Preble County General Fund Report for February 17, 2015

This is the February 17, 2015, General Fund report prepared by the Preble County Auditor for the Preble County Commissioners.

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911 Merger – New Property Tax or Sales Tax Increase to Pay for it? Glenwood Sewer District – Could Residents Opt-out?

This meeting had all three commissioners on hand as Rodney Creech returned from his”new” Commissioner classes.  It was also a much more congenial meeting than the February 4, meeting that had a very poorly handled replacement on the 911 merger committee.  It might be helpful in the future to have a list of committees and groups that the Commission President will serve on by default unless they defer and then whether it falls to the Commission Vice President or goes up for a vote.  The commissioners did clarify that whoever is Commission President next year will serve on the 911 committee if it is still around.  Of concern to local taxpayers on the 911 merger issue is the comments by Commissioner Day about a new tax levy or a possible sales tax increase to pay for it. I don’t see either one as being particularly attractive after the Ag community just got slammed with new CAUV valuations.  Any commissioner that pushes a sales tax increase that would negatively impact retail sales in the county should be voted from office. I’d say tarred and feathered but it is no longer permitted.

Commissioner Creech brought back some information from his class about pending legislation and the ability of property owners to opt out of sewer districts. He expects the legislation to pass next week and this will impact the Glenwood sewer issue.  Before Glenwood residents start jumping for joy – Two years ago there were a couple meetings held on bringing water and sewer to the Stateline from New Paris. At that time there was discussion on whether everyone along the route would have to tie into the sewer line. There were assurances that it would not be a requirement but I was left with the impression that even if a property owner did not tie in they would still see their property taxes go up simply because the option was available – and would raise the valuation.  This is something that Glenwood residents should demand clarification on. I have included two videos from May 13, 2013, on the Stateline discussions for review:

 

 

Preble County Commissioners

February 11, 2015

Three Commissioners in attendance

File 1

I. OPEN MEETING

II. CALL OF ROLL

III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

IV. PRAYER

V. PUBLIC COMMENTS

2 minutes – 471 KB

File 2

HEALTH INSURANCE UPDATE – CEBCO/MCGOHAN BRABENDER

Not reviewed

28 minute mark on cd  

26 minutes – 5.95 MB

File 3

VI. APPROVAL OF MINUTES

NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING THE JOURNALIZATIONS & NOTE RECEIPT OF THE CD RECORDATIONS BOTH AS THE OFFICIAL MINUTES FOR THE FEBRUARY 4 & FEBRUARY 9, 2015 REGULAR SESSION MEETINGS

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS

A. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #135-15-168

RE: MORAL OBLIGATION – VARIOUS DEPTS.

B. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #136-15-168

RE: AUTH. PAYMENT – CHILD SVS. ($20,672.04; $9,831.34; $18,620.90; $17,306.68; $12,275.38); CT. COMPUTERIZATION – PROBATE ($3,000.00); COMP. LEGAL RESEARCH – PROBATE ($1,374.00); ENGINEER ($5,800.00)

C. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #137-15-168

RE: AUTH. EXPENDITURE – $22,177.05 – PURCHASE OF 9-1-1 RECORDING EQUIPMENT – 9-1-1 Commissioner Day explains

CORRESPONDECE & REPORTS

A. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING (2) PERMITS

RE: COURTHOUSE PLAZA USE & COUNTY PROPERTIES PERMIT – DOWNTOWN EATON INC. – OLD FASHIONED SATURDAY NIGHT, AUG. 22, 2015 & WHITE CHRISTMAS, NOV. 27, 2015

B. NOTE RECEIPT OF (2) PERSONNEL ACTIONS FROM THE PREBLE CO. SHERIFF

RE: RATE ADJUSTMENTS FOR JAMEY WYATT $17.95 to $19.50 per hour (promotion)& MELINDA MOORE  $20.41 to $17.95 – SHERIFF

APPOINTMENTS

A. NOTE RECEIPT OF A COURT ENTRY FROM PROBATE COURT

RE: RE-APPT. OF MARK GOEKE TO THE PREBLE CO. PARK DISTRICT

AGREEMENTS & CONTRACTS

A. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING A CONTRACT

RE: IV-D SVS. CONTRACT W/ MARY DITMER – NELSON – $56,534.25 – CSEA

B. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING AN AMENDMENT

RE: URINE SCREEN AGREEMENT W/ DARKE CO. RECOVERY, DBA MARIE DWYER – EXTEND AGREEMENT 1 YR. – $8,000.00 – JFS

TRAVEL

NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL OF THE FOLLOWING TRAVEL REQUESTS:

A. RES. #138-15-168 – KIM KELLER – COMMISSION NO COST TO THE COUNTY

36.1 minute mark on cd  

8.05 minutes – 1.85 MB

File 4

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Commissioner Day – Sarah do you have any additional items?

