The State of Ohio: Archive by Date

July 2010

The 157th Ohio State Fair
Season 10 Episode 31
Posted Friday, July 30
Education is always listed as a top priority among those running for office. And it certainly has been for Ohio lawmakers and the governor over the last two decades. While there is a chance at some new federal money with Race To The Top, the state department of education has said it needs $928 million more money to keep going in the next budget. State school superintendent Deborah Delisle talks about K-12 education and the budget.

The 2010 Ohio State Fair
Season 10 Episode 30
Posted Friday, July 23
With a state budget deficit of as much as 8 billion dollars ahead, politicians say everything is on the table. And if that is taken literally, that includes higher education. Eric Fingerhut, the Chancellor of the Ohio Board of Regents, talks about the budget and its impact on Ohio’s colleges and universities, and on the students in the system and those who support them.

Slot Machines at Horse Tracks
Season 10 Episode 29
Posted Friday, July 16
The Buckeye Institute has put out a report called “The Grand Bargain is Dead – the Compensation of State Government Workers Far Exceeds Their Private-Sector Neighbors.” On the set to talk about the report is one of its authors, Matt Mayer, who’s the president of the Buckeye Institute. And with another perspective is Amy Hanauer of Policy Matters Ohio, a progressive leaning organization that has done a lot of research on state workers salaries and benefits.

A New Budget Year
Season 10 Episode 28
Posted Friday, July 9
The state and a national organization met in the Ohio Supreme Court this week to settle their fight over a fund that holds $260 million dollars. Though that's a relatively small sum in terms of the state budget, but the issues surrounding that money are huge. Gov. Ted Strickland has formally appealed the Obama administration's denial of federal aid for victims of last month's destructive tornadoes in northwest Ohio. Former Youngstown area congressman James Traficant, who was featured on the show last week, has been disqualified in his effort to run for a return to Congress. . A new budget year has dawned in many states over the last week. Ohio is at the halfway point in its budget cycle, and this week the state budget planning and management commission met for a second time to hear about how bad the upcoming budget crisis is. Though lawmakers aren't likely to make recommendations on the budget before the fall election, several experts have offered their thoughts. This week, John Begala, executive director of the Center for Community Solutions, goes over his report called "Thinking the Unthinkable - Finding Common Ground for Resolving Ohio's Fiscal Crisis." Joining him with another perspective is Dr. Richard Vedder, distinguished professor of economics at Ohio University who's associated with conservative think-tanks including the Buckeye Institute and The Cato Institute.

Jim Traficant, Former Congressman
Season 10 Episode 27
Posted Friday, July 2
The first year of the two-year budget is in the books. And for the first time, the lawmakers on the year-old budget planning and management commission sat down together to hear about just how bad the upcoming budget crisis could be. A pair of polls shows Democrats are leading the marquee races on the fall ballot, but not by much. Two more big changes are coming for the fall ballot. Voters won't decide whether slot machines should be installed at Ohio's seven horse tracks, and an issue dealing with animal cruelty won't be on the ballot either. A report says an inmate drank six beers while working at the Governor's Residence in May and likely got them from a kitchen refrigerator. Independence Day is Monday, and in the spirit of the holiday, we bring you a replay of a conversation with one of Ohio's best known independents - former Congressman Jim Traficant.