $678 billion cost to the deficit (after voting against tax cuts for small businesses and 98% of working families).

President Obama and Democrats in Congress are committed to fiscally responsible tax policies, including ensuring middle-class American families and small businesses continue to see tax relief. As Speaker Pelosi explained at her weekly press conference last week, “if we want to lower taxes for the middle class and reduce the deficit and create jobs, extending the tax cuts at the high end are not in furtherance of reaching those goals.” The Washington Post agrees.

Washington Post Editorial - Extending the Bush tax cuts wouldn’t help the economy:

The tax cuts passed under President Bush are about to expire. The deficit is at a once unimaginable level. In a saner political environment, that would counsel revisiting the sustainability of all the tax cuts. Certainly, given the yawning debt, there is no reason to extend the tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans…

Analyzing the best bang-for-the-buck policies to stimulate the economy, the Congressional Budget Office found that the least effective was extending tax cuts for the top brackets. The reason is obvious. “The higher-income households . . . would probably save a larger fraction of their increase in after-tax income,” the CBO said…

…Those truly worried about the nation’s dire fiscal picture should seize this moment to lock in those substantial, badly needed, savings.

Steven Pearlstein - On tax fight, Obama can’t afford to lose:

…Given the fragile state of the economic recovery as well as the competing imperative to bring deficits under control, the right policy would be to extend the lower rates for another two years while limiting them to lower- and middle-class households…

Republicans, of course, are already vowing that they won’t support anything less than a permanent extension for all taxpayers, claiming that anything less would be a “massive” and “jobs-killing” tax increase…

In reality, raising marginal tax rates on the rich wouldn’t be a huge deal. Even Douglas Holtz-Eakin, top economic adviser to John McCain’s presidential campaign, told the Senate Finance Committee earlier this month that excluding upper-bracket households from a one-year tax-cut extension would only reduce employment by 300,000 in 2012 and raise the unemployment rate by one-tenth of 1 percent. That’s more like statistical noise than the economic calamity conjured up by Republicans…

Indeed, if Republicans were truly interested in stimulating the economy and creating jobs, cutting marginal tax rates turns out to be one of the least cost-effective strategies. In January, the Congressional Budget Office calculated that $1 million in tax cuts would generate between one and four additional jobs in the economy, compared with six to 15 jobs from increasing unemployment assistance, three to nine jobs from providing aid to states and four to 10 jobs from investing in infrastructure — all ideas that Republicans opposed as unaffordable. Go figure…

Ruth Marcus - Why Congress should let the Bush tax cuts expire:

…Think back to the beginning of the Bush administration tax cuts. It seems almost impossible to believe, but the argument then was that the budget surplus was too large. There was, or so President George W. Bush assured us, ample cash to cut taxes for everyone and protect the Social Security surplus and set aside $1 trillion over the next decade for “additional spending needs” and pay down the national debt…

“The people of America have been overcharged, and, on their behalf, I’m here asking for a refund,” Bush told Congress in February 2001.

You know what happened next. The refund came. The supposed surplus evaporated. The Social Security surplus was spent. Instead of being paid down, the $3.3 trillion national debt ballooned to $9 trillion.

The only thing that remained the same was the clamor for tax cuts. Same argument, different rationale. The Bush tax cuts are set to expire at the end of this year, and the argument now is that they must be extended — for everyone. This time not because the fiscal bottom line is too healthy but because the economy is too shaky…

But the Republican position seems even more intransigently divorced from reality. Perhaps there is some magical point at which Republicans might accept the reality that the government needs more revenue than it is currently set to take in — but I haven’t heard it yet…

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell proclaimed the other day that the Bush tax cuts actually raised money. “There’s no evidence whatsoever that the Bush tax cuts actually diminished revenue,” the Kentucky Republican told Brian Beutler of the Web site TPMDC. “They increased revenue, because of the vibrancy of these tax cuts in the economy.”

Here’s some evidence. Tax revenue fell from 21 percent of GDP in fiscal 2000 to 17.5 percent in 2008. (I’m leaving out the recession-induced plunge, to under 15 percent this year and last.)…

…The economic and fiscal circumstances may change, but the prescription remains the same. And the patient is too ill to tolerate another dose of this quack medicine.

Yesterday, the Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction (SIGIR) released its findings on how the money was spent from a special Iraq reconstruction fund set up by the Department of Defense (DOD) between 2003-2007. The account used Iraqi oil money to fund the reconstruction of Iraq. SIGIR concluded that 96 percent of the $9.1 billion the reconstruction program cannot be accounted for by the DOD:

A US federal watchdog has criticised the US military for failing to account properly for billions of dollars it received to help rebuild Iraq. The Special Inspector General for Iraq Reconstruction says the US Department of Defence is unable to account properly for 96% of the money. Out of just over $9bn (£5.8bn), $8.7bn is unaccounted for, the inspector says. [...]

The funds in question were administered by the US Department of Defence between 2004 and 2007, and were earmarked for reconstruction projects. But, the report says, a lack of proper accounting makes it impossible to say exactly what happened to most of the money.

~ Think Progress

President Obama signs into law extension of jobless benefits for long-term unemployed

One of Three Steps This Week to Rebuild Economic Foundation

WASHINGTON – President Obama has signed legislation extending critical unemployment insurance to 2.5 million Americans – including an estimated 112,700 people in Ohio – who are looking for a job but have not been able to find work before their benefits were exhausted.

