BUCKEYE INSTITUTE: Energy Mandates Study Committee Recommends Indefinite Freeze

COLUMBUS, OHIO--The Buckeye Institute's energy policy expert today praised a special legislative committee's recommendation that the General Assembly indefinitely freeze Ohio's renewable energy and energy efficiency mandates.

 

However, the free market think tank expressed serious concern about Gov. John Kasich's statement that he might not support the recommended freeze on the alternative energy mandates, also known as Alternative Energy Portfolio Standards.

 

"Ohioans would experience higher energy prices and weaker economic growth if these mandates remain," said Joe Nichols, the Institute's William & Helen Diehl Energy and Transparency Fellow.  "The government should not be picking winners and losers, which hurts Ohioans who can afford it the least -- poor and middle class families, minorities, and those who live on fixed incomes.  Reintroducing mandates also makes it more difficult for companies to create jobs in Ohio."

 

On the governor's indication that he may not support the committee's recommended indefinite freeze, Robert Alt, President and CEO of The Buckeye Institute, said: "We shouldn't return to the policy mistakes of the Strickland administration by embracing another costly government mandate."

 

The energy mandates force Ohio utilities to buy increasing amounts of renewable energy and implement energy efficiency programs.  The bipartisan, bicameral Energy Mandates Study Committee heard testimony from The Buckeye Institute about how these mandates negatively impact the state's economy and energy production.

State Teacher Retirement System Misleading Taxpayers and Teachers...

I am a contributor to the STRS system as a substitute teacher in SW Ohio. These allegations I find very troubling, but not surprising, given that there was a great deal of controversy with STRS and misleading just a few years ago. From the Buckeye Institute:

In response to our report, Taxpayers on the Hook: Taxpayer Contribution Rates for Ohio Government Pensions Outpace National Averages, the State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) attacked the Buckeye Institute while conveniently leaving some undeniable facts at the door. By using their own data, reading their own admissions, and even following their own assertions, it is evident that Ohio taxpayers are far from off of the hook when it comes to potentially bailing out the pensions.



Key points:

STRS is plum broke. It possesses only 59 cents for every dollar in liabilities, leaving a $38.7 billion hole;

In its own statements, STRS has pursued an even higher taxpayer contribution rate than the current 14 percent (16.5 percent);

Using STRS' own recommendation of a 16.5 percent taxpayer contribution rate, Ohio would have the 10th highest taxpayer contribution out of 34 states with a teacher's pension system, including those that also pay into Social Security;

Social Security will result in a rate of return of near zero or negative for many "contributors," especially young and new workers;

State employees in Ohio are actually making out by not paying into Social Security;

Most private sector Ohioans can expect a 6.2 percent employer contribution to Social Security and a 4.0 percent 401(k) employer contribution, totaling 10.2 percent. This level is considerably lower than both STRS' current 14 percent and its desired 16.5 percent contribution rate.

Read the whole thing. Apparently, neither teachers or taxpayers are well served by the current system, and much like Social Security, the STRS is not going to be able to live up to its promises to teachers.

Buckeye Institute Releases an Analysis of Senate Bill 5 and on OEA's Plan to Indoctrinate Ohio's Kid

Release:

May 5, 2011-Columbus, Ohio - The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions today released its analysis of Senate Bill 5. This analysis looks at the details of the bill from the Ohio taxpayer's perspective and shows the savings to taxpayers by looking at three separate government entities: the State of Ohio, City of Eastlake, and Dublin City Schools. The analysis also moves to discredit several claims reported by the unions on the effects Senate Bill 5 will have on our government employees. 

"The passage of Senate Bill 5 is a monumental step on behalf of our right as taxpayers to efficient government. From the moment Ohio's collective bargaining law was passed in 1983, the interest of taxpayers took an increasing backseat to the interest of labor unions," stated Matt Mayer, President of the Buckeye Institute. "SB5 ends that faulty and costly premise."

The full analysis can be found at: http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/uploads/files/An%20Analysis%20of%20Senate%20Bill%205.pdf

The Buckeye Institute also released a short comment on the Ohio Education Association's push to indoctrinate Ohio's schools children with union propaganda. To see the report and example from the OEA monthly newsletter click here.

NOTE TO WMD READERS: The comment on the OEA's plan to indoctrinate kids is a MUST-READ.  Political indoctrination ought not be tolerated in our schools.  Teachers should take their responsibility seriously and stay focused on material that will lead kids to jobs and not waste precious time on liberal bull$#|+.