Sarah – not at this time

Commissioner Creech – Went to the new commissioner training Sunday – Tuesday….

Went to a meeting – legislation on sewer districts and ability to opt out – Rodney feels it will pass. Rodney favors a person with a good sewer system not having to tie into a sewer district. This currently is an issue around Glenwood. What is not mentioned is that even though people may not have to tie in their property tax can be expected to go up as having a sewer line available running through your front yard is viewed as an "improvement". This issue came up in discussions about the Stateline development.  Rodney feels that this will impact the affordability of the Glenwood project if instead of 240 home only 100 are involved.

38.5  Minute mark   Mentions – Southwest regional water district meeting.

Day of caring brunch at Lewisburg.

Mentions an email from Mr. Hiles. Commissioner Day says it is a Federal issue. Apparently involves a Post Office.

41.25  Minute mark    Commissioner Robertson wants clarification on what you guys did last week – 911 merger committee.  Feels motion was to add Chris Day to committee but no motion to replace her….. not appropriate for two commissioners on the committee… Clarification that if the issue is still around in 2016 it will be the President on that committee  Listen to the audio.  My personal opinion is that there needs to be a list of committees or memberships like the Miami Valley Regional Planning or Dayton Development Coalition that the Commission President will automatically be the representative for. Last week's issue over replacement on that 911 committee and the exchange it caused need not have happened when the change was poorly handled.   

42.5  Minute mark    Discussion on 911 committee meeting held yesterday.

44  Minute mark    Commissioner Day mentions a question of "what would the millage bring" Previously a tax of .5 mills has been mentioned to pay for the merger. There still has not been a clarification of what will happen with the current $400,000 + being spent by the county for 911 dispatch – as in; does that money go into the General Fund or is it maintained by the Sheriff's Department? Chris Day mentions questions on Ag ground and how much money there will be in three years if the value of ground goes down.  I have serious questions on if the Ag community that just got clobbered with CAUV valuations will pass this tax.    Also mentioned as a possibility to raise the sales tax.

Three dispatches or two? Three in high volume times – three consoles. Two full time and one floater.

49  Minute mark   Commissioner Creech feels time should be taken as Ashland County is doing the opposite – going from one dispatch center to two dispatch center. Good point.  

51.5 minute mark on cd  

15.25 minutes – 3.53 MB

File 5

EMA MONTHLY MEETING

Dave Anderson

Not reviewed.

1 hr. 16.5 minute mark on cd  

25 minutes – 5.72 MB

File 6

Commissioner Day – Connie do you have any additional items?

Rescind resolution 126 (Monday)

G. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #126-15-168

RE: AUTH. EXPENDITURE – $3,565.00 – INSTALLING 8” CLEAN OUT – PCSD #3

Resolution 139 authorizing $2,500 for above.

Note receipt of a letter from Judge Overmeyer hired a Mr. Copeland for 40 hrs. a week at $38.50 per hour. 35 hours a week from the General Fund and 5 hrs a week from the special projects fund. Starts March 16.

Note receipt of a IV-D contract between CSEA & Juvenile Court. $44,144.99

Agreement with XL ??? Group. Sanitary landfill $20,000.

1 hr. 22  Minute mark    Response from Randy Gilbert to Michael R. Harris of Ohio EPA regarding notice of deficiency dates January 27. Air space table…. Listen to the audio.  

Evening meeting –  February 19,  5:00 – 7:00 p.m. meeting for CBDG meeting – commission chamber. There is also a Township Trustee meeting that night at 6:30. Zoning and Fair board meetings are also that night.

1 hr. 27.25  Minute mark   Legislative meeting scheduled for March 30 in Dayton.

Discussion on a replacement of Brad Kramer on the Zoning Board.

EXECUTIVE SESSION ON EMPLOYMENT OF A PUBLIC EMPLOYEE

1 hr. 29.4 minute mark on cd  

13 minutes – 2.96 MB

File 7

Second audio file

Exit no action taken

Commissioner Day – I have before me new hire letter to the Payroll Clerk.   Lori ???  $14.90 per hour. Social Service worker 2.

2.75  Minute mark   RECESS

CONCORD/SHURLEY RD. BRIDGES PRESTRESS CONCRETE BOX BEAMS

One bid.  $92,000 from PreStress Services.

Connie received an email from Ann Burns with MVRPC (Miami Valley Regional Planning) – meeting request for rural transportation planning.  Commissioner Day explains…. partnership with Darke County to possibly get funding for a study on transportation….. variety of needs could be addressed.   Curious about if this could also be bike trails.  March 4 at 3:00 p.m.

