Saturday Stats

25: Policy Matters is celebrating 25 years of working for a more vibrant, equitable, sustainable, and inclusive Ohio. Please join our staff and board on September 30th for a casual open house in Cleveland to celebrate our accomplishments, stand in solidarity, and connect with each other. You can RSVP and find out all the details here.

17: The number of billionaires who, as of 2021, are military veterans. That stat was shared by UWUA Local 270 President Chris Ericksen, adding, “If you are one of those 17 people, this administration has looked out for your best interests more than any of the previous ones.” The millions of non-billionaire vets — including 600K+ who live in Ohio — “should be worried.” President Ericksen was among the panelists on this week’s virtual town hall, along with Jeremy Parkins from Dress Right Dress Inc., Drew Smith and Geniece Garner from Cuyahoga County Veterans Service Commission, and Nick Gwyn from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

1 in 10: Share of Ohio veterans who were enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP as of 2021-23. They are among the many thousands of Ohioans whose public benefits are threatened by H.R. 1, the federal budget megabill. (We say “many thousands” because the bill is carefully crafted to obscure and delay its worst impacts, so the numbers are hazy — but we’re working on it…) We supplemented our veterans town hall with a new brief from Heather Smith, taking a closer look at how federal changes to programs that benefit everyone will harm veterans in particular.

2: Opportunities Clevelanders have in the next few weeks to attend a meeting of the Tanisha’s Law Community Strategy Table. Named for Tanisha Anderson, who was killed by police while she was experiencing a mental health crisis, Tanisha’s Law would create a Dept. of Community Crisis Response in Cleveland. The Strategy Table is a collaborative group of community members, service providers, and advocates working to pass the legislation into law. Complete a brief survey to request an invite. Tanisha’s Law is among the policy priorities of the newly launched Cleveland Power Alliance. You can read the Alliance’s complete platform here.

5.0%: Ohio’s unemployment rate in July, as reported in the latest JobWatch, from Molly Bryden. That’s just one notch higher than 4.9%, where it stood for the preceding 3 months — but a round number (and a recent nomination) make the July report resonate. Compared to other states, Ohio remains among those with the highest unemployment rates. That is especially troubling as the national economic outlook is uncertain and electricity bills are soaring. Admittedly, a monthly analysis of labor statistics may seem a little wonky, but there’s never been a better time to keep an eye on the numbers by subscribing to JobWatch.

11: Members of Ohio’s “property tax reform working group,” tasked with identifying policies to reform property taxes in the state. They’re considering a few hare-brained ideas, and one good one: the property tax circuit breaker. Zach Schiller sent the group a memo this week, outlining why they should push for the circuit breaker over other, more destructive and poorly targeted options. Interested in advocating for the circuit breaker yourself? We’ve created a set of talking points to help!

PMO History: Policy Matters Ohio published foundational research with partners at the Housing Research and Advocacy Center in 2007 on the growth of payday lending in Ohio. The report covers an explosion in the state’s number of payday lending shops, from 107 in 1996 to 1,562 just 10 years later. By that point, they outnumbered McDonalds, Burger King, and Wendy’s restaurants combined. For more than a decade, Policy Matters advocated for stronger regulation. In 2008, Ohio enacted the Ohio Short-Term Loan Act through legislation and a statewide ballot, but it didn’t go far enough. Policy Matters convened the Ohio CASH coalition (Creating Assets, Savings, and Hope) to improve economic conditions for families with low and moderate incomes. We testified before a U.S. Congressional committee in support of federal protections, applauded Consumer Financial Protection Bureau plans to increase regulation, and called on legislators to close loopholes. Over the years, Policy Matters project director Kalitha Williams and researcher David Rothstein relentlessly advocated for local measures to protect Ohioans, praised efforts to protect military service members from predatory lenders, advocated against attempts to erode protections, and called attention to predatory auto-title lending. Ohio saw real change with the passage of H.B. 123 in 2018, which strengthened safeguards, ended auto-title lending, and led to a dramatic decrease in new small loans and fees collected, but the work continues to protect vulnerable Ohio consumers.

Action items

• Complete a brief survey to request an invite to the Tanisha’s Law Community Strategy Table.
• Share your story of how federal cuts are affecting you, your family, and your community.
• Cuyahoga County veterans: Register for VetConnect 2025, a powerful, one-day event designed exclusively for veterans and their families.
• Watch this week’s virtual town hall: Can policymakers keep America’s promises to Ohio veterans?,and check out the full list of resources for vets and those who love them.