Since the first week of June, Senate Republicans had stonewalled the extension of unemployment benefits to 2.5 million Americans, including an estimated 112,700 people in Ohio.  The Senate was able to overcome these parliamentary maneuvers in order to provide much-needed support to middle-class families.

Extending unemployment benefits expands local purchasing power.  Economist Mark Zandi of Moody’s Economy.com put the economic multiplier of extending a dollar of unemployment benefits at 1.6, meaning that, for every dollar spent on unemployment compensation, $1.60 is added to our economy’s output.  Similarly, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office places the multiplier in a range between 0.8 and 2.1.

The extension of unemployment benefits was one of three important actions this week to help repair the damage to the nation’s economy from this recession, and rebuild it on a stronger foundation. 

Other key actions this week:

Wall Street Reform becomes law.  This legislation contains the toughest financial reforms since the ones created in the aftermath of the Great Depression. It will bring greater accountability to Wall Street, and provide greater security to families and small businesses on Main Street.  The financial industry is central to our nation’s ability to grow, prosper, compete, and innovate.  This law will help to foster that innovation, not hamper it.  These reforms will put in place the strongest consumer protections in history, which will be enforced by an independent agency whose sole job is to establish rules of the road and enforce these protections to look out for the American consumer.  Because of financial reform, the American people will never again be asked to foot the bill for Wall Street’s mistakes. There will be no more taxpayer-funded bailouts -- period. If a large financial institution should ever fail, we will have the tools to wind it down without endangering the broader economy.  And there will be new rules to prevent financial institutions from becoming “too big to fail” in the first place, so that we don’t have another AIG.

Improper Payment Elimination and Recovery Act.  President Obama came into office determined to change the way Washington works for the American people. That means working to build a government that is more open, more transparent, and more responsive to the needs of its people; and that is focused on getting rid of the waste and inefficiencies that squander the hard-earned money of American taxpayers.  One of the core responsibilities of government is to steward the tax dollars of the American people wisely and well. And yet each year, the federal government makes billions of dollars in improper payments to individuals, organizations, and contractors. That’s why the President signed into law this week the Improper Payment Elimination and Recovery Act, an important step toward realizing the President’s new goal of reducing improper payments by $50 billion between now and 2012.  This bipartisan legislation requires every federal agency to conduct annual assessments to determine which of their programs are at risk of making improper payments; and to audit more of their programs and recapture more taxpayer dollars. And there are now rigorous enforcement mechanisms to hold agencies accountable for how much money they save.

Yesterday, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner confirmed a well-known fact: The Obama administration and many congressional Democrats are in agreement that the bulk of the Bush tax cuts need to be kept in place, to keep the tax burden on middle-class families low. But to close the deficit, taxes need to revert to pre-2001 levels for wealthy Americans.

“We believe it is appropriate to let those tax cuts that go to the most fortunate expire,” Geithner said.

But Republicans and some centrist Democrats are also in agreement: Rising taxes gives families less money to spend, and that means a slower recovery. “I think given the fragility of the recovery, the timing is wrong for any kind of tax increase of this nature,” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) told The Wall Street Journal. “I know that puts me out of step with many in my own caucus, but it’s important for members to remember the top 5 percent [of earners] generates 30 percent of consumer spending.”

Importantly, Sen. Kent Conrad (D-N.D.), the chair of the Senate Budget Committee, has said he does not support tax increases on any workers, yet. “As a general rule, you don’t want to be cutting spending or raising taxes in the midst of a downturn,” he says. “At the same time, we know that very soon we’ve got to pivot and focus on the deficit,” he said. “But it probably is too soon to cut spending or raise taxes.”

To get a bill over the Senate’s 60-vote cloture hurdle, therefore, Democrats might extend the totality of the cuts for two years, and include a long-term plan to raise taxes on wealthy Americans, perhaps followed by other income bands far down the road.

The Bush tax cuts cost the government over $1 trillion in revenue. Serious about reducing the deficit? Then you must consider letting these tax cuts for the wealthy expire.  

Yesterday, Boehner described the GOP’s alternative budget proposal – authored by Republican Congressman Paul Ryan of Wisconsin – as “a pretty good list of options” when it comes to dealing with the deficit:

Boehner… pointed to $1.3 trillion in potential cuts outlined by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) as ‘a pretty good list of options.’

Most of the cuts in the Ryan-GOP plan come from privatizing Social Security and ending Medicare as we know it – turning it into a voucher program instead of a guaranteed benefit:

Some GOP lawmakers also have endorsed Ryan’s alternative budget plan, which would wipe out deficits in part by privatizing Social Security and replacing traditional Medicare benefits with an insurance voucher for people age 55 and older.

The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office analyzed the Ryan-GOP plan:

Traditional retirement benefits would be reduced below those scheduled under current law for many workers who are age 55 or younger in 2011…

Boehner has repeatedly refused to take privatization off the table:

Asked whether partial privatization of Social Security, which Republicans pushed unsuccessfully in 2005, would be part of a GOP agenda, he twice replied, “I have no idea.”

In his remarks before signing the bill, the President reflected on some of the ways his Administration has already begun to cut wasteful spending in the budget process:

We began by combining -- by going through the budget line by line and proposing $20 billion worth of cuts each year by targeting programs that are wasteful, duplicative or, in some cases, just plain ridiculous, like the $35 million we’re spending for a radio navigation system for ships.  Since we now have this thing called GPS, we don’t need it.  Or the $3 million that was spent on consultants to create seals and logos for the Department of Homeland Security.  Their logos and seals are fine.  Or the billions of dollars slated to be spent on a fancy new presidential helicopter fleet that I didn’t want and didn’t need because Marine One is also fine.
 