9  Minute mark   Rodney asks about the Fairboard grant and where it stands. Discussion on topic. Rodney met with the Fair manager James Mays.

13  Minute mark   Connie met with a company on a new phone system for courthouse. State purchasing.

ADJOURN

15 minute mark on cd  

15 minutes – 3.43 MB

County Engineer Update – Fairgrounds Paving & Camden flood plain

This day had a good meeting with County Engineer Kyle Cross.  Among the issues covered were the paving of the Fairgrounds and the flood plain in Camden.  There will be a flood plain meeting on Wednesday, February 18, at 1:00 in the Commission Chambers and it is open to the public. Both these issues are important.

Preble County Commissioners

February 9, 2015

Two Commissioners in attendance

Commissioner Creech absent – (May be at school for new county commissioners)

File 1

I. OPEN MEETING

II. CALL OF ROLL

III. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE

IV. PRAYER

V. PUBLIC COMMENTS

VI. APPROVAL OF VOUCHERS

NOTE RECEIPT & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING THE VOUCHERS AS SUBMITTED BY THE COUNTY AUDITOR

2.2 minutes – 549 KB

File 2

FINANCIAL CONSIDERATIONS

A. NOTE RECEIPT OF A COURT ENTRY FROM PROBATE COURT

RE: SPECIAL FUNDS PROBATE MAGISTRATE FEES FOR JANUARY 2015

B. NOTE RECEIPT OF A COURT ORDER FROM JUDGE WILFRID G. DUES

RE: CHECK ISSUANCE – AILEEN ERBACHER – CLINICAL SUPERVISION ($891.00) & JAN SPITLER – URINALYSIS COLLECTION ($78.00)

C. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #122-15-168

RE: SUPPLE. APPROPRIATION – WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT ($20,000.00)

D. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #123-15-168

RE: TRANSFER OF FUNDS – VARIOUS DEPTS.

E. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #124-15-168

RE: AUTH. PAYMENT – PROS. ATTY ($7,282.50); CHILDREN SVS. ($22,110.44; $9,610.00; $8,184.00; $8,267.00); RECYCLING ($4,688.56)

F. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #125-15-168

RE: MORAL OBLIGATIONS – VARIOUS DEPTS.

G. CONSIDER APPROVAL OF RES. #126-15-168

RE: AUTH. EXPENDITURE – $3,565.00 – INSTALLING 8” CLEAN OUT – PCSD #3

CORRESPONDENCE & REPORTS

A. NOTE RECEIPT OF A RESOLUTION FROM THE PREBLE CO. BUDGET COMMISSION

RE: RESOLUTION 2015-002 – REQUIREMENTS FOR ADOPTION OF A TAX BUDGET FOR 2016 WAIVED FOR COUNTY FUND DEPTS PER ORC 5705.281

B. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL OF A LEGAL AD

RE: NOTICE & EXPLANATION OF A PROPOSED ACTION IN A 100-YEAR FLOODPLAIN – VILLAGE OF CAMDEN – SECOND STREET & COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT

AGREEMENTS & CONTRACTS

A. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING A CHANGE ORDER

RE: CHANGE ORDER #3 TO THE ELDORADO – E. MILL ST. RECONSTRUCTION – INCREASE $14,152.97 – FY13 CDBG & VILLAGE OF ELDORADO ($14,152.97)

B. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING AN AGREEMENT & AMENDMENT

RE: PEST CONTROL AGREEMENT & AMENDMENT W/ TERMINIX – $564.00 – BLDG. MAINT.

C. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING AN AGREEMENT

RE: ELEVATOR MAINTENANCE AGREEMENT W/ SCHINDLER ELEVATOR – $4,740.00 – BLDG. MAINT.

D. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING AN AGREEMENT

RE: COMPUTER SVS. AGREEMENT W/ EATON COMPUTER – $24,000.00 – SHERIFF

E. NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL BY SIGNING AN AGREEMENT

RE: MAINTENANCE SVS. AGREEMENT W/ CALVENT – COMMISSION ($130.00); ENGINEER ($195.00); AUDITOR ($390.00); PROS. ATTY. ($146.00); JFS ($730.00); CSEA ($219.00); LANDFILL ($730.00); PROBATE CT. ($73.00)

TRAVEL

NOTE RECEIPT OF & CONSIDER APPROVAL OF THE FOLLOWING TRAVEL REQUESTS:

A. RES. #127-15-168 – DONELLA HOBBS, KAREN BREWER & KASEY OVERHOLTZ – CSEA Cost not to exceed $60

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B. RES. #128-15-168 – DONELLA HOBBS, KAREN BREWER & KASEY OVERHOLTZ – CSEA Cost not to exceed $30