The Truth About the "Ohio State Tea Party" and Their Fake Tea Party Ads

Remember this?  As expected, it turns out these fake tea party mailers were funded by Democrats.  Aaron Marshall has more at the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

Special thanks to the Ohio Republican Party for giving them such an effective idea...

HT: Matt from the Buckeye Institute

Government Excess at Sheriff's Offices Across State of Ohio

While this article from the Buckeye Institute is specifically citing Franklin County, WMD has previously covered Butler County's usage of "civilian" appraisers in a similar capacity.  There has to be an intrepid reporter around these parts who could read the BI article and formulate a few questions for some folks here at home...

SB 232: Ohio Senate Republicans Going Green and Working for Strickland (Again)

Ohio Senate Republicans are poised to pass a key part of Gov. Strickland’s “green jobs” agenda.  SB 232 would eliminate the tangible personal property tax on wind and solar project and replace it with a fee tied to power generation. 

 

The question is, why are Senate Republicans (including Jon Husted?) doing the heavy lifting for Governor Strickland?

Gov. Ted Strickland supports easing the tax, said Mark Shanahan, the governor's top energy adviser.  "He's listened to them say that solving this tax challenge is their last remaining obstacle," he said. "Based on that, he's asked for the legislature to give them a fix."

And this is the part that really gets me...

Companies that generate wind power pay the state $40,000 per megawatt generated, the industry group said. That is higher than in neighboring states such as Indiana.

Hoosiers pay less in all kinds of taxes, what is so special about this one?
The plan is opposed by the Buckeye Institute.

Skeptics such as Matt Mayer of the conservative Buckeye Institute don't think the wind industry can survive without government aid, in Ohio or anywhere else.
"The fact is that it's still grossly inefficient compared to gas and coal," he said.

We simply can not afford another government-funded boondoggle.

Buckeye Institute Tackling ObamaCare and Union Control of Wages

Our friends at the Buckeye Institute are amazing. They are like a state focused Heritage Foundation, looking at policy from a conservative point of view and showing the fallacies of big government, wasteful spending, and bloated budgets. There are a couple of fascinating articles that recently came out you might want to take a look at. The first deals with some of the negative effects of Obamacare on Ohioans. Here is an excerpt:

In 2008, there were 1.1 million Ohioans without health insurance. All these individuals face fines if they do not obtain coverage. Certainly some will obtain insurance as a result of Medicaid expansion or the health insurance subsidies under this plan but there would be some who would not.

What is often overlooked in the discussion of the uninsured is that many choose to go without insurance. In 2008, there were 272,000 Ohioans who live in families making at least three times the poverty level who were uninsured. These families could presumably purchase some form of health insurance if they wanted. They chose to go without for whatever reason. Under the plans moving through Congress, they will be forced to buy a product they presumably do not want or pay high fines. Either way, this legislation will cost them.

Other Ohioans would be targeted for punitive taxes under the both the Senate and House health care bills. There are over 76,000 households that make over $200,000. Many of these would be subject to a new income surtax. The men and women in this income group are business owners and other members who are a vital part of Ohio's economy. Their productivity will be penalized if this legislation becomes law.

Not only would many Ohioans be paying higher federal taxes, this federal legislation will also likely mean state taxes will need to be raised. Both House and Senate bills mandate that the state Medicaid program be expanded, which could mean as many as 519,000 new enrollees in this state. While the federal government would pay much of the cost for this expansion, state taxpayers would be required to fund part of it. One estimate puts that cost at $922 million over five years. With the governor and legislators struggling to find ways to balance the current state budget, it seems likely this new burden will mean even higher state taxes.

Ohioans will also be paying the price of these bills far into the future, as it is almost certain the legislation will add to the deficit. While proponents of the bills moving through Congress say they are "deficit-neutral," independent analyses question this. The only way to assume these bills won't add to the deficit is if the new health care spending stays within projections (something that rarely happens) and that Congress makes the promised future cuts in Medicare (something Congress has repeatedly refused to do).

Go read the whole thing.

The second article deals with possible changes in the prevailing wage laws in Ohio. Developers are asking a Franklin County court to strike down Ohio's prevailing-wage law, saying it is unconstitutional to allow labor unions to determine wages paid on public construction jobs. In a great article, the Institute reports on why ending the prevailing wage law will be a good thing. Here is an excerpt:

The intended purpose of the prevailing wage law is to keep government construction projects from depressing local wages. Its real effect, though, is to increase the cost of these projects to taxpayers since by mandating higher wages than would otherwise be paid and decreasing the number of bids for the project. Taxpayer-funded construction could be done for less money if this law was repealed, helping both local governments and the state during this period of severely decreased tax revenue.

Not only are taxpayers hurt, but so, too, are the companies which unintentionally violate the law's complex regulations. There are many instances of companies filing complaints against other businesses in order to stifle competition...

...This political jockeying could be ended if the prevailing wage law were repealed. Businesses would no longer have to worry about unintentionally violating the law. And with the increased competition on government construction projects and the ability of local governments to accept the lowest bid for these projects, taxpayers would see significant savings.

This law's repeal would be a winning proposition for most Ohioans. Some businesses would no longer be as competitive for these contracts, though, and some union bosses would no longer have the leverage they possess today. Protecting inefficient businesses and the power of Big Labor should not be a priority for Ohio's legislators, though.

Go check it out for some great facts and background.

Buckeye Institute Weighs in On Obamacare

...and they find it stinks, too....They also propose actually moving toward a free market healthcare system, instead of the current facade we have now:

One of the biggest misconceptions in the current debate over health care reform is that somehow our nation has a free market health care system. In fact, government already pays for around half of the health care spending in our country. At both the federal and state level, government imposes heavy regulations on the industry. What drives both this spending and these regulations is not a search for quality patient care or efficient medical spending. Instead, the pressure to please interest groups is what has largely shaped the government's role in health care. This won't change if President Obama gets his way and establishes a huge new government health insurance system.

Even a cursory look at Medicare, Medicaid, and the regulation of health insurance will illustrate this. Take Medicare. For over forty years, the federal government paid doctors when they performed medical errors. Instead of penalizing doctors when they did a bad job, Medicare rewarded them. Only in 2008 did the federal government take steps to stop this practice. Why did it take so long? The doctors' lobby is strong in Washington, D.C., and doctors will fight any efforts to reduce their payment, even if that payment is for a botched procedure.

Another example of the shaping of health care policy in order to benefit special interests is states' demand that health care providers obtain a "certificate of need" from the state before opening a new facility. In Ohio, if a long-term care provider wishes to open a new facility, it must go through a process where the state considers "the impact of the project on all other providers of similar services" in the area, as well as its "financial impact" on other providers. Essentially, this certificate can only be obtained if the new provider won't hurt long-term care facilities that already exist. That lack of competition is bad for patients but good for the established health care providers.

Look at those statements above I highlighted in bold....UNBELIEVABLE! But wait, Buckeye has more:

These companies are not going to sit idly by while politicians write rules that affect them. They are going to be actively engaged in the process, ensuring that any laws that are written will protect them and their profits.

We already see this in the health care legislation moving through Congress. The pharmaceutical industry has pledged its support for health care reform. Perhaps not coincidentally, Senate legislation made it more difficult for generic drugs to make it to market.

Health care "reform" that emerges from Washington, D.C., isn't going to be real reform. It's going to be legislation that inserts politics even more firmly into your health care. Given how poorly Congress has managed the current health care programs (or the budget, or the economy or any number of other things), you will likely be getting the health care that lobbyists want you to have, not the health care you desire.

We need less government control and interference, not more.

Buckeye Inst: "High-Speed Rail a Waste of Money"

Release:

COLUMBUS - The Obama Administration's proposed high-speed rail plan will cost $1,000 for every federal income taxpayer, yet the average American will ride high-speed trains less than 60 miles a year, says a new report from the Buckeye Institute. The report estimates that the average Ohio resident will take a round trip on high-speed trains only once every 19 years. The report can be found at http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/highspeedrail.pdf.

On Wednesday, June 17, the Federal Railroad Administration released criteria for state applications for high-speed rail projects. The new report warns that the cost of these projects could grow to be hundreds of billions of dollars with very little public or environmental benefit.

The federal government is proposing to build true high-speed rail lines - with trains going faster than 120 miles per hour - only in California and Florida. In Ohio and most of the rest of the country, it is merely proposing to upgrade existing freight tracks to boost top Amtrak speeds from 79 to 110 mph.

Trains with a top speed of 110 mph will have average speeds of just 55 to 75 mph. Not only will that attract few people out of their cars, says the report, such trains will actually be less energy efficient and more polluting than driving.

"High-speed rail is an idea whose time has gone," says Randal O'Toole, a Cato Institute senior fellow and the report's author. "It is bad for taxpayers and bad for the environment."

Premium fares and a downtown orientation means that the main people riding these trains will be bankers, lawyers, government officials, and other high-income people who hardly need subsidized transportation. Not only will each federal income taxpayer pay $1,000 for someone else to ride the train, that passenger probably earns more than the average taxpayer.

The administration has compared its high-speed rail plan with President Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System. But interstates were paid for entirely out of gas taxes and other user fees, not general taxes, and the average American travels on interstates 4,000 miles per year. By comparison, general taxpayers will pay for the cost of building and much of the costs of operating high-speed trains that will be used mainly by a wealthy elite.

The report urges Ohio to use its share of federal high-speed rail stimulus money for safety improvements such as grade crossings and signaling systems, but not for new trains that will obligate taxpayers to pay millions of dollars in annual subsidies.

The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions is a nonpartisan research and educational institute devoted to individual liberty, economic freedom, personal responsibility and limited government in Ohio.

Today's Update

We're going to have to put up the Light Posting Alert for the rest of the week as work is just kicking me in the behind...

Here are a few items you need to know about...

OH-15: Steve Stivers is gearing up for another run at Mary Jo Kilroy. The Hill reports that Steve has given himself a July 4th deadline to decide if he is in... My guess is that we should all prepare for Round Two.

OH-05: Rep. Bob Latta on the GOP Health Care Plan:

“The House Republican Health Care Solutions Group, under the leadership of Congressman Roy Blunt, have produced a common-sense plan to reduce costs, expand access, and increase the quality of care in a way that America can afford. As the Obama Administration and Democrat Congressional leadership continue to hint at nothing short of big government medicine for the United States, this plan ensures private citizens’ health care is not dictated by federal bureaucrats. I look forward to working with my colleagues in a bipartisan manner to pass meaningful reform that guarantees health care in the United States remains the best in the world.

NOTE: Details on the House Republican plan can be found here.

OH-01: In this week's blog post, Steve Chabot talks about how ABC has become the All Barack Company.

Carnival of Ohio Politics: This week's issue is up!

Buckeye Institute: Did you know that the estate tax is killing 58,000 jobs in Ohio? Read all about that here.

Buckeye Institute Moves to Stop City of Cincinnati from Harassment of Trolley Petitioners

Release:

COLUMBUS – The Buckeye Institute, a Columbus-based think tank, today filed, in Federal Court, a motion to restrain the City of Cincinnati and its agents from harassing citizens who are demanding that the City put its $200 million trolley project to a vote. The Motion argues the City consistently threatens petitioners who gather signatures for causes with which the City disagrees, and that the Court must immediately stop this interference.

Over the last month, the City of Cincinnati, through various police officer and other government agents, has escalated its interference with trolley project petitioners, ordering them to stop collecting signatures on Fountain Square, Findlay Market, and on public sidewalks, and in several cases, threatening to arrest petitioners for “circulating petitions without a license.” The Motion notes that no license or prior approval is needed to gather signatures on public property.

“The political class of Cincinnati clearly feels threatened by the idea that the citizens, and not they, would get to have the final word on whether to implement this abysmally expensive pork project.” Maurice Thompson, Director of the Buckeye Institute's 1851 Center for Constitutional Law said.

The Institute, who is partnering with the Coalition Opposed to Additional Spending and Taxes on this case, expects that the U.S. District Court will immediately grant a Temporary Restraining Order prohibiting the City and its agents from interfering with petitioner's collection of signatures.

“In Ohio and nationwide, Courts recognize the ballot initiative as the ‘zenith of political speech,' and accorded the utmost protection under the First Amendment,” said Thompson. “Given our state Constitution's acknowledgment that ‘all political power is inherent in the people,' that the City would interfere with this clearly-recognized right in such a haphazard manner is dumbfounding.”

The City's interference and harassment coincides with COAST petitioners reaching the halfway point on their way to the the 6,150 valid signatures that need to be submitted by September 4 to place the issue on the ballot.

Ohio House Advised That Modifying Mortgage Contracts Unconstitutional

From the Buckeye Institute:

COLUMBUS - The Buckeye Institute’s 1851 Center for Constitutional Law today advised members of an Ohio House committee that passage of HB 3, the "Home Foreclosure Prevention Act," would violate the Ohio Constitution, raise interest rates on home loans, and be the subject of a legal challenge.

Speaking before the Ohio House Housing and Urban Revitalization Committee, 1851 Center Director Maurice Thompson questioned the legislation's loan modification provisions. The bill authorizes judges to rewrite existing mortgage agreements, and authorizes the Ohio Department of Commerce to implement loan modification programs.

"Although the sponsors of this bill have expressed the intent to rescue homeowners who are currently in foreclosure or risk thereof, it is clearly unconstitutional to interfere with existing mortgage agreements in Ohio," Thompson said. "Any provision authorizing Common Pleas judges or the Ohio Department of Commerce to modify existing mortgage contracts will be stricken from HB 3 upon legal challenge. This will not only negate assistance for current homeowners, but it will leave the statute applying only to prospective mortgage contracts."

"As applied to these prospective mortgages, HB 3 would clearly raise interest rates for prospective homeowners, thus harming more Ohioans than it would help, and enhancing the likelihood of increased delinquencies," Thompson added.

Specially, HB 3 empowers Common Pleas judges to reduce the principal amount and/or interest rate of the loan. In addition, the measure empowers the Ohio Department of Commerce to:

* Reduce the interest rate on a home loan;
* Extend the period over which a homeowner may repay a home loan;
* Defer the amount of principal due on a home loan;
* Reduce the principal due on a home loan; and
* Utilize "other factors that the director determines are appropriate."

Thompson's complete testimony is available online at www.buckeyeinstitute.org.

Buckeye Institute Study Chronicles the High Cost of High School Dropouts

Release:

COLUMBUS - The Buckeye Institute today released a study chronicling the negative impact high school dropouts have on government services and social welfare programs. Report author Matthew Carr found that individual consequences of not completing high school result in increased public outlays for welfare services, health care, police services and correctional facilities. Dropout recovery charter schools help mitigate costs to the state, according to the study.

The failure of thousands of high school students to graduate costs taxpayers an estimated $677 million annually in Medicaid costs, income tax collections and imprisonment costs, the study found. The reduced labor force participation, employment rates, and average earnings for dropouts also mean lower tax revenues to help offset the costs of providing these services.

Carr's research found that dropout recovery charter schools provided the state a net benefit of about $44 million a year.

"Dropout recovery charter schools help would-be dropouts graduate, and save tax dollars in the process," Buckeye Institute President David Hansen said. "These public charter schools step in where government schools have failed. Their overall efforts bring enormous monetary value to taxpayers."

Among the findings, failing to graduate from high school:

* Leads to lower lifetime earnings;
* Increases the likelihood of unemployment;
* Increases the likelihood of health problems;
* Leads to higher rates of delinquency and incarceration;
* Increases the risk of school-age pregnancy; and
* Produces higher rates of broken-homes.

"Decreasing the number of high school dropouts in Ohio can improve the standard of living for everyone, not just those that get a diploma," Carr said. "One of the strongest predictors of an individual's chances for living a healthy and prosperous life is his or her level of educational attainment. In Ohio, far too many of our high school students do not reach graduation, and spend the rest of their lives suffering the consequences."

The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions is a nonpartisan research and educational institute devoted to individual liberty, economic freedom, personal responsibility and limited government in Ohio.

The complete study is available online at http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org.

Buckeye Institute on State of the State

Release:

COLUMBUS - Buckeye Institute President David Hansen today offered a free-market response to the education proposals contained in Gov. Ted Strickland's third State of the State address.

Hansen made the following comments:

School District Performance Audits
"If the governor intended to increase school district accountability by allowing the Ohio Department of Education to conduct performance audits, he missed the mark. That is like putting the fox in charge of the hen house. The State Auditor currently does a good job of making school districts accountable through comprehensive performance audits. The governor should not take away the State Auditor's authority or add another layer of bureaucracy to the current performance audit process. A better move would be to expand the State Auditor's performance audit responsibility."

Teacher Merit Pay
"We had hoped the governor would address needed education reforms such as teacher merit pay. Merit pay works because it injects quality into the teacher pay system. Better teachers will earn more, and bad teachers are weeded out."

Dropout Recovery Charter Schools
"While the governor seemed to soften his opposition to charter schools, he was wrong to attack dropout recovery schools run by for-profit operators. These recovery schools salvage lives because they take in students traditional public schools fail to nurture and teach. These schools put students back on a path to learning and future economic prosperity.

"The governor instead signaled his intention to limit the effectiveness of these schools. Children who have been failed by traditional public schools need more options, not less. If for-profit charter schools can accomplish the task, why not let them?"

The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions is a nonpartisan research and educational institute devoted to individual liberty, economic freedom, personal responsibility and limited government in Ohio.

Parental Choice and High Quality Education Can Go Together

From our friends at the Buckeye Institute:

COLUMBUS – Adoption of a student-centered school funding system will ensure all children across Ohio have the same educational opportunities, according to a report issued today by the Buckeye Institute. Such a system will make the differences in local resources for education funding largely irrelevant. In addition, the proposed funding system would not require additional resources and could result in an overall tax dollar savings.

The report is available online at http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/schoolfunding.pdf.

“Directly funding school systems is not the same as educating children,” Buckeye Institute President David Hansen said. “A child-centered school finance policy that supports the choices of parents can create higher-quality schools and more equality in the educational opportunities available to children.”

“Public schools are nominally ‘free,’ but pricing, which implicitly occurs through housing markets, fundamentally limits access to better schools and consigns less wealthy families to less desirable schools,” report author and Buckeye Institute Fellow Brian Gottlob said. “The subsequent separation of students along class lines also means that the non-financial inputs critical to good schools, such as peer and family influences, can be even more unevenly distributed than financial resources.”

Gottlob’s research found unequal distribution of opportunity remains even when state aid is targeted at the “neediest” schools. He concluded state money that simply equalizes financial resources between school districts will have limited effects on the root causes of education inequities.

The report outlines an alternative approach that seeks to overcome the limits of past attempts to equalize opportunities. It investigates the combined policies of school choice (in public, charter, and private schools) with financial support that follows the child. The report also focuses on the mechanics and implementation issues of such a system, and demonstrates its fiscal impacts.

Specifically, the report does the following:

Highlights the need for reform of Ohio’s school finance system;

Documents Ohio’s level of financial support and compares it to other states;

Discusses the role of property taxes in funding schools;

Outlines the basic structure of a child-centered school finance system;

Presents a basic weighted system of per-pupil financial support and creates a matrix of students in Ohio schools to estimate the expenditures required to fund each child under a child-centered finance system;

Presents a model to calculate the expenditures required to fund a child-centered system at different levels of per-pupil financial support and under various policy choices;

Analyzes the implications for property taxes within communities under different policy choices within a child-centered funding system; and

Estimates how much money businesses and individuals would contribute towards the education of deserving, students after the introduction of a tax credit for donations to scholarship-granting organizations.

Buckeye Inst.: "Liberty in Learning Approach to Ohio School Reform"

This in from our friends at the Buckeye Institute:

The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions is offering Ohioans a vision for education reform grounded in our " Liberty in Learning" approach of empowering families, growing school choice and increasing transparency in education spending. Our Policy Briefings are intended to give concerned citizens, policymakers and reform-minded educators an alternative to the remedies offered by the education status quo in the Governor's current education policy caravan visiting many of these same cities this month.

Ohio taxpayers should know that despite the challenges you face today in Ohio's troubled and heavily-taxed private economy, the education establishment is gearing up for another run at spending and tax increases without regard for either your ability to pay or the effectiveness of further spending increases. The Buckeye Institute is working to meet this challenge with the facts about schools and our economy. These Briefings will include plenty of Q&A and discussion on how we can best represent the viewpoint that more dollars are not the solution to school performance issues.

Our presentation will feature: our proposal for a bold, new, universal child-centered school funding system for Ohio ; an independent appraisal of the benefits of charter schools to state taxpayers; and, updates on other school choice strategies including the Special Needs Vouchers and tuition tax credits. We will also have a special presentation on how our school spending transparency project gathering all salaries and contracts for all of the state's public school teachers and administrators in one website can help taxpayers better know "who's getting what" out of the $16 billion being spent on education in Ohio.

Our briefings will feature Matthew Carr, Director of Education Policy, and Mike Maurer, Director of the Buckeye Institute's Center for Transparent and Accountable Government.

Here is the schedule:

Tuesday, December 9
7:30 - 9:00 AM
Athletic Club of Columbus , Ohio
Crystal Room , Second Floor
136 East Broad Street
Columbus , Ohio 43215
(614)545-1356 Phone www.accolumbus.com Website

Tuesday, December 9
5:30 - 7:00 PM
*Mound Street Academies
345 Mound Street
Dayton, Ohio 45402
www.moundstreet.k12.oh.us Website

Wednesday, December 10
7:30 - 9:00 AM
The Union Club
Parlor 9, Second Floor
1211 Euclid Avenue
Cleveland, Ohio 44115
(216)621-4230 Phone www.theunionclub.org Website

Thursday, Toledo 11
7:30 - 9:00 AM
The Toledo Club
West Point Room
235 14thStreet
Toledo, Ohio , 43624
(419)243-2201 Phone www.toledoclub.org Website

For more information, click here.