Northeastern Ohio Activists Engage In Budget Forum

Brian Royer — Tue, 15 May 2007 15:16:15 EDT

More than 70 activists from across Northeast Ohio gathered at the North Olmsted Community Cabin to participate in the area's first America Votes / Progress Ohio issue forum Monday evening. The event engaged progressive groups from around the region: Ohioans for Democratic Values, Westside Democrats, Drinking Liberally Cleveland Chapter, Blacks United in Local Democracy, Cuyahoga County Young Democrats, Lakewood Democratic Club, North Olmsted Democratic Club and the Bay Village Democratic Club.

For nearly two hours, attendees participated in an informative exchange over the 2007 Ohio Budget with Ohio General Assembly members and John Corlett from the Center for Community Solutions.

Questions were asked about the nursing home lobby, property tax exemptions for the elderly, utilizing the line item veto, use of money raised by the state lottery, and funding of faith-based and community initiatives.

Judging by the poignancy of the questions proposed to the panel, it appears that a changing of the guard in Ohio's executive offices has brought a new level of interest and engagement to a process that was traditionally a mystery to most residents of the state.

Panelists for the evening's event included:

John Corlett: Senior Fellow and Director, Public Policy and Advocacy at the Center for Community Solutions. Mr. Corlett is an expert on the Ohio Budget process and issues.

Representative Michael Skindell: Representative to Ohio’s 13th House District and serves as Ranking Minority Member on the Finance and Appropriations Committee.

Representative Mike Foley: Representative to Ohio’s 14th House District and sitting member of the Public Utilities committee as well as Ranking Minority Member of Ways and Means Committee.

Representative Jennifer Brady: Representative to Ohio’s 16th House District and sitting member of the Commerce and Labor Committee as well as the Health Access and Affordability Committee.

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Northeastern Ohio Activists Engage In Budget Forum