Greater Ohio’s many partners from across the state and nation host innovative and thought-provoking events throughout the year to discuss issues concerning the prosperity and future of Ohio. The Council of Development of Finance Agencies will be hosting the 2012 CDFA Ohio Financing Roundtable Conference: Innovation, Energy, and Infrastructure in Columbus, September 25, 2012. Please visit CDFA to see the conference’s schedule of events and for registration information. Join CDFA on September 25, 2012 for the fourth annual CDFA Ohio Financing Roundtable Conference focused on "Innovation, Energy, and Infrastructure” finance in the Buckeye state. This can't-miss event will feature economic development finance experts from around the state discussing emerging financing models and creative projects in early-stage seed/venture capital and innovation finance, clean-tech and renewable energy development, and creative infrastructure financing mechanisms like P3s and TIF. The conference will take place at the Fawcett Center in Columbus and is supported by nearly a dozen of the state’s finest development finance leaders, including the Ohio Department of Development. Register today to ensure your spot at the 2012 CDFA Ohio Financing Roundtable Conference.
GOPC, "Across the Spectrum" Think Tanks Unite Again
Greater Ohio Policy Center is again collaborating with Center for Community Solutions and the Buckeye Institute, two other think tanks that span the political spectrum, renewing the call to examine the issue of tax expenditures, commonly known as “tax loopholes.” Last week, the three partners issued a Press Release once again advocating for a Joint House-Senate Tax Expenditure Review Committee to examine and vet tax expenditures and subject these loopholes to “sunset revisions,” which would allow certain tax expenditures to expire after several years unless re-enacted by the General Assembly and approved by the Governor. “In the absence of guidelines for demonstrating effectiveness, and a schedule for periodic evaluation, these cannot be considered good public policy”, the three groups said in their Press Release. This unique tripartite partnership began during last year’s debate over Ohio’s 2012-2013 budget, when the groups joined together to propose ways that Ohio policymakers could address the issue of tax expenditures. This partnership attracted extensive state and national attention and spurred the highly successful “Across the Spectrum” conference, raising the level of public discourse by facilitating thoughtful discussions that avoided partisan platitudes and instead explored a range of policy solutions available to the state and nation. GOPC and their partners commend Governor Kasich for his recent comments on the need to examine expenditures and the Ohio House of Representatives for convening a tax review committee last year. These policymakers have brought back into public view the importance of adopting a comprehensive process for assessing Ohio’s loopholes. Evaluating the costs and benefits of specific expenditures will ensure a transparent and defensible decision-making process. In improving Ohio’s competitiveness and quality of life, any future expenditures—new or renewed—must have transparent criteria that ranks projects and clearly demonstrates a net benefit to tax payers. “Our organizations often take different positions on how best to raise and allocate public resources, but we share the common goals of eliminating ineffective, counterproductive or outdated tax expenditures, and assuring that those remaining in Ohio tax law receive periodic scrutiny.”
The collaboration between Greater Ohio and their partners have already received attention by Trib Today, Salem News, the Akron Beacon Journal, and been featured on WVIZ NPR.
Three Think Tanks From Across the Spectrum Renew Call for Closing Tax "Loopholes"
PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE For more information, contact: Alison Goebel, Associate Director E-mail: agoebel@greaterohio.org Phone: 614.224.0187 September 3, 2012-COLUMBUS, Ohio - Three Ohio-based think tanks representing various public policy perspectives today are renewing a call they made last year to thoroughly re-examine Ohio's myriad of tax expenditures, commonly known as "loopholes." The Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions, The Center for Community Solutions and The Greater Ohio Policy Center issued the following statement, "Governor Kasich's recent comments on the need to examine these expenditures bring back into public view the importance of Ohio's adopting a comprehensive process for evaluating and, where appropriate, changing or terminating them. We agree with the Governor that the time to be proactive on this issue is now, and urge leaders in the General Assembly to adopt legislation before the next budget cycle. "Our organizations often take different positions on how best to raise and allocate public resources, but we share the common goals of eliminating ineffective, counterproductive or outdated tax expenditures, and assuring that those remaining in Ohio tax law receive periodic scrutiny. Our joint proposal from last year entailed terminating a group of these tax expenditures as part of the biennial budget legislation. We maintain this should be revisited by the General Assembly during its post-election session." The groups concluded that, "We stand ready to assist the Kasich Administration and the General Assembly as they tackle this issue. However we may differ on the size and scope of government, all Ohioans would benefit from a system for monitoring taxes and expenditures that is as rigorous as the biennial budget process for programmatic expenditures. Support for this idea exists across the political spectrum. The time for action is at hand." To view the statement in its entirety please click here.