C. RES. #129-15-168 – TERRY PENDERGRAFT – VETERAN’S SVS. Cost not to exceed $3,500

D. RES. #130-15-168 – BRUCE BARNES, BOB BENEKE, BILL SAMS, JAMES FAVORITE & VICTOR GARCIA – SOLDIER’S RELIEF Cost not to exceed $2,000

E. RES. #131-15-168 – JIM RAY, DAVID LYNCH & MIKE TOSHLOG – ENGINEER NO COST TO THE COUNTY

F. RES. #132-15-168 – HEATHER MORTON & DAWNA SIMPSON – JUVENILE CT. Cost not to exceed $74

G. RES. #133-15-168 – JODY BETSCHER – TASC Cost not to exceed $220

H. RES. #134-15-168 – BRANDI CHRISTENSEN – TASC Cost not to exceed $ ?

18.75 minute mark on cd  

16.23 minutes – 3.75 MB

File 3

Commissioner Day – Connie do you have additional items at this time?

Connie – Randy prepared a press release on the Glenwood topic. (Commissioners take time to read it)

Connie – summarized version the letter sent to us by the Ohio EPA.

20.75  Minute mark   Commissioner Day – That's good it gets the pubic as informed as we are.. mentions MVRPC (Miami Valley Regional Planning Commission).. Listen to the audio

Note receipt and approval of press release.

24.75  Minute mark    Connie – Rodney has been working with Brenda ??? on a DP&L infrastructure grant (mentioned last week as being for the Fairgrounds) This would be a good thing.  Discussion on topic – this is a grant from private industry and not paid for with taxpayer money.  

30  Minute mark   Retirement of Judge Dues discussed. Judge Overmeyer event on Saturday.

31.5 minute mark on cd  

12.46 minutes – 2.92 MB

File 4

COUNTY ENGINEER MONTHLY MEETING

Kyle Cross  Listen to the audio

37  Minute mark    Annual ditch inspections have begun.

42.75  Minute mark   Mention of the end of Eric White's driveway.

9.25 miles of resurfacing with black top – exceeds last few years when 4 – 6 is mentioned as total.

15 miles of chip seal.

25 miles of crack seal.

44  Minute mark   Paving at the Fairgrounds. There is a dedicated county road at the Fairgrounds. 1.5 miles mentioned. Kyle has prepared a paving program for the Fairgrounds that include the other areas paved.  

46  Minute mark    Chip seal and $875,000 grant money mentioned.   Listen to the audio

Chip seal and 1.25 inches of black top over both the blue and green (county road) areas on a map mentioned.

Green area mentioned as costing $142,500

Blue area mentioned as costing – $104,500

Little area in pink just outside the front gate is a city dedicated road – $6,900

Asks if commissioners are interested in moving ahead with the blue area $104,500 with General Fund or grant money.  Pork Festival may entertain participating in the project.  

Kyle has the money set aside to so this year.

Commissioner Robertson mentions underground work that may be planned.

Extended discussion on this topic and worth listening to for those interested.

Kyle – Would be a 2015 project.

Commissioner Day sees this as a late summer project. Kyle & Denise agree.

Commissioners instruct Kyle to move forward with the bidding of the project.

1 hr.  .5  Minute mark   Flood plain issue with the Village of Camden.  Camden Council member called Kyle.

Work session on Wednesday after 2:00 – Kyle asks if the commissioners can attend.  

Extended discussion on this topic and worth listening to for those interested.

1 hr.  15  Minute mark   Connie reads them an excerpt from the Open Meeting Act – must be open to the public. Meeting rescheduled to Courthouse where it can be recorded. Wednesday the 18th at 1:00. 168 propertied mentioned.

Short discussion on salt for roads – Kyle reports better than recent years but still a lot of winter left.

ADJOURN

1 hr.  24.25 minute mark on cd  

52.43 minutes – 12 MB

Trouble on the Right in Ohio for Kasich

I recieved this as an email from the Preble County Liberty Group. It clearly shows there is dissent among Ohio Conservatives with calling Kasich a "Conservative" and goes on to point out multiple reasons. 

__________________________________________________________

The following was recently obtained by Ohio Conservative Review and is published with the author’s permission as an open letter to Bret Baier of Fox News.

Mike Snead

President

Dayton TEA Party

dtp@daytonohioteaparty.com

 

February 3, 2015

[Updated Feb. 11, 2015]

 

Mr. Bret Baier

Special Report

special@foxnews.com

 

Subject: Refuting Mr. Baier’s assertion that Ohio Gov. John Kasich is a conservative Republican

Dear Mr. Baier,

I am writing to address and correct your perception that Ohio Gov. John Kasich is viewed by the TEA Party citizenry in Ohio as a center-right Republican politician. That you personally have this impression was made clear by your remarks on Fox News’ The Hannity Show on Friday, January 30, 2015. While commenting on Mitt Romney’s apparent decision not to run for president in 2016, you mentioned Gov. Kasich as a potential unity candidate within the Republican Party because of his center-right political positions. For reasons listed below, I do not believe such an opinion is supported by either his rhetoric or his record as governor.