We’ve drafted a budget for next year that freezes all discretionary government spending outside of national security for three years, a budget, by the way, that would reduce this spending -- non-defense discretionary spending -- to its lowest level as a share of the economy in 50 years.  This isn’t talked about a lot so I’m going to repeat it.  Our budget would take non-security defense -- or non-defense spending to its lowest level since JFK -- lowest level as a percentage of the economy since JFK.

This law will help the federal government weed out improper payments to individuals and contractors.  Last year, improper payments by the Federal Government added up to $110 billion. The President has instructed his Administration to reduce these payments by $50 million by 2012.

And we’ve begun an unprecedented effort to put an end to a problem known as improper payments, which is the purpose of the bill that I’m signing into law today.  Now, these are payments sent by the government to the wrong person, or for the wrong reasons, or in the wrong amount.  Payments to a defense contractor that’s been disbarred for shoddy work but somehow managed to get through the system.  Payments to companies that haven’t paid their taxes, or to folks who are incarcerated –- or who are dead.
 
Sometimes these payments are the result of innocent mistakes or reflect valid claims that were paid at the wrong time.  But sometimes, they result from abuses by scam artists and crooked companies.  And all told, they added up to $110 billion.  I want everybody to understand -- just get some perspective on that.  That is more than the budgets of the Department of Education and the Small Business Administration combined.  And that’s unacceptable.
 
That’s why, earlier this year, I directed our federal agencies to launch rigorous audits conducted by auditors who are paid based on how many abuses or errors they uncover -– the more they find, the more money they make.  So they are highly incentivized.  We’re also creating a “Do Not Pay” list –- a consolidated database of every individual and company that’s ineligible for federal payments.  Before checks are mailed, agencies will be required to check this list to make sure that the payment is to the right person, in the right amount, for the right reason.

Watch It:

GREENSPAN STEPS ALL OVER THE GOP MESSAGE

One of the week's more relevant political debates has been over tax policy -- specifically the Republican argument that Bush's tax cuts for the wealthy have to be extended. Pressed on how those cuts would be paid for, the Republican leadership has insisted, evidence be damned, that tax cuts don't need to be offset by anything.

Alan Greenspan is rarely helpful in debates like these, which is why it came as something of a pleasant surprise to see him reject the entire Republican line of thinking. 

Former Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, whose endorsement of George W. Bush's 2001 tax cuts helped persuade Congress to pass them, said lawmakers should allow the cuts to expire at the end of the year.

"They should follow the law and let them lapse," Greenspan said in an interview on Bloomberg Television's "Conversations with Judy Woodruff," citing a need for the tax revenue to reduce the federal budget deficit.

It's worth noting that when it comes to tax cuts, Greenspan went even further than most Democrats want to go, arguing that all of Bush's tax cuts have to expire on schedule, including those for the middle class.

The former Fed chairman said he wants to see tax rates return to '90s levels in order to curtail the deficit.

I guess he hasn't heard the news about tax cuts paying for themselves?

Sen. Jon Kyl (R-AZ) proved that he doesn't really care about deficits when he said "you should never have to offset the cost" of tax cuts for the rich. 

Carly Fiorina, the Republican candidate challenging Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA), showed why she was an unsuccessful CEO when she suggested tax cuts "pay for themselves."

But Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell's (R-KY) revisionist history of the Bush tax cuts demonstrates that Republicans really do operate within a set of "facts" that are completely detached from reality:

"That's been the majority Republican view for some time," Minority Leader Mitch McConnell told TPMDC this afternoon after the weekly GOP press conference. "That there's no evidence whatsoever that the Bush tax cuts actually diminished revenue. They increased revenue, because of the vibrancy of these tax cuts in the economy. So I think what Senator Kyl was expressing was the view of virtually every Republican on that subject."

Of course, McConnell's assertion is absurd.  The $678 billion Bush tax cuts failed to grow the economy, decreased revenue, and remain the largest factor contributing to the deficit (see chart below).  And yet, Republicans still want to make them permanent.  As McConnell said, this is "the view of virtually every Republican."

Paul Krugman calls this "invincible ignorance," while the Washington Post editorial board opts for "nonsense." But, whatever you call it, Republicans are clearly unwilling or unable to come to grips with the damage they did to the country.  

As Washington Monthly's Steve Benen observes, such Republican denialism poses a serious problem for our political discourse. "It makes meaningful, substantive debate quite literally impossible — there's no foundation of reality to build upon," Benen writes. "It's like trying to teach algebra to someone who believes arithmetic is a scam."

~ Political Correction

Stephen Moore calls for raising taxes on the poor in order to pay for tax cuts for the rich.

The Bush tax cuts are scheduled to expire in January. President Obama has expressed a desire to preserve the cuts for the middle class while letting tax rates for the wealthy reset to where they were during the Clinton administration.

Conservative lawmakers and pundits have been fearmongering that allowing the tax cuts for the wealthy to expire will kill job creation and small businesses (despite the fact that fewer than 2 percent of small business owners will be affected).

