Beware Of Politicians Bearing Gifts.

Be they Greek or otherwise.

From the Dayton Daily News 1/30/15

“Ohio Gov. John Kasich wants to double the personal exemption for workers making less than $80,000 a year, eliminate income taxes for small businesses with less than $2 million in annual sales, and better tailor job training and social services for individuals.”

What this means in general terms is that a taxpayer in the stated income range would be able to double the current personal exemption of $1,700 to $3,400. All things being equal an earner with an Ohio income of $50,000 would save an estimated $64 per year.

On the road to Iowa and New Hampshire the governor is bragging about cutting taxes and balancing the budget. What he doesn't talk about is the means used to accomplish this fiscal magic. Where did the dollars come from? Let me count the ways. 1. Increased property taxes for residential property owners. 2. Elimination of the senior citizen home owner $300 per year property tax reduction for most seniors born after 1948. 3. Slashing tax revenue sharing with local governments and public schools.

These funding reductions means that small cities like Wilmington have had to cut services that provide safety and quality of life functions. Wilmington is in the sad position of having to operate with a smaller than needed police force. The city parks are operating on a bare bones budget and relying on charity to maintain services. Drive down almost any city street and observe the results of underfunded street maintenance and repair budgets. The streets are in such bad shape that city council is debating whether to ask the voters for a two mill property tax increase or to raise quarter percent income tax a quarter percent. Council has little choice but to find new revenue to replace the lost state share.

Local school districts are operating at a minimal basis and may soon have to ask the voters for a tax increase.

Now, lets look at the $50,000 earner's place in this discussion. The income tax increase would cost him or her $125 per year. If a property tax is the chosen and the earners home was valued at $150,000, the property tax increase would be $105. That amount is 12.5 percent higher than it would have been prior to the governors budget balancing tax increase.

Thanks Gov.

Paul Hunter paulhunter45177@gmail.com  

Tangled Web Update

From previous post: ..It should be interesting to see how this all plays out in the coming months as Cliff's House deals with the governor's avowed promise to make Ohio's charter schools more accountable for the millions of public education dollars the schools receive.

P. S. This morning (1/29/15) the Columbus Dispatch quoted Speaker Rosenberer. “This is not a witch hunt on charter schools,” said Speaker Cliff Rosenberger, R-Clarksville. “ This is something we need to do to make it a little more fair and balanced and make sure there is more transparency and accountability.”

What A Tangled Web We Weave

Our state representative and now house speaker Cliff Rosenberger appears to be involved with at least two Ohio charter school operators. This is an unusual connection because there are no charter schools in Cliff's district.

The first situation involves the troubled Chicago-based Concept Schools, which are related through membership, fundraisers and political giving to the nonprofit Niagara Foundation, which provides trips to Turkey for state, local and federal lawmakers. Rosenberger joined two other House Republicans and two local officials for a trip to Turkey. The trip, focused on economic development, was paid for by the Niagara Foundation, which also has sponsored dinner at the state capital. [Contradiction] All four elected officials and the legislative staffer paid their own airfare and traveled at no expense to the taxpayers. I guess we won't know the truth until Cliff deigns to reveal it.

http://ohiohousegop.blogspot.com/2011/12/state-representatives-lead-economic.html

       Rosenberger’s office did not answer Beacon Journal requests for                        information.

Rosenberger received a $1,850 contribution from the foundation in 2012.

http://www.ohio.com/news/break-news/ohio-taxpayers-provide-jobs-to-turkish-immigrants-through-charter-schools-1.501940

The other connection involves charted operators Brennan and William Lager who run the nation's single largest for-profit K-12 school contributed $36,467 to Rosenberger.

http://knowyourcharter.com/2015/01/21/policy-vs-politics-will-prevail-looming-ohio-charter-school-reform-fight/

It should be interesting to see how this all plays out in the coming months as Cliff's House deals with the governor's avowed promise to make Ohio's charter schools more accountable for the millions of public education dollars the schools receive.

P. Hunter

Blackstone's Ratio

It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that one innocent suffer", William Blackstone.

As a nation it is time to consider how many innocent have people been put to death in our name and reconsider a ban on the death penalty.

From, The Guardian's web site http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jan/27/innocent-us-prisoners-exonerated-in-2014-highest-levels

More US prisoners were exonerated of crimes that they did not commit in 2014 than in any year since records began in 1989, indicating new resolve on the part of prosecutors and law enforcement to tackle the scourge of wrongful convictions across America.

But [it was] pointed out that the vast majority of jurisdictions, including Los Angeles and most smaller towns and cities, still lag behind, rendering the chances of an innocent prisoner finding relief in most of America much more tenuous.

Posted by Paul Hunter

"Je suis Badawi”

 is a chant worth honoring. Badawi is not some witless pornographer lampooning a community's religion.

Obama was right by declining to march arm and arm with the hypocritical representatives of a nation that sentences a political critic to 10 years in prison and 1,000 public lashings.

Paul Hunter

WATER loss GATE Update.

The Wilmington water department has discovered and repaired a significant water leak from a main on Rombach Ave. near McDonald's. It's not known how many gallons per day was being lost but it was many thousands of gallons. The cost of the repair was around $3,500. It will not be known how the fix will affect the annual lost water total of 130 million per year the the department experienced in 2013 until a month by month comparison can be made.
Paul Hunter paulhunter45177@gmail.com

Congress Takes Over Foreign Policy

House Speaker John Boehner is setting up his most dramatic foreign policy confrontation with President Barack Obama to date, inviting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to speak about Iran before a joint session of Congress on Feb. 11.

In a followup to this report, TongueIncheek News, said that sources inside the Speaker's mini department of State are arraigning a state dinner for the Prime Minister, complete with the Iron Dome string ensemble. :-)