Contrasted with the straight-forward and consistently conservative rhetoric and actions of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Ohio Gov. John Kasich has made himself into a complex politician in terms of his evolving rhetoric and his unpredictable actions as governor. While he campaigned for governor in 2010 as a TEA Party conservative — himself noting that he was TEA Party before there was a TEA Party[1] — he has since governed and increasingly spoken on important political issues as a progressive Republican. He now favors larger government, increased taxes, and increased federal debt, while favoring social policies more aligned with traditional progressive Democratic goals such as forced unionization, social equality, and unending government entitlements. Although he barely won election in 2010 against an ultra-progressive Democratic governor running an $8 billion hole in the state budget[2] — winning largely due to the willing and strong grassroots support from many in the TEA Party movement in Ohio — he has since been quick to criticize, falsely label, and politically act harshly and unfairly against conservatives opposing his increasingly progressive political agenda.[3] While Gov. Kasich and his inside-Columbus supporters may portray him as a “conservative,” it is my opinion that this view is not mirrored within the state’s TEA Party/grassroots Republican citizenry.

Here is a partial list of his actions since becoming governor — those readily coming to mind — that I believe dispute any reasonable perception that Governor Kasich should be labeled as a center-right/conservative Republican.

  •        Right-to-work. Gov. Kasich opposes legislation making Ohio a right-to-work state and has not supported the grassroots petition drive to put this issue on the state ballot. He has adopted this opposition despite the clear worker economic freedom arising from having the liberty to join or not join a union in a right-to-work state.[4][5][6] What has made his opposition surprising is the fact that the adjoining states of Michigan and Indiana have already made this change against strong Democratic and union opposition. In 2012, Michigan became a right-to-work state through legislation signed by its governor. In 2014, that incumbent Republican Michigan governor was reelected.[7] In Indiana, with another Republican governor, the recent state legislation making Indiana a right-to-work state was upheld by the Indiana Supreme Court as well as a federal appeals court.[8] In the bordering state of Kentucky, individual counties are seeking the ability to become right-to-work states.[9] On this issue Gov. Kasich is firmly a progressive, not a conservative by any standard here in the Midwest.
  •        Conservative legislation. Gov. Kasich, as leader of the Republican Party in Ohio, has failed to support legislation implementing improved voter photo ID to protect the integrity of our elections; reinstating paycheck protection for public employees to protect them from being forced to pay for union political activities through automatic deductions[10]; enacting the heartbeat bill to help protect the readily detectable human life of the yet unborn; and preventing the use of foreign law (e.g., Sharia Law) in Ohio legal proceedings. (Note that the Republican Party has a majority in both chambers of the state legislature, meaning that any conservative bill he favors would most likely be passed.) One may conclude only that his failure to support prominent conservative public policies clearly illustrates his progressive stance and willingness to block legislation opposed by large unions and organizations typically supporting Democratic candidates. As noted below, Gov. Kasich is increasingly hesitant to be clear about his values and public policy positions — a typical “establishment” Republican stance.
  •        Common Core. To the surprise of grassroots voters, Gov. Kasich champions the ultra-progressive Common Core educational standards despite these having been adopted “sight-unseen” by his ultra-liberal Democratic predecessor. He has come to label opposition as “hysteria” and argues falsely that despite the legal mandate of these Common Core educational standards, local school boards are still in control.[11] If this is the case, why then are even home-schooled children being forced to adopt Common Core?[12] My examination of the standards, their implementation, and expert testimony all clearly show that he is not speaking accurately on this topic.[13] Further, he opposed legislation last year that would have replaced the Common Core standards with superior, proven standards.[14]  This refutes his assertion that he wants “better” standards as he is refusing to adopt proven better standards. On this issue he is marching in lockstep with progressives of both parties wishing to assert unquestioned top-down control of our children’s education as a means of social and political engineering. In no way can his support for Common Core be viewed as conservative.
  •        Illegal alien legalization/amnesty. Despite the growing grassroots concern about the impact of illegal aliens and amid growing opposition to their legalization/amnesty, Gov. Kasich recently reversed his position and now favors a pathway to citizenship for illegal aliens resident in this country.[15] This is a progressive position on an issue of substantial political and legal/constitutional importance. Clearly, his is not a center-right policy position and is, in fact, just the opposite of what virtually every Republican congressional candidate campaigned on last fall.