Last night on CNBC, Wall Street Journal editorial board member Stephen Moore went so far as to say that he can’t “see the sense” of allowing cuts for the rich to expire, and then advocated that taxes be raised on the poorest Americans in order to finance more tax cuts for the rich:

I just don’t see the sense of this. In fact, if I could have my ‘druthers, I’d raise the ten percent tax rate to fifteen percent and lower the [top] rates.

~ Think Progress

Senate Republicans have repeatedly obstructed job creation legislation that extended critical unemployment insurance benefits to help Americans who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own make ends meet as they look for their next job opportunity. The Republican obstruction is unprecedented—since 1959, Congress has never let extended unemployment benefits expire when unemployment is over 7.2%. Last week, the House once again passed urgently-needed legislation to extend unemployment benefits for millions of American families—nearly 80% of House Republicans voted against the bill.

When asked about the bill at her weekly press conference last week, Speaker Pelosi explained that extending unemployment benefits is not only the right thing to do, but it is also a boost to our economy:

When the economy turns down, there is a compact that we have that there is unemployment insurance for those who, through no fault of their own, lose their job, and we owe them that. It is a safety net, not just for those individuals but for our whole system, our whole system.

…

Now, let me say about unemployment insurance, we talk about it as a safety net and the rest. This is one of the biggest stimuli to our economy. Economists will tell you this money is spent quickly. It injects demand into the economy, and it is job creating. It creates jobs faster than almost any other initiative you can name because, again, it is money that is needed for families to survive, and it is spent. So it has a double benefit. It helps those who have lost their jobs, but it also is a job creator.

Analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) finds that extending unemployment benefits is one of the most cost-effective and fast-acting ways to stimulate the economy. Moreover, economists agree that extending these benefits will create jobs and decrease the chances of slipping back into a double dip recession.

Back when he was first announced as co-chairman of the Obama administration’s debt commission, former Republican Senator Alan Simpson (WY) bucked today’s conservative orthodoxy by saying that the commission needed to consider tax increases as well as spending cuts to get long-term deficits under control. “To say that all we have to do is take care of waste, fraud and abuse, and foreign aid is a like a sparrow’s belch in the midst of typhoon,” he said. “That is nothing, less than 1 percent of the budget.”

Simpson has garnered criticism from the right for his stance. “He’s old and grumpy, and he doesn’t like the Reagan Republican Party,” said anti-tax crusader Grover Norquist said. Simpson was not cowed, however, and today went back on the offensive, slapping down the conservative ethos around Ronald Reagan and his supposed resistance to any and all tax increases. 

Reagan, in fact, raised taxes in seven of his eight years in office. “No peacetime president has raised taxes so much on so many people,” Paul Krugman pointed out.

Watch It:

~ Center For American Progress

What a strange day in politics and nature.

A brilliant General implodes, gulf oil explodes, the midwest has an earthquake, John Kasich's campaign implodes, and Ted Strickland's best news got buried.

What you say -- Strickland created jobs. Yep. In fact day after day, week after week he's been creating them.

The lead got buried. The Dispatch reported today that the jobs heartbeat is getting stronger even if commercials and political opportunism say otherwise. Win the fight over that jobs headline and win in November.

First let's go back to the General. brilliant, independent and arrogant. The fact of the matter is that when you think you're smarter than everyone else, the arrogance permeates your business associates and office political culture. Rolling Stone was not just about General McChrystal, it was about a leadership that encouraged a superiority complex among his aides as well. Brilliant guy yes -- brilliant leader not so much. Hence the new verb known as McChrystaling -- the art of imploding through arrogant office culture.

And the first victim of the new verb McChrystaling, would have to be John Kasich. It's no secret that Kasich and his staff believe their rhetoric. Journalists, politicos and others all over town have heard the snide comments about their opponent -- a country bumpkin, doesn't know what he's doing, not sharp enough for the job -- typical political crap unless you believe it.

So big surprise that Rep. Kasich's spokesperson took the Governor's humble beginnings and arrogantly used the chicken coop redubbed "shack" in his vernacular. That is cultural within the campaign. Regardless of who wins there are quite a number of folks who have made the same mistake with Governor Strickland in the past. I'm sure there are more than a few folks who got schooled by the man from "Duck Run" by underestimating him in Congressional races. The man and his wife both have doctorates and a pulse for pop political culture. 

Jim Rhodes would be first to sneer at Rep. Kasich over this one (although as legends go, I doubt it would just be a sneer and likely more a verbal lashing.)

Rhodes also always knew the way to an Ohioans heart is through athletics. Just look around at the sports palaces built under his watch at Ohio universities, and the fact that he wasn't about to let Paul Brown leave Ohio so he brought him a stadium and team in Cincinnati (helping with voters in two of the three Cs in the process.)

So Rep. Kasich dissing on LeBron signing with the Cavs would elicit a pretty nice guffaw from the Governor from Jackson County. Who knows what it means long term. If LeBron resigns with the Cavs Rep. Kasich might get a break -- if not -- well it remains to be seen if Rep. Kasich will be Modelled in November.

But that said, with earthquakes, the cap on gulf oil breaking and General McChrystal imploding, the one thing James Rhodes always says matters most in Ohio got buried. That flatline of jobs created by Bush budget guru Rob Portman's economic planning and Wall Street John Kasich's profiteering, shown in this small little graph today in the Dispatch got lost here at ProgressOhio as well.

Jim Rhodes would have never left his mantra of "jobs, jobs, jobs."

