GOP, Democrats close to election-law deal
By Jim Siegel
The Columbus Dispatch Thursday April 26, 2012 6:09 AM
A potential last-minute agreement between House Republicans and Democrats could end a bitter fight over the repeal of a GOP-crafted election-law overhaul.
Just minutes before voting to repeal House Bill 194 — and as House Democrats bombed away on the GOP in floor speeches — House Speaker William G. Batchelder, R-Medina, and Minority Leader Armond Budish, D-Beachwood, worked out a deal to suspend the vote.
Republicans had planned to repeal House Bill 194 and end the November referendum effort. But Fair Elections Ohio, the coalition of Democrats and progressive groups that worked closely with President Barack Obama’s re-election team to challenge the law, resisted the repeal. The group argued that it would deny people the right to vote against the law and would have blocked early voting in the three days before Election Day.http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/04/26/gop-democrats-are-close-to-election-law-deal.html
DeWine calls for tweaking JobsOhio
He worries bill could curb public access to records
By Randy Ludlow
The Columbus Dispatch Thursday April 26, 2012 5:59 AM
Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine worries that other agencies’ public records could be converted into state secrets simply by being shared with JobsOhio.
DeWine will ask legislators and the administration of Gov. John Kasich to change a bill passed yesterday by the House to ensure that public records remain available to the public.
In creating Kasich’s privatized economic-development agency, legislators declared that records created or received by the nonprofit JobsOhio are not public, “regardless of who may have custody of the records.”
http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/04/26/dewine-calls-for-tweaking-jobsohio.html
http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2012/04/26/dewine-calls-for-tweaking-jobsohio.html
Election law referendum at issue
Talks may begin soon on new repeal language.
By Laura A. Bischoff, Columbus Bureau Updated 7:22 AM Thursday, April 26, 2012
COLUMBUS — House Republicans on Wednesday decided not to take the unprecedented step of repealing an election reform law that is set for a voter referendum in November.
Republicans delayed a vote on Senate Bill 295, which would repeal large parts of an election reform package signed into law in July by Gov. John Kasich.
Democrats, unions and voting rights advocates collected 400,000 voter signatures to put that law, known as House Bill 194, up for a referendum. http://www.daytondailynews.com/news/election/election-law-referendum-at-issue-1365949.html
House Republicans postpone expected vote on legislation to repeal Ohio elections law scheduled for a referendum
Published: Wednesday, April 25, 2012, 9:37 PM Updated: Thursday, April 26, 2012, 12:47 AM
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Republicans in the House of Representatives on Wednesday night unexpectedly postponed a floor vote on legislation to repeal a controversial elections bill that is up for a referendum this fall.
Majority Republicans were poised to pass legislation to repeal the elections bill known as House Bill 194, despite objections from Democrats who said the repeal would trample on citizens' right to referendum.
But the vote was delayed after a sudden frenzy of private negotiations between Democratic and Republican legislative leaders broke out during the floor debate over Senate Bill 295, the bill that would repeal the elections law and nullify the voter referendum on the Nov. 6 ballot.
Republican House Speaker William G. Batchelder said he delayed vote on SB 295 to open negotiations with a voting rights advocates who initiated the referendum. http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2012/04/house_republicans_postpone_exp.html
Published: 4/26/2012 - Updated: 2 minutes ago
Potential deal halts effort to kill referendum on GOP election law
BY JIM PROVANCE
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF
COLUMBUS -- The Ohio House was nearing a vote Wednesday night on killing a controversial, Republican-passed election reform law -- and potentially a voter referendum in November along with it -- when the issue was abruptly shelved.
Talks involving House Democrats and Republicans, the citizen committee behind the referendum, and President Obama's re-election campaign led to the surprise decision.
Rep. Matt Szollosi (D., Oregon) was in the middle of talking against the repeal effort when Minority Leader Armond Budish (D., Beachwood) whispered the potential deal in his ear.
http://www.toledoblade.com/Politics/2012/04/26/Potential-deal-halts-effort-to-kill-referendum-on-GOP-election-law.html
http://www.toledoblade.com/Politics/2012/04/26/Potential-deal-halts-effort-to-kill-referendum-on-GOP-election-law.html
Ohio House passes jobs bill sponsored by Hagan
By Robert Wang
Posted Apr 25, 2012 @ 07:45 PM
The Ohio House voted 91-5 Wednesday evening to approve the JobsOhio 2 bill sponsored by State Rep. Christina Hagan, R-Marlboro Township, and State Rep. Mike Dovilla, R-Berea.
Gov. John Kasich’s office and the Legislative Service Commission drafted the bill, which renames the Ohio Department of Development the Ohio Development Services Agency. A staffer for House Speaker William G. Batchelder, R-Medina, asked Hagan and Dovilla to introduce and advocate for the bill as it moved through committee to the House floor.
http://www.cantonrep.com/news/x596784977/Ohio-House-passes-jobs-bill-sponsored-by-Hagan
http://www.cantonrep.com/news/x596784977/Ohio-House-passes-jobs-bill-sponsored-by-Hagan
04/26/12 at 12:54pm
Written by pkostyu
COLUMBUS — The Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber today endorsed Gov. John R. Kasich’s proposed income tax cut saying it will “provide opportunity for small businesses.”