  •        Medicaid expansion. Although Gov. Kasich campaigned in 2010 in opposition to Obamacare, he quickly became a progressive Republican champion of a key provision of Obamacare to expand Medicaid to cover single, work-able adults without children. However, reflecting strong grassroots Republican opposition, the Republican-led state legislature specifically prohibited the adoption of his proposed Medicaid expansion in the last state budget bill. Not accepting the will of the people’s representatives, Gov. Kasich line-item vetoed this provision in the budget bill and then took it to the next step to have this provision adopted through the obscure Controlling Board, ordinarily used to make minor corrections to the execution of the state budget.[16][17] Even to accomplish this, he had to have two Republican legislators on this board, opposing his action, replaced in order to achieve the needed majority vote.[18] This is an example of the “Chicago-style” progressive political arm-twisting that has taken over the functioning of the state government in Columbus under Gov. Kasich. Acting against the clear wishes of the majority of the state’s Republican representatives and forcing legislators off of a typically noncontroversial board in order to implement his desired policy is not a conservative approach to governing. Further, it should be noted that Ohioans, with a strong majority of 66% in favor, passed a state constitutional amendment in 2011 opposing Obamacare’s implementation in Ohio.[19][20] This makes Gov. Kasich’s back-door, arm-twisting behavior even more troublesome to grassroots Republican voters.
  •        Balanced Budget Amendment and federal debt growth. Recently, Gov. Kasich has started to travel the nation championing a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution while promoting Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion. It appears he is trying to raise his presidential candidate name recognition and draw attention to his House Budget Committee leadership in the 1990s, when the federal budget was briefly balanced. However, as governor he is accepting billions in federal funds each year — all paid for by new federal debt — to cover the cost of Obamacare’s Medicaid expansion in Ohio, forced through by Gov. Kasich. Originally this was projected to bring 270,000 new enrollees with a cost to the federal government of $13 billion through 2020 for just Ohio. By this coming June, nearly 500,000 will have joined with their cost total exceeding the $2.5 billion budgeted for 2013-2014.[21] Obviously, the original projected cost of $13 billion for Ohio through 2020 will be far exceeded, creating the need for more government spending and more federal debt. Gov. Kasich argues that this is “free” money just sitting unused in Washington DC while ignoring the obvious that it is really new federal debt being placed on the backs of responsible, hard-working Americans and their children and grandchildren.[22] He also argues that this debt, portrayed by him as “charity,” is the Christian thing to do.[23] How could a conservative Republican argue that it is okay to put our children into debt to pay for the needs of single, work-able adults? This is not charity but economic servitude being forced on our children over the majority vote of their parents’ elected representatives. His argument of “free money” is typical progressive political rhetoric while his policies of end-running the clear will of the people’s representatives are also typical of progressives — reminding many of President Obama’s approach to governance. Gov. Kasich past zeal for not adding to the federal debt has vanished as he seeks higher office and the liberal voters to make this happen.
  •        Ohio Republican Party. The Republican Party in Ohio is formed through voter-elected representatives to county-level Central Committees and a State Central Committee. Most voters don’t even know that these committees exist or that they govern the actions of the party at the county and state levels. After his election in 2010, and again in 2012, Gov. Kasich won a fight within the State Central Committee to have his “guy” named executive director.[24] In 2014, grassroots Republicans made efforts to reassert grassroots control of the State Central Committee by putting candidates up for election. We seek to make the party responsive to its voters. The response to this challenge was that the existing State Central Committee members, who appoint the executive director, voted to endorse themselves for reelection in 2014. The executive director then spent substantial party funds sending mailers to Republican primary voters urging support for these state committee candidates. These mailers said that these candidates were endorsed by the Republican Party — meaning that they had endorsed themselves.[25] Obviously, this was a self-serving action to preserve Gov. Kasich’s control of the Ohio Republican Party. Also, many of the endorsement mailers sent to voters, paid for by the Ohio Republican Party, urged support under the banner “Stop Obamacare” — the very same Obamacare Gov. Kasich has used to pay for his Medicaid expansion.[26] This Kasich-led Ohio Republican Party campaign promise was quickly forgotten. Does any of this reflect the integrity and honesty of a true conservative Republican?