The fact is everyday job by job, the Governor is announcing an innovative solution that led to that heartbeat in today's paper, as he did in this Wooster article . If only his office would tally the total of those created and announced -- maybe just maybe Jim Rhodes would smile up yonder knowing it's not the tally it's the total that folks need to hear.

The world may keep changing with rogue generals, natural disasters anew, ideological arguments, and gotcha journalism. But it's really not that different. 

After all, the chicken "shack" and LeBron may fade, the gulf oil well will (one hopes soon) be capped, and Afghanistan will end -- but the jobs and industries Ohio creates in our current adversity will sustain us.

But the volume from the Strickland Administration has got to continue to be consistent and amplified with the same vigor as the "shack" and "LeBron."

Job by job, day by day. The biggest enemy in November for either candidate is if the "noise" of the campaign trumps jobs. Today, that lead got buried all around.

The financial reform bill is not a done deal yet and much is still at stake. In order to create jobs and get the economy back on track, Congress must pass strong financial reform! Wall Street's greedy and reckless behavior has led to 8 million job losses, millions of foreclosures, and trillions of dollars of lost wealth. It's time to rein them in, and we're down to the last few weeks of debate!

The US House and US Senate are meeting in a "Conference Committee" to hammer out the differences between their two financial reform bills. Congress will make a decision on this historic legislation by the end of June. Your Senators and Representative need to hear from you now - they are certainly hearing from the lobbyists for the big banks and the predatory lenders.

Ask them to:

• Support a strong consumer protection agency that is independent, has broad enforcement authority, and the necessary funding to protect consumers.
• Make sure there are no carve outs for auto dealers or financial lenders. Consistently the top source of consumer complaints to the Better Business Bureau and state and local consumer protection agencies, they need strong oversight to prevent their often time predatory and abusive financial practices.
• Eliminate the Snowe amendment that allows payday and other lenders to influence rules before they are even proposed to the public. Government officials should not receive input and be influenced by the very industries - some being the worst of the worst - they are supposed to regulate.
• Support the House bill provision creating a bridge loan program to help keep unemployed homeowners from losing their homes.

Together can win real reform, but we need your help to do it!

I am amazed and disheartened by congressional Republicans' attempts to re-institute the same flawed policies that created the economic crisis we find ourselves in today. congressional republicans are determined to abandon Americans who have lost their jobs. and partner with special interest groups like the wall street banks, credit card companies, big oil, and insurance companies. their intent is shown in their voting record.

Republicans have voted against every major piece of economic legislation we have taken up this year. they voted no on the recovery act. they voted no to rein in banks through wall street reform. they even voted no for summer jobs.

I am proud to be a democrat in this congress and stand up for hard, would going -- working Americans. our party is dedicated to moving America in a new direction, creating good American jobs, lowering taxes for small businesses. and building a strong foundation for the economy and main street. the growing signs of economic recovery show our policies are working.

American jobs have been created in six of the last seven months, averaging 200,000 a month. While more needs to be done, America is on the road to recovery. I yield back.

Watch It:

WASHINGTON — President Obama on Saturday implored Congress to provide more aid to states and cities to blunt “the devastating economic impact of budget cuts” by local governments that imperil the jobs of teachers, the police, firefighters and other public employees.

In a letter to Democratic and Republican Congressional leaders, Mr. Obama said the “mounting employment crisis” in the states “could set back the pace of our economic recovery.”

Proponents of aid to the states, including some Congressional Democrats, governors and mayors, have been urging the president to weigh in on proposed legislation, initially providing up to $50 billion in assistance, which has been derailed in the House and Senate. Mr. Obama did not endorse a dollar figure, reflecting the fact that Democratic leaders were trying to determine what amount could win enough votes in their party, given Republicans’ near-unanimous opposition.

Nearly five months after Mr. Obama, in his State of the Union address, called for a final round of stimulus spending for local governments and tax cuts and lending programs for small businesses, Congress continues to haggle over several measures to create and save jobs because the economic case for stimulus has collided with lawmakers’ political fears of even higher deficits.

In his letter, the president said state and local governments had already cut 84,000 jobs this year, and would have cut more if not for assistance from the two-year $787 billion recovery act Mr. Obama signed a month after taking office. 

Tell John Boehner: No Bailout for Big Oil

Tell John Boehner: No Bailout for Big Oil

Yesterday, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) ran into a little trouble when he told reporters that BP and Americans taxpayers should both "take full responsibility" when it comes to covering the oil spill disaster.

Boehner backpedaled soon after, and by the end of the day, his office had a new line: "Not a dime of taxpayer money should be used to clean up [BP's] mess."

If Boehner doesn't want a single dime of taxpayer money going to clean up BP's mess, then Dems should be able to count on his support on lifting the cap, right?

As it happens, there exists a legislative vehicle for accomplishing this. Rep. Rush Holt of New Jersey is pushing a measure in the House that would lift the liability cap on oil companies -- and ensure that it applies retroactively to BP. This proposal originated in the Senate, courtesy of Robert Mendendez.

Boehner's office has not said whether he's willing to support any specific means for ensuring that BP is held liable. In a sense, Boehner's position on this doesn't have any real-world consequences -- only political ones. Many expect the Holt measure to pass the House with or without the GOP leadership's support.

But Dems think that if Boehner doesn't ultimately back it, or hedges, it will hand them a potent political weapon, enabling them to bludgeon Republicans as stooges for Big Oil.

