October 25

Ohio teachers seek a voice in state legislature by running for office

By Kate Irby, The Plain Dealer The Plain Dealer
on October 25, 2012 at 6:00 AM, updated October 25, 2012 at 7:35 AM

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Remember last year's Senate Bill 5? The legislation that cut public employees' power to collectively bargain, which was met with some support, a lot of outrage and ultimately a ballot measure that struck it down?

Teachers remember, and some took it as their call to run for seats in the Ohio legislature this November.

"SB5 made me very, very angry," said Democrat Judith Cross, a former elementary school teacher and retired judge considered an underdog in her race against Republican House Speaker William G. Batchelder for a seat representing part of Medina County. "And I decided, well, if I'm so angry I need to do something about it rather than just sit back and complain."

Fourteen teachers and former teachers – including two incumbents – are running as Democrats for seats in the Ohio House, and two for seats in the Senate. Some cite SB5 -- passed by the Republican-dominated legislature -- as their main motivator, and others the drastic cuts in education funding. But all of them agree that the legislature could use more people passionate about education. http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2012/10/ohio_teachers_seek_a_voice_in.html

Huntington Credits Law Easing Interest Rate Caps For New Jobs

Gognwer 10/24/12

State leaders joined Huntington Bank executives Wednesday in touting legislation that eased credit card usury limits in touting the company's decision to expand its workforce by 250 jobs in Ohio.

Gov. John Kasich, Speaker Bill Batchelder (R-Medina), Senate President Tom Niehaus (R-New Richmond), Senate Minority Leader Eric Kearney (D-Cincinnati) and several other legislators joined Huntington CEO Steve Steinour for the announcement at the company's headquarters in Columbus.

Mr. Steinour said the legislation (HB 322 ), which allows Ohio banks to charge the same credit card interest rates as out-of-state banks and removes the current usury limits, was a critical factor in Huntington's decision to locate its new business and consumer card operations in the state.

http://www.gongwer-oh.com/programming/news.cfm?article_ID=812070202