  •        Romney’s 2012 loss in Ohio. Of particular concern to grassroots Republican Ohio voters is that under Gov. Kasich’s leadership, the Ohio Republican Party was unable to achieve a victory for Mitt Romney in the critical battleground state of Ohio despite everything going wrong under President Obama’s administration.[27] My impression is that the general observation within the grassroots community is that the Republican Party in Ohio did not wage an aggressive, effective campaign in the closing weeks of the 2012 campaign. Romney lost by less than 2% in Ohio. The impression of a lack of an effective statewide campaign also comes from the fact that Mitt Romney got 84,000 fewer votes in Ohio than John McCain did in 2008.[28][29] It’s now intriguing to note that, with Gov. Kasich’s presidential aspirations becoming increasingly apparent, Romney’s loss in 2012 has certainly “opened the door” for Kasich to run for president in 2016 — an opportunity that would not exist had Romney won in 2012.
  •        Ohio U.S. Senator election in 2012. During the same 2012 November general election, Ohio Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown was up for reelection. He is one of the most progressive Democrats in Congress. He was opposed by the state treasurer Josh Mandel — a young veteran and a member of the new younger conservative wing of the Republican Party in Ohio. Senator Brown won by 6%.[30] As with the circumstances of support for Romney’s campaign, the general impression is that the Ohio Republican Party’s support for Mandel’s campaign was far less substantial than would be expected in a strong fight to win a U.S. Senate seat for Republicans — especially compared to the hard fought Republican Senatorial campaigns of last fall. Thus, in two key national-level battles against ultra-progressive Democratic candidates, the Ohio Republican Party did not do well. What does this hold for 2016 in must-win Ohio against the expected candidacy of Hillary Clinton or a similar strong and well-supported Democratic candidate? Is this the demonstrated campaign fortitude needed to win in 2016 on a conservative campaign platform? Grassroots Ohio Republican voters are, I believe, very concerned that the attitude and skills needed to win Ohio in 2016 are not evident in the Ohio Republican Party. For this reason, grassroots Republican voters need to, in my opinion, assert greater influence in how the 2016 campaigns are undertaken. After two failed elections and the resulting terrible consequences for our nation and our liberty, we can’t afford a third failure.
  •        Kasich’s 2014 reelection. Gov. Kasich was up for reelection in 2014. In many comparable Republican-led states, Democrats strongly contested the reelection — Wisconsin, Michigan, South Carolina, etc.[31] Surprisingly, such strong opposition did not also happen in the key Republican must-win state of Ohio. Here the Democratic challenger was a largely unknown local politician from Cleveland. During the campaign it was found out that this challenger had apparently driven for years on an expired driver’s license and had been found by the police in a car at 4:30 AM with a woman not his wife.[32, 33] This challenger’s campaign had virtually no funding and no traditional Democratic get-out-the-vote support. Contrast this with the significant and well-funded Democratic challenge that conservative Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker defeated in his hard-fought reelection last year. The disparity is obvious. Grassroots Republicans in Ohio wonder why Gov. Kasich got off so easy in a key 2016 presidential battleground state. Perhaps the fact that he is proposing, supporting, and defending public policies attuned to the political goals of the Democratic Party explains this. It should also be noted that it appears the Ohio Republican Party took steps to prevent the Libertarian candidate from being on either the primary or the November general election ballots.[34][35] This prevented Ohio voters from being able to cast a protest vote against Kasich in either the primary or general elections. These “unusual” circumstances contributed to Gov. Kasich’s 64% victory he now crows about.[36]
  •        Kasich and the Republican Party Platform. Grassroots Republican voters generally share strong support for the U.S. Constitution, the Rule of Law, a balanced budget, smaller and more effective government, and integrity and accountability in our government officials. We also generally support the preservation of life and the protection of personal liberty and private property. We also believe in adult responsibility. The Republican Party captures such views in its platform. Thus, this platform broadly defines what it means to be a “Republican.” Gov. Kasich stated that he hasn’t even read the 2012 Republican Platform and does not see it as being important.[37] Also, the Ohio Republican Party has not adopted the Republican Platform and has put off efforts to have it do so.[38] All of this indicates that Gov. Kasich is his own person, advocating his own personal political agenda. Hence, to label him as a conservative Republican has no basis in fact. Rather, Gov. Kasich can only be defined by his rhetoric and, most importantly, his public policy and political actions — all of which, as discussed above, are clearly progressive and not conservative as grassroots Republicans understand the term “conservative” to mean.