Tell John Boehner: No Bailout for Big Oil

The American Federation of Teachers Pink Hearts Not Pink Slips campaign is in full swing. You may have seen or heard about the hundreds of pink hearts displayed in Cleveland earlier this month in protest of the massive layoffs that will cause devastating effects on our students there. Similar layoffs are planned or threatened across Ohio and by the end of this school year, it is estimated that as many as 300,000 teachers, school support staff and higher education faculty will receive pink slips throughout the country.

This will result in drastic increases in class sizes and less individualized instruction; it will erode classroom discipline and school safety, and eliminate essential programs like art, music, AP classes and summer school. This is quite simply very bad for students.

YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

You do it every day in your classroom, in your neighborhood, in your community. Do it again here in just a few clicks of your computer mouse and keyboard.

We need your help in getting You, your families and friends, as well as other supportive groups in your community to sign an online petition TODAY. This will help demonstrate support for including education jobs in the federal emergency funding bill. The goal is 300,000 signatures--one for every educator who may receive a pink slip by the end of this school year.

It will take just a moment to make this difference in the lives of your students, Ohio's children, our communities. Can we count on you to do this now?

Columbus, OH – Ohio Governor Ted Strickland released the following statement on the passage of Senate Bill 232, a bill that eliminates Ohio’s tangible personal property tax on generation for advanced energy project facilities that begin construction before January 1, 2012, produce energy by 2013 (or 2017 for nuclear, clean coal and co-generation projects) and create Ohio jobs.

Strickland called for the elimination of the uncompetitive tax in his 2010 State of the State address.  He made this a top priority in his 2010 job creation agenda.

“The elimination of this tax improves Ohio’s competitiveness and will spur job creation in the growing energy production industries.  I appreciate the legislature's commitment to growing the advanced energy industry in Ohio.  I look forward to signing this bill as soon as it reaches my desk,” Strickland said.

See Also: Ohio House And Senate Agree On Tax Incentives For Clean Energy

Sen. George Voinovich (Ohio) said the anti-tax pledge signed by his fellow Republicans conflicts with their responsibility as lawmakers to deal with the country's $13 trillion debt problem.

"I think that a lot of my colleagues have taken the pledge, and what they have to understand is that that pledge is inconsistent with the oath of office that they took when they became members of the United States Senate," said Voinovich last week at an event on the deficit organized by the center-left think tank Third Way.

Most GOP senators -- 31 of 41 -- have signed the pledge opposing any new tax increases. The pledge was started by the conservative group Americans for Tax Reform in 1986. Signing it has become de rigueur for GOP candidates running for federal or state-wide offices across the country.

Voinovich, who is retiring at year's end after two terms in the Senate, has said that higher taxes must be considered by the White House fiscal commission, which consists of congressional Democrats, Republicans and outside experts appointed by President Barack Obama who will try to produce a plan to deal with the red ink.  

Voinovich warned that Republicans could start to suffer along with Democrats if they don't deal with the debt.

"You know, some of my Republican friends are saying, 'Oh, boy, you know, look at the president’s numbers,' and so forth, but they fail to realize, what are your numbers?" he said.

"People aren’t turning to the Republican Party; they’re becoming independent," he added. "They’re looking for responsible leadership, and maybe responsible leadership may become something that’s popular here in the next six months or so and we might get something out of this commission. But I have to tell you something: If we don’t get something out of that commission, we are over the cliff."

WASHINGTON, D.C. – With state and local budget shortfalls threatening the jobs of hundreds of thousands of educators in Ohio and across the country, the Obama Administration is pressing Congress to approve emergency funding to keep them on the job.

“It is crucial that we keep our teachers in the classroom,” U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan said.  “Our teachers are vital to our students’ success, our economy’s success, and our nation’s success.  We must act now to prevent teachers from being laid off and ensure that America’s students have the knowledge and skills to succeed in the 21st century.”

The economic downturn has placed massive strain on state and local budgets.  As education makes up one of the largest single items in state budgets, schools, classrooms, and teacher jobs have been targeted for significant cuts.  Such a massive loss of jobs will impact students through reductions in core class time, overcrowded classrooms, shortened school calendars, cuts to afterschool programming, fewer early childhood opportunities, and reduced access to college counselors and school nurses. 

In response, the Obama Administration is pressing Congress to approve $23 billion in emergency support to preserve education jobs across the country.  This funding will keep teachers in the classroom at all levels, including post-secondary, while helping to sustain meaningful and necessary reforms underway in public education.  The President also is urging Congress to approve $1 billion to preserve early childhood education jobs to ensure that young children do not lose services critical to their learning and well-being.

According to provisional estimates by the White House Council of Economic Advisers, this funding will support the jobs of approximately 300,000 educators, including approximately 11,370 in Ohio.

“As state lawmakers and school districts across the country are finalizing their budgets for the coming year, we must act quickly and responsibly to offer the assistance they need – to keep our teachers teaching, keep our students learning, and keep our economy growing.  Investing in education now will help tens of millions of students become more productive citizens and positively affect America’s long-term fiscal health,” Secretary Duncan said.

President Barack Obama will today urge Congress to act on proposals he’s put forward to help small businesses secure financing and reduce taxes for investments that create jobs.

Obama will host small-business owners at the White House today and give remarks on the important role those kinds of companies play in reducing unemployment.

