From the Statehouse 2007 No. 02

by Jennifer Garrison
Mar. 4, 2007

It has been a while since I prepared a column regarding activity at the Statehouse. Basically, when a new administration takes over the Governor needs time to assemble a quality staff, conduct agency reviews, and prepare his proposed budget.

Over the past 6 weeks, the Ohio House has passed resolutions required under the constitution. Namely, we voted on House leadership, passed House Rules, met in a Joint Session of the Ohio House and Senate to pass the Joint Rules, set up committees along with other housekeeping matters.    We also set a date for the Governor to issue his State of the State address and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to issue the State of the Court address.

On March 14, 2007, Governor Strickland will issue his State of the State address. This speech will outline his priorities as Governor and give some details on his funding priorities for the 2 year biennium budget. The following day the Governor will send his proposed budget to the House of Representatives. The budget will then be sent to the House Finance and Appropriations Committee for deliberations and possible changes.

This session I have been assigned to the Finance and Appropriations Committee and the Primary and Secondary School Subcommittee. Presently, the Finance Committee is holding hearings on the Transportation budget. In two (2) weeks hearings will begin on the General Revenue budget.

To date I have offered bills for the State to fund all day kindergarten if a school district chooses to offer it. This will certainly help school districts that already offer it because local taxpayers pay for the entire amount above ½ day. This will free up monies for other services a school may want to offer, like lower class size, more curriculum, or reduce pay to play, to name a few.

I have also offered legislation to increase state funding to lower wealth school districts, by increasing parity aid.

My hope is the legislature will revisit deregulation of the electric industry in this two (2) year session. In 1999, the state passed legislation deregulating the electric utility industry.   Legislators believed competition would result and prices would be reduced.   Overall, this did not occur because of the high cost of capital in this industry.

In 2009, electric utility companies will go to market and it is feared rates could increase dramatically. The Legislature must look at this issue again and provide the best framework to insure fair rates for consumers, some rate certainty for businesses, and cost recovery for utilities. This is a very important economic development issue for the State.

Other committees I have been assigned to are the Public Utilities Committee, the Education Committee and the Juvenile and Family Law Committee. I have also been assigned to the following special committees, the Coal Development Office Technical Advisory Committee, ETECH, and the Muskingum River Advisory Council.

Last year I sponsored legislation requiring the Ohio House maintain on their website every legislator’s voting record. I worked with the Speaker of the House to make this occur without legislation.

Starting with the Jan. 2 opening of the 127th General Assembly, the legislature’s official Web site will now include a member-by-member record of the final vote on each bill or resolution that reaches the floor of the House or Senate.

Open government is good government, and this is a big step in the right direction. Citizens ought to be able to know what their legislators are up to at the Statehouse, and these changes will make that much easier.