The middle class has not received much benefit from the 2003 reduction of the top U.S. tax rate for capital gains and corporate stock dividends. Instead, according to a report by Citizens for Tax Justice, the advantage has gone overwhelmingly to the wealthiest Americans. In Ohio, the top 1 percent
Wages in Ohio make health care unaffordable for many Ohioans. Approximately 20 percent of all Ohioans live in families earning less than needed to meet their basic family budget. A basic family budget for Ohioans includes costs for housing, utilities, food, health care, child care, transportation, clothing, school supplies, and
In the spring of 2008, Ohio’s state government finds itself in familiar territory ??” facing a budget shortfall because of an inadequate revenue system and a slowing economy. Despite the worsening economic outlook, state policy makers refuse to consider revenue-raising alternatives and are committed to allowing a scheduled cut in
Policy Matters recently released a study of the state’s Autism Scholarship Program, and I believe our findings are relevant as the Senate considers creating a publicly funded voucher for all special needs children in Ohio. … Full Testimony
Seven-year Slack for Ohio Jobs Ohio and Michigan are the only two states in the country that do not have as many jobs as they did when the last recession started seven years ago. Since then, Ohio has lost almost 175,000 jobs, or 3.1 percent of its total, according to
Good Bulbs, Bad Jobs – A supplier of compact fluorescent light bulbs to General Electric requires many to work a 64-hour week that exhausts workers and violates Chinese labor law. Many workers at the southern Chinese plant partly owned by GE don’t know the bulbs have mercury or how to
The number of payday lending stores licensed in Ohio continues to grow, from 107 locations in 1996 to 1,638 locations in 2007, a more than fourteen-fold increase since 1996. Fees in Ohio are usually $15 for every $100 borrowed for a two-week period, which amounts to an annual percentage rate
Press ReleaseExecutive SummaryFull ReportSix-Page BriefTestimony on the Autism Scholarship Program EMBARGOED FOR MARCH 19TH, 2008 — Ohio’s autism voucher provides up to $20,000 a year to parents of children with autism. Families can use this voucher at private schools and agencies approved by the Ohio Department of Education. A new
On February 27th, 2008, David Rothstein testified before Cleveland City Council on the continuing foreclosure crisis in Greater Cleveland. Also in attendance were representatives from Senator Hilary Clinton and Senator Barack Obama’s Democratic Primary campaigns. Rothstein spoke about the spread of foreclosures (both in the city and the suburbs), the
The Strickland Administration recently announced that it will cut $733 million from an already tight state budget. The plan will result in the closure of two state mental hospitals, a freeze in reimbursement rates for PASSPORT community-based care for the elderly, and the reduction of thousands of jobs at state
Many Ohioans work hard but cannot make ends meet. Over 2.8 million Ohioans, approximately 25 percent, do not earn enough to meet basic needs. The gap between what these Ohioans earn and their basic family budgets, a hardships gap, forces many families to go without such necessities as health insurance
With jobless rolls growing and the economy softening, Ohio’s workforce system needs immediate reforms to serve more unemployed workers and improve their access to training. Our ability to meet these challenges is vital to the future of these workers and for bipartisan public policy goals to make Ohio a more