The centerpiece is the new $30 billion Small Business Lending Fund, which will offer funding to small community banks. (It will be separate from a similar one housed in the Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program.) Other initiatives include nixing capital-gains taxes for small-business investment and increasing the cap on certain Small Business Administration-backed loans.

“Government can’t create jobs, but it can help create the conditions for small businesses to grow and thrive and hire more workers,” Obama will say, according to excerpts of his remarks released by the White House.

With nationwide unemployment at 9.9 percent, Obama has been stepping up his efforts on the economy, holding events outside of Washington to say government programs have helped stabilize the economy and pressing Congress to do more.

The House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee approved the Small Business Lending Fund Act by a vote of 42-23 last week. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi  said at the time the legislation would be brought up for a vote soon in the full House.

The President’s remarks as prepared for delivery are below:

President Barack Obama will today urge Congress to act on proposals he’s put forward to help small businesses secure financing and reduce taxes for investments that create jobs.

Obama will host small-business owners at the White House today and give remarks on the important role those kinds of companies play in reducing unemployment.

The centerpiece is the new $30 billion Small Business Lending Fund, which will offer funding to small community banks. (It will be separate from a similar one housed in the Treasury’s Troubled Asset Relief Program.) Other initiatives include nixing capital-gains taxes for small-business investment and increasing the cap on certain Small Business Administration-backed loans.

“Government can’t create jobs, but it can help create the conditions for small businesses to grow and thrive and hire more workers,” Obama will say, according to excerpts of his remarks released by the White House.

With nationwide unemployment at 9.9 percent, Obama has been stepping up his efforts on the economy, holding events outside of Washington to say government programs have helped stabilize the economy and pressing Congress to do more.

The House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee approved the Small Business Lending Fund Act by a vote of 42-23 last week. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi  said at the time the legislation would be brought up for a vote soon in the full House.

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget designed a budget simulator. Awesome.

Now everybody can stabilize U.S debt in the comfort of their homes.

The goal is to achieve a debt level less than 60% of GDP by 2018.

Drastic action now would threaten the already fragile economic recovery. But failing to convince markets and creditors that the U.S. is serious about reducing its debt in the longer term would cause interest rates to rise dramatically and likely trigger a fiscal crisis.

We need to establish a fiscal goal and commit as a nation to achieving it. The Peterson-Pew Commission recommends a goal of stabilizing the debt at 60% of GDP by 2018 in the report, Red Ink Rising. We must set an ambitious, yet attainable, goal that Americans can support. See more about the reasoning behind this goal on the FAQ page.

This simulation was designed to illustrate the tough budget choices that will have to be made and to promote a public dialogue on how we can set a sustainable fiscal course.

How do your choices stack up?

After his budget record in Delaware County, Dave Yost could certainly use some "accountability" on budget matters, but it's clear this won't magically provide him with any "credibility" on the topic.

Yost Proposes State Budget Commission for Increased Credibility, Accountability

Republican State Auditor candidate Dave Yost today proposed creation of a State Budget Commission of the Auditor, Treasurer and Attorney General to improve state fiscal planning and increase accountability.

“Every state budget cycle generates criticism and doubt over the numbers provided by the Office of Budget and Management (OBM), a member of the Governor’s Cabinet,” Yost said.

“Legislators deserve more accurate and timely revenue estimates and voters deserve more accountability from statewide elected officials.

“Ohio counties have been well-served by county budget commissions made up of the county auditor, treasurer and prosecuting attorney, which designate a revenue total and then make regular updates,” Yost continued.

“The treasurer knows exactly what is coming into public coffers, the auditor knows what is being spent and the prosecutor makes sure that the law is followed.

“A budget commission works for counties, it can work for the State, too,” Yost concluded.  “By making these important calculations the responsibility of specific statewide elected officials, voters will know exactly where to look when the numbers are wrong or slow in coming.”

“Ohio counties have been well-served by county budget commissions made up of the county auditor, treasurer and prosecuting attorney, which designate a revenue total and then make regular updates,” 

Was Delaware County "well served" by Yost's huge budget increases there?

Watch It:

Organizations throughout the state back renewal of the Ohio Third Frontier on the May 4 ballot

COLUMBUS – The United for Jobs and Ohio’s Future coalition announced today that it has secured more than 150 endorsements for Issue 1 from a diverse mix of organizations across Ohio. Issue 1 is a statewide ballot measure on the May 4 primary ballot that will renew the Ohio Third Frontier, Ohio’s most successful economic development and jobs creation program. The current funding mechanism for the Ohio Third Frontier, approved by Ohio voters in 2005, expires in 2012. Passage of Issue 1 will authorize $700 million in bonds to extend funding through at least 2016. Issue 1 will not raise taxes.

“Supporters of Issue 1 come from all parts of Ohio and represent every sector of our economy,” said Jo Ann Davidson, co-chair of United for Jobs and Ohio’s Future. “The growing list of endorsements for Issue 1 shows that once people understand how effective the Ohio Third Frontier has been at creating jobs, building new companies and expanding existing businesses, they want to ensure the program’s benefits continue to grow and reach even more Ohioans.”

Created in 2002 with bipartisan leadership and support, the Ohio Third Frontier makes targeted state investments in promising technologies, research and entrepreneurs. Since its inception, the Ohio Third Frontier has helped launch 571 new companies, supported expansions of many existing businesses and created more than 48,000 new jobs while generating $6.6 billion in economic activity.