Chamber president and chief executive office Ellen G. van der Horst sent an endorsement letter to Senate President Tom Niehaus, R-New Richmond, and House Speaker William G. Batchelder, R-Medina.
“The proposed 5 percent reduction in the income tax rate is a step in the right direction for small businesses, and the savings can be reinvested directly into those businesses, strengthening the very core of Ohio’s economy,” she wrote.
http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2012/04/26/cincinnati-chamber-endorses-income-tax-cut/
http://cincinnati.com/blogs/politics/2012/04/26/cincinnati-chamber-endorses-income-tax-cut/
The Fight For Planned Parenthood Continues.
Wednesday April 25, 2012 8:58 PM
UPDATED: Wednesday April 25, 2012 9:17 PM
UPDATED: Wednesday April 25, 2012 9:17 PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Tuesday House Republicans changed their minds and removed a provision from a bill that would have stripped $1.7 million dollars from the agency that provides sexual and reproductive healthcare for women.
“It would have obviously reduced our ability to provide services. It would not make us go away. Planned Parenthood has been around for 80 years and we'll be around for 80 more and beyond that. We're here to provide critical services and that will continue," said Gary Dougherty, legislative director for Planned Parenthood in Ohio.
Ohio Right to Life Executive Director Mike Gonidakis said that he thought the effort to defund Planned Parenthood was on track.
http://www.onntv.com/content/stories/2012/04/25/story-planned-parenthood.html
http://www.onntv.com/content/stories/2012/04/25/story-planned-parenthood.html
HB194 Repeal on Hold as All Sides Agree to Talks
Hannah Report 4/25/12
As a partisan debate over why the Legislature should or should not repeal elections omnibus bill HB194 (Mecklenborg-Blessing) before voters have a chance to weigh in on it raged on the House floor, a bipartisan negotiation happened quietly behind the scenes Wednesday.
When all was said and done, repeal legislation SB295 (Coley) was informally passed and put on hold while all parties to the debate agreed to talk.
House Democrats told reporters that Reps. Michael Stinziano (D-Columbus), Kathleen Clyde (D-Kent) and Alicia Reece (D-Cincinnati) were approached by Fair Elections Ohio, the group behind a repeal effort for HB194, and were told the committee would be willing to consider taking the issue off the ballot if the Legislature would do a straight repeal of HB194, including restoring the last three days for early voting, a contention by Democrats and opponents of HB194.
Gongwer 4/25/12
Just as partisan bickering over a likely election law repeal was shifting into high gear, House Republicans suddenly called off a vote on the contentious measure at the end of a marathon session Wednesday night.
At issue was Republicans' plan (SB 295 ), but has been stayed by a Democrat-led referendum effort.
House Speaker Bill Batchelder (R-Medina) told reporters after session that the sudden change in course came after Minority Leader Armond Budish (D-Beachwood) told him that the referendum petition committee was willing to negotiate an agreement where they would request the secretary of state remove the issue from the November ballot.
"It's an option that I didn't think that we had and I think it's an option that should be examined by everybody involved," he said.
Speaker Batchelder said he hadn't spoken with anyone from the Fair Elections Ohio campaign and didn't know what the petitioners wanted in exchange for withdrawing the referendum.
Gongwer 4/25/12
The House signed off Wednesday on three components of Gov. John Kasich's mid-biennium budget update, making them the most likely of several bills derived from his proposals to clear the upper chamber prior to the summer break.
The near-term fate of several other measures that were originally part of Mr. Kasich's ambitious package are less clear, especially given the House has no sessions scheduled for next week. Among the bigger policy pieces lingering in the House for more deliberation is a new tax system for banks and insurance companies (HB 510 ).
Among the numerous measures acted on during Wednesday's session was the "main" MBR measure, which contains all of the appropriations and human services-related provisions (HB 487 ). The bill also served as a vehicle for dozens of other policy tweaks, many of which were added during recent hearings of the House Finance & Appropriations Committee.
Ohio Business: Timken Breaks Ground, Releases Earnings; Middle Market Growth Rises, OSU Partnership Says; Diebold Income Up …
Gongwer 4/25/12
The Timken Company broke ground this week on a $225 million expansion of its Faircrest Steel Plant in Stark County as state and federal leaders joined company officials to mark the occasion.
The project is aimed at improving the plant's productivity while expanding its product range and increasing capacity to meet growing demand, according to Timken. Gov. John Kasich, House Speaker Bill Batchelder (R-Medina), along with U.S. Sen. Rob Portman (R-Terrace Park) and other members of Ohioans congressional delegation joined the event.
The centerpieces of the expansion new ladle refiner and large-bloom continuous caster, according to Timken. The new equipment is targeted for startup in 2014 and is expected to increase the plant's shippable capacity by 25% and enable production of a broader range of large-diameter bars.
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