This just came in about that horrible county government position consolodation / power grab bill as the conference committee prepares to meet:
The members of the conference committee on the budget correction bill HB 562 will be meeting on Monday, June 9, 2008.
All of us need to contact our representatives AND the members of the committee TO-DAY to urge their support of the following:
1. Because of the financial crisis being faced by many counties’ title bureaus, we request SB 307 (title fees adjustments) be added to the budget correction bill. It is critical that counties across Ohio receive immediate aid to keep their of-fices open.
2. We request that Sec. 515.60 CASH TRANSFER FROM AUTOMATED TI-TLE PROCESSING FUND TO TITLE DEFECT RESCISSION FUND be removed from the bill. In the past, the title defect rescission fund ORC 4505.181(A)(1)(a) is funded by mandatory contributions from auto dealers. The money was used to reimburse the purchaser of a vehicle from a dealer who had not gotten title to the vehicle prior to selling it.
The purpose of the fund is to protect consumers from auto dealers who do not follow the laws of Ohio requiring them to title a trade-in in the dealer’s name before selling it. If the funding for the title defect rescission fund is to come from the Automated Title Processing Fund, there needs to be discussion on the issue and needs to come before the Automated Title Processing Fund Board for its recommendation.
3. Do not reinsert the Cuyahoga County restructuring language back in the bill. This needs further study and if it is to be presented should be in a stand alone bill, not in a document of over 1,200 pages.
4. The creation of a Commission on Local Government Reform and Collabora-tion (HB 521) should also remain as a stand alone bill and not rolled into HB 562. More study and hearings need to be held on it before a vote is taken.
Members of the Conferees Committee
Sen. John Carey’s 17th District:
Telephone: 614/466-8156
Email: sd17@mailr.sen.state.oh.us
Sen. Tom Niehaus 14th District:
Telephone: 614/466-8082
Email: sd14@mailr.sen.state.oh.us
Sen. Capri Cafaro 32nd District:
Telephone: 614/466-7182
Email: senatorcafaro@maild.sen.state.oh.us
Rep. Jay Hottinger 71st District
Telephone: (614) 466-1482
Email Address: district71@ohr.state.oh.us
Rep. Shannon Jones 67th District
Telephone: (614) 644-6027
Email Address: district67@ohr.state.oh.us
Rep. Michael Skindell 13th District
Telephone: (614) 466-5921
Email Address: district13@ohr.state.oh.us
General Assembly Leadership
Senate President Bill Harris 19th District
Telephone: 614/466-8086
Email: SD19@mailr.sen.state.oh.us
House Speaker Jon Husted 37th District
Telephone: (614) 644-6008
Email Address: district37@ohr.state.oh.us
The following is from Gongwer’s Ohio:
On Tuesday, the Senate took a different path than the House on local government issues by stripping language from the capital bill to create a local government col-laboration and reform commission - a goal of House Majority Leader Larry Flowers (R-Canal Winchester) that had attracted intense opposition from townships and other groups.
The Senate panel also bagged a provision that would have allowed Cuyahoga County to place a government restructuring issue on the ballot. That proposal has split Democrats within the county and elsewhere, as evidenced by the failed efforts of Rep. Chris Redfern (D-Catawba Island), the Ohio Democratic Party chairman, to amend it so the option applied to the 86 other counties governed by a board of commissioners.
Sen. Carey said senators from both parties thought that provision should be dealt with in separate legislation.
I'm open to discussion on items 1 and 2 from above. I wholeheartedly agree on item 3. And item 4 should be split off the bill, but it should never be allowed to pass.
