Thanks to our Kirtland lobbyist for this interesting article on property taxes: Ohio’s property tax rate 9th highest in U.S The average Ohio homeowner pays 1.72 percent of their home value in taxes, according to an ATTOM Data Solutions analysis of… Read More ›
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Commissioners’ Meeting 5/17/18
I addressed the Lake County Commissioners today and discussed the following items: I mentioned that I attended the Sunshine Law Training at Lakeland Community College. Since we learned that a citizen may ask for the compensation package of any public… Read More ›
Public Employees Retirement System……COLA…how sweet it is….
As we continue our research into public finances, we discovered this information on the Lake County Auditor’s website. As you know, we are concerned about private citizens getting priced out of their homes because of increasing real estate taxes. This… Read More ›
Whoa….slow down on telling us what is really happening in our schools…
Thanks to Lobbyist Kim for this update: State Board of Education members will consider postponing the implementation of the final piece of the A-F grading system — the summary grades for schools and school districts. The 2017-18 report cards will… Read More ›
Enthusiasm is no Substitute for Knowledge
My research into the real estate taxes has shown me that solving the problem of pricing seniors and those living on fixed incomes out of their homes starts with addressing the ever increasing costs of public education. We can certainly… Read More ›
Toward a Civil War?……one man’s opinion
We picked up this article at a recent conference we attended, and thought it may be of interest to citizens. Toward Civil War We have heard this discussion for many years, but now it being expressed by people that only… Read More ›
Early Childhood Funding…..are you ok giving your child to the State?
We have to admit that we are very concerned about the current trend in public education introducing SEL (Social and Emotional Learning) . With this curriculum the government is about to shape your children’s attitudes, behaviors, and beliefs! In our… Read More ›
3rd Grade Reading Tests…..there are options if your child failed it
In our ongoing effort to understand what is happening in our public schools, we spoke to our State Representative about the 3rd grade mandatory reading test, textbooks versus Chrome Books, and Social & Emotional Learning . We thought we should… Read More ›
Learn About Using Social Media
The Plight of Liberty: Centralized Technology, Artificial Intelligence, and Social Media Mainstreet Community Center 255 Park Ave., Amherst, OH 44001 Doors open at 8:30 am. Program starts at 9:00 am Tired of Ads following you around? Are you appalled by the recent news… Read More ›
Riverside School Superintendent….a thank you to him
We always strive to publish the facts, and when a government official displays honesty and transparency we will let the public know. I met with the Riverside School Superintendent, Mr. James Kalis, and he wanted to correct a misconception. He… Read More ›
Local Government Funds…..State decisions that impact all of us
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 ›
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 ›