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Monday, May 16, 2011
Screening committee named to help fill Butler County Senate seat
State Senate President Tom Niehaus, R-New Richmond, has appointed a seven-member screening committee to consider applicants to fill the vacancy in the 4th District caused by the resignation of Sen. Gary Cates, R-West Chester,
Members of the Republican committee are: Niehaus; President Pro Tem Keith Faber of Celina; Majority Leader Jimmy Stewart of Albany; Majority Whip Shannon Jones of Clearcreek Twp.; Sen. Chris Widener of Springfield; Sen. David Daniels of Greenfield and Sen. Gayle Manning of North Ridgeville.
The district includes all of Butler County.
The Republican Caucus accepted applications for the appointment through the close of business on Monday.
Here are the applicants who will meet the with the screening committee on Thursday, May 19th:
* State Rep. Bill Coley of Liberty Township
* State Rep. Tim Derickson of Oxford
* Mark Haverkos of West Chester
* Stuart Locke of Middletown
* Michael McCabe of Fairfield Township
The 23-member Republican caucus makes the appointment.
The caucus is expected to receive a recommendation from the Butler County Republican Party with three possible candidates and to choose from the three, said Jason Mauk, Senate GOP spokesman.
The caucus plans to seat the new member at the May 24 Senate session, a press release said.
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TweetAuditor Yost promotes township, county merger options
State Auditor Dave Yost Monday stepped up his support for proposals to permit townships and counties to merge, with the goals of cutting costs and making government more efficient.
In testimony before the Senate Finance Committee and in a meeting with reporters, Yost backed a proposal in the House-passed version of the state budget, House Bill 153, to permit two contiguous townships to merge if there’s a two-thirds’ vote in favor by each township’s board of trustees.
The decision would be subject to referendum.
Alternatively, trustees could place a merger proposal on the ballot by a unanimous vote of the board or allow voters to start the merge process by initiative. The state has 1,308 townships, said Yost.
Yost also called for giving voters the ability to initiate mergers of two or more contiguous counties. Ohio has 88 counties.
All the merger options would be voluntary, he said.
Yost spoke as local governments face loss of state financial support in the two-year budget moving through the legislature.
“It’s a different world,” said Yost, a former county auditor and county prosecutor in Delaware County.
He also said he’s trying to save money for his office by not putting up a booth at the state fair this summer, cutting more than $15,000 in costs. Yost said he’ll still attend the fair “on my own nickel.”
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TweetCommittee backs amendment to exempt Ohio from health care mandate
Backers of a proposed state constitutional amendment to exempt Ohio from a key part of the federal health care overhaul championed by President Barack Obama have formed Ohioans for Healthcare Freedom.
The committee has filed paperwork with Secretary of State Jon Husted and is continuing to gather signatures to put the proposed constitutional amendment on the Nov. 8 ballot, Jeff Longstreth, campaign manager, said Monday.
The Ohio Republican Party and tea party groups across the state support the effort.
“It’s a great mix of liberty-minded groups as well as citizens across the state, Longstreth said.
The group so far has gathered about 320,000 signatures from registered voters and the goal is to file 500,000 or more by the July 6 deadline. To get the amendment on the ballot, at least 385,245 signatures must be filed.
The amendment would exempt Ohio from the so-called individual mandate in the health care overhaul which requires that by 2014 all Americans participate in a health care plan. It also would prohibit the state from enacting such a requirement.
The proposed amendment could end up on the ballot along with the proposed repeal of Senate Bill 5, legislation reducing public employee collective bargaining rights. To get the repeal issue on the ballot, organizers must file petitions with signatures from 231,147 registered voters by June 30.
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TweetKasich, M. DeWine to address Dayton chamber, development coalition
Gov. John Kasich, Attorney General Mike DeWine and state Sen. Shannon Jones, R-Clearcreek Twp., are among the speakers scheduled for “Dayton’s Legislation Day in Columbus” on Tuesday.
The Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce and the Dayton Development Coalition are hosting the event at the downtown Athletic Club.
“This is the opportunity for business leaders in Dayton to express their support and concern about how state government is progressing,” said Chris Kershner, the chamber’s vice president for public policy and economic development.
State Development Director James Leftwich, former president and CEO of the Dayton Development Coalition, also will speak to the group.
Participants also are scheduled to meet at the Statehouse with heads of key legislative committees - Senate Finance Chairman Chris Widener, R-Springfield, Senate Education Chairwoman Peggy Lehner, R-Kettering and House Local Government Chairman Terry Blair, R-Washington Twp.
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