Gov. Kasich certainly has the right to pursue the presidency and to define his values and public policy positions. All candidates for this office must be able to do so. What many grassroots Republicans object to, I believe, is redefining the traditional language of “center-right” and “conservative” to mask a candidate’s actual center-left or progressive values and policy positions. Today, being seen as “conservative” is good. However, being an honest conservative, having the integrity to speak clearly about one’s values and policy positions, is held with high esteem by grassroots Republican voters.

If there is one lesson that the American public has learned, it is that honesty and integrity are paramount in the office of president and, by inference, are necessary from the serious Republican candidates for this office in their 2016 campaigns. I believe that the American news media — including Fox News — must respect the integrity of the words used to describe the candidates. Otherwise, they are engaging in “gruberizing” American voters by not speaking plainly and truthfully about the candidates but allowing their own personal or corporate desires to taint their reporting.

In closing, I wish to return to the central point of your remarks on The Hannity Show — that the Republican Party needs unity in order to have a chance at winning the White House in 2016. I am confident that almost all grassroots Republicans want to see the Republican nominee win. The path forward to achieve this does not, at this time, come from focusing on any particular candidate. Rather our party’s focus now must be on providing the primary voters a clear understanding of the candidates’ values and policy positions, on providing choice on the primary ballot to enable voters to best vote their values, and on yielding a nominee seen by grassroots Republicans as having won the nomination “fair and square.”  This is how the unity in the general election, needed for victory by the Republican Party, will best be achieved.

Respectfully,

//signed//

Mike Snead

P.S.

1. This letter was prepared by me at my own volition and reflects my personal views. I was not paid or asked to write this letter.
In recent times, several other prescription medications such as (order cialis online) http://www.wouroud.com/order-5654 etc.

2. Copies of this letter may be distributed within the TEA Party movement and sent to other news media.

 

Mike Snead is the President of the Dayton TEA Party.

Permission to reprint or otherwise distribute, in whole or in part, with express attribution to Ohio Conservative Review or OhioConservativeReview.com is granted.

All opinions expressed belong solely to their authors and may not be construed as the opinions of other writers or of OCR staff.

[1]http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2010/01/14/kasich-i-was-in-the-tea-party-before-there-was-a-tea-party/

[2]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_gubernatorial_election,_2010

[3]http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2014/02/rep_dave_joyce_faces_challenge.html

[4]http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2012/12/12/right-to-work-ohio/1763283/

[5]http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2013/04/republican_workplace_freedom_l.html

[6]http://www.toledoblade.com/DavidKushma/2014/01/12/Ohio-s-right-to-work-sideshow-can-t-become-main-event.html

[7]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michigan_gubernatorial_election,_2014

[8]http://www.indystar.com/story/news/politics/2014/12/17/indiana-supreme-court-dismisses-right-work-challenge/20564563/

[9]http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2015/01/23/growing-battle-over-kentucky-counties-right-to-work-laws/

[10]http://www.ohioconstitution.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Constitutional-Viewpoint-2-22-11-FINAL1.pdf

[11]http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/01/16/kasich-calls-common-core-opposition-hysteria/

[12]http://mariettaoh9-12project.com/wp12/how-does-common-core-affect-homeschoolers/

[13] http://www.daytonohioteaparty.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/11/Common-Core-white-paper-20141124-final.pdf

[14]http://ohioconservativereview.com/2014/08/22/common-core-repeal-bill-sub-hb-597-a-campaign-tool-unlike-legitimate-hb-237/

[15]http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2014/11/21/kasichs-immigration-views-have-evolved.html

[16]http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/06/30/Governor-signs-$62billion-budget.html

[17]http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/10/21/Medicaid-expansion-vote.html

[18]http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2013/10/controlling_board_gives_ok_to.html

[19]http://www.forbes.com/sites/rickungar/2011/11/09/ohio-voters-amend-their-constitution-to-outlaw-obamacare-mandates/

[20]http://ballotpedia.org/Ohio_Healthcare_Amendment,_Issue_3_(2011)

[21]http://www.healthinsurance.org/ohio-medicaid/

[22]http://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/news/politics/2015/01/21/ohio-gov-backs-medicaid-expansion-budget-amendment/22128175/

[23]http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/339902/kasich-takes-obamacare-s-free-money-editors

[24]http://www.toledoblade.com/Politics/2013/04/26/Ohio-Republican-Party-picks-its-executive-director-as-new-chairman.html

[25]http://greenecountyteaparty.ohlc.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2014/05/Austria-Lewis-mailer-Obama-taxes-2.png

[26]http://greenecountyteaparty.ohlc.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/30/2014/04/ORP-May-2014-mailer-for-Matthews-and-Foulk.jpg

[27]http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2012/president/oh/ohio_romney_vs_obama-1860.html

[28]http://www.politico.com/2012-election/results/president/ohio/

[29]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_presidential_election_in_Ohio,_2008

[30]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Senate_election_in_Ohio,_2012

[31]http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/11/04/south-carolina-gov-nikki-haley-wins-reelection/

[32] http://www.cleveland.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/10/kasich_rios_fitzgerald_on_the.html

[33]http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2014/08/what_we_know_–_and_what_we_do.html

[34]http://reason.com/blog/2014/03/20/ohio-libertarian-party-ballot-issues

[35]http://www.sanduskyregister.com/opinion/tom-jackson/6058591

[36]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_gubernatorial_election,_2014

[37]http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/oct/17/gay-marriage-stances-in-ohio-races-true-to-parties/?page=2#ixzz3Gb24ylWm

[38]http://ohiorepublicanconservativecaucus.com/republicans-ask-ohio-gop-to-adopt-republican-national-platform/