“The Ohio Third Frontier has delivered on its promise to create quality jobs in Ohio and to fuel economic activity in all regions of the state,” said coalition co-chair David Wilhelm. “Voter approval of Issue 1 will build on that success and bring tens of thousands more jobs to Ohio by creating an environment that fosters innovation, attracts investment and supports entrepreneurs.”

Because of its proven record of success, State Issue 1 has attracted broad bipartisan support from individuals and organizations across Ohio. Issue 1 supporters include both candidates for governor, the vast majority of both Democrats and Republicans in the Ohio General Assembly, both the Ohio Democratic and Ohio Republican Party, and representatives of business, labor, higher education, agriculture, manufacturing and other major sectors of the economy.

To learn more about Issue 1, visit www.UnitedForJobsOhio.com.

“We will provide the support necessary for you to complete college and meet a new goal: by 2020, America will once again have the highest proportion of college graduates in the world.”

- President Barack Obama February 24, 2009

The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act of 2010 delivered a significant down payment on the President’s ambitious agenda to make higher education more affordable and help more Americans earn a college degree.  The law raises the maximum Pell Grant, makes loan payments more affordable for students with unmanageable debt, increases investments in community colleges, and extends support for Historically Black Colleges and Universities and other Minority Serving Institutions, all at no additional cost to taxpayers according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. The education initiatives funded by the law are fully paid for by ending government subsidies that were being given to financial institutions making guaranteed federal student loans.

Building on existing accomplishments since the President took office—raising the maximum Pell Grant by more than $800 and tripling the largest college tax credit now known as the American Opportunity Tax Credit—the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act will help expand college access and increase graduation rates for Ohio’s students.

It's no secret that we're coming out of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. Given that, it seems crazy that we might end a program that has created 571 new Ohio companies and 48,000 new jobs for Ohioans.

On May 4th, you'll get the opportunity to Vote Yes for Issue 1 and keep Ohio's Third Frontier program.

Third Frontier invests in the most promising technologies and small businesses that will create jobs in Ohio. Since starting in 2002, independent studies have shown that Third Frontier has created more than 571 new companies and 48,000 new jobs for Ohio.

Issue 1 is the real deal - a program with a proven track record of creating high tech jobs for Ohio. Voting Yes for Issue 1 really is voting Yes for Jobs, which is why ProgressOhio endorses it.

To learn more about Issue 1 visit the campaign Web site at www.unitedforjobsohio.com

or follow the campaign on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

Full Transcript of The President's Remarks Below:

Consider three bills -- two of them passed under budget reconciliation, the third heading for budget reconciliation. Each had an effect on the fiscal health of the nation, calculated by the Congressional Budget Office. The first two, the tax cuts pushed by President George W. Bush, blew a hole in the budget.

The third, the Senate's health reform bill? As you can see from the CBO projection, that's a different story.

Today the Department of Education announced that 15 states and the District of Columbia will advance as finalists for phase 1 of the Race to the Top competition.

Race to the Top is the Department's $4.35 billion effort to dramatically re-shape America's educational system to better engage and prepare our students for success in a competitive 21st century economy and workplace.

States competing for Race to the Top funds were asked to document past education reform successes, as well as outline plans to: extend reforms using college and career-ready standards and assessments; build a workforce of highly effective educators; create educational data systems to support student achievement; and turn around their lowest-performing schools.

The phase 1 finalists are:

• Colorado
• Delaware
• District of Columbia
• Florida
• Georgia
• Illinois
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Massachusetts
• New York
• North Carolina
• Ohio
• Pennsylvania
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• Tennessee

"These states are an example for the country of what is possible when adults come together to do the right thing for children," Secretary Arne Duncan said.

Ohio requested $409 million over four years. Only half of the state school districts opted to participate in the program, in part because the grant guidelines require policy changes.

“We’re obviously happy we’ll get an opportunity to go to Washington to make our pitch,” said Ohio Department of Education spokesman Scott Blake.

The independent, non-partisan Congressional Budget Office reports today that President Obama's economic recovery package created up to 2.1 million jobs in the fourth quarter on 2009. Just another little tidbit to consider as part of the larger debate on the efficacy of the stimulus.

The massive stimulus package passed last year to blunt the impact of the worst U.S. recession in 70 years created up to 2.1 million jobs in the last three months of 2009, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office said on Tuesday.

The package boosted the economy by up to 3.5 percent and lowered the unemployment rate by up to 2.1 percent during that period, CBO said.

In the report, the CBO noted that economic growth in 2009 was worse than they had predicted at the time that the stimulus was enacted, but that was due to a weaker economy than originally expected, rather than any failings of the stimulus. [...]

The CBO also said that in the fourth quarter the stimulus package increased the number of full-time jobs by between 1.4 and 3 million compared to the number of jobs that would have existed without the package.

Direct purchasing of goods and services by the federal government and states have been the most effective provision of the act, CBO said.

Among the least effective: a tax credit for first-time homebuyers and a tax cut for the wealthy which was demanded by Republicans.

WASHINGTON – Hours after signing pay-as-you-go legislation into law, President Barack Obama praised this step towards restoring fiscal responsibility and called for both parties to set aside politics and do the hard work of addressing the deficit.

To this end, since the proposed Fiscal Commission was recently blocked in the Senate – by a handful of Republicans who had previously backed the idea -- the President will create this commission by executive order.

The President believes it is time for Washington to once again take responsibility for every dollar it spends.

Watch It:

Transcript of the President's Full Remarks Below: