You may not be aware of something called “Local Government Funds”. It is a revenue sharing program initiated by the State politicians and bureaucrats that redistributes taxpayers’ money that is collected from their various revenue sources, such as sales and… Read More ›
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Community colleges…..State is expanding their role
Upon reviewing the State of Ohio’s budget for 2018 – 2019, we noticed the change in thought process about the mission of Community colleges. (Comment: they must have some great lobbyists at the State House.) Offering Bachelor’s Degrees at Community… Read More ›
Cost of Community Services……no question, people are expensive
We have been asked to find some information about the cost of providing public services (fire, police, roads, schools) versus the revenue generated from the three forms of land use – business, agriculture, and residential. We did find a “Cost… Read More ›
Meeting on School Choice…….
If you are concerned about the public schools and the impact they are having on your property taxes, you may want to come to this event. THURSDAY April 26th At the Play Arcade 5900 Mayfield Rd, Mayfield Heights 6:45pm –… Read More ›
State scores big in Tobacco Agreement…..colleges benefit, why?
We have been reviewing the State of Ohio’s budget reports for prior years to see what decisions have been made by politicians that impact the citizens of the State. Here is an excerpt of the State of Ohio’s Executive Budget… Read More ›
Community Schools…….and we thought public schools were in trouble
In our continuing effort to “pull back the curtain” on issues impacting Lake County residents, we have to say that when we looked at our research on Community schools, also known as Charter schools, we could not believe the abject… Read More ›
Ohio schools grading system….let’s just give everyone a trophy, and call it a day
Thanks to one of our Lobbyists from Kirtland for this article in the Plain Dealer published April 17, 2018. (Hint: highlight the link, then right click your mouse, and then click go the page) http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2018/04/should_school_districts_get_an_a-f_grade_state_report_card_overhaul_debated.html#incart_m-rpt-1 So in 2013, the State… Read More ›
Our challenges to the Republican party……are they up to the task?
We went to a “meet the candidate” night last evening. We spoke to leading local Republicans after the speeches and discussed with them the plight of seniors in Lake County being priced out of their homes, and the problems in… Read More ›
Email to Commissioners on Perry Plant closure….it will impact all of Lake County
We sent this email to Commissioner Cirino today. We will make you aware of his responses. Commissioner Cirino, At the last Commissioners’ meeting, you mentioned about the impact of the closure of the Perry Nuclear Plant on the real estate… Read More ›
Unfunded Pension Liabilities……what a tangled mess
We have done some more research on the issue of unfunded pension liabilities, and at the risk of ‘getting too deep into the weeds’, we will offer some explanations of what we have discovered on the Lake County Auditor’s website…. Read More ›
Video of Commissioners’ Meeting…we will let the citizens decide
As promised, here is a video of the Lake County Commissioners’ meeting held on Wednesday, April 4th. We informed the Commissioners about the taxpayers’ investment in Ohio and Lake County schools, and the grades received for that investment. We also… Read More ›
RSVP…….They need to cover up, their lack of candor is showing
We have spent quite a bit of time researching and debating this entity with the Lake County Commissioners. It is a long convoluted story, but we will try to be brief.. First, here is a schedule showing the Senior Levy… Read More ›
Election Workers Needed
At today’s Lake County Commissioners’ meeting, a Ross McDonald, Director of the Board of Elections, spoke about the need for additional help for the May 8th election. They will accept individuals 17 years old, if they are high school seniors. … Read More ›
May 8th Tax Levies….do you know what they will cost you?
We are starting to see lots of advertising for the upcoming May 8th election. We are always curious why not one elected official, or any bureaucrat, will take the time to summarize for the citizens of Lake County what it… Read More ›
The Dirty World of Politics…you may need a shower after this post
Thanks again to our Painesville Township Lobbyist Chuck for a “heads up” on the dirty world of politics. We enjoy “pulling back” the curtain for citizens of Lake County. Oh, where has our morals and ethics gone. Brian, Perhaps you… Read More ›
Some tough real estate tax questions for Mr. Plecnik…..updated 4/10
Here is another email to Mr. Plecnik from our Painesville Township Lobbyist Chuck Laughlin…. If we receive a reply from Mr. Plecnik, we will update the post. John, I received your flyer in the mail recently. In it you identified… Read More ›
Pulling back the curtain on our politicians….once again
Thanks to our Painesville Township Lobbyist, Chuck Laughlin, for this insight on our politicians. We do not endorse any particular candidate, but we do not mind “pulling back the curtain” on things that politicians tell us. Brian, I received the… Read More ›
State of Ohio’s Education Funding for 2018…..amazing numbers…
We thought it would be interesting to see what the State of Ohio’s Education budget was for 2018. Here is the link to the State’s website for their entire budget. http://obm.ohio.gov/Budget/operating/doc/fy-18-19/enacted/budgetindetail-hb49-en.pdf We separated the Department of Education budget. Here is… Read More ›
Sheriff Dunlap’s response…..to ‘one of you’…
Here is Sheriff Dunlap’s response…..his ‘one of you’ comments seems a bit condescending, don’t you think? Dear Mr. Massie, I have made my position clear on numerous occasions. We have and will continue to cooperate with I.C.E. especially when an… Read More ›
Auburn Career Center….a few questions answered
A big thank you to Sherry Williamson, Treasurer and CFO, of the Auburn Career Center for her honesty and transparency in answering our questions. They are a very community minded organization, and graciously allow the use of their tremendous meeting… Read More ›
Each Child=Our Future….meeting in Jefferson
We will be attending another meeting on Tuesday in Jefferson, Ohio. It is billed as the “Ashtabula County Regional Stakeholder Meeting”. They will be discussing future plans for Ohio’s education system. Here is their final draft of “Each Child=Our Future”… Read More ›
Ohio’s Public Education System…..it is out of control….
We just attended a 2 hour meeting in Mentor on State Education Policy. The moderators were State Board Representatives. They wanted us to contact our State legislators and ask them not to support HB 512. It gives control of our… Read More ›
Ohio Schools’ 2016-2017 Report Cards….let’s pull back the curtain
On previous posts, we disclosed that 68% of Lake County real estate taxes are spent on our public schools. We have been constantly reminded by school officials and real estate agents that we must mindlessly continue to support our public… Read More ›
ADAMHS Board vs. Forbes House…the business “golden rule” wins again
Ms. Kim Fraser, Executive Director of the ADAMHS Board, graciously met with me to discuss the breakdown in communication between the ADAMHS Board and the Forbes House. Here is my re-cap of the meeting: ADAMHS Board meeting-summary-3
Lake County Schools’ 2017 Report Card….a solid D..at a cost of ~$412 million
Thanks to a fellow Lobbyists for this great find…. Here is a link to website that deals with issue of protecting Ohio’s children. http://www.ohiovaluevoters.org/protect-ohio-children.html Here is a link to the State of Ohio’s website providing report cards for all of… Read More ›