Recently, Ohio became the latest state in the East North Central Region to roll out an ambitious plan to help it compete in the 21st century economy. At Innovest, the state’s annual venture-capital conference, Gov. Bob Taft outlined his Third Frontier Project, a 10-year, $1.6 billion plan to create more high-wage jobs for Ohio’s future.

 

As part of an effort to create early-stage capital, state officials have allocated $10 million from the state’s Technology Action Fund to help create professionally managed early stage investment and validation funds. The grants are expected to raise another $120 million. The state also established the Ohio Venture Capital Authority, to oversee a program that will make more than $200 million in early stage funding available for investment in Ohio companies.

 

An example of the kind of companies the state officials want to attract and help grow is Srico, a Columbus-based technology development firm. Srico, which specializes in fiber-optic engineering and integrated optics, was recently awarded a $100,000 grant by the National Science Foundation (NSF). Company president Sri Sriram says his firm plans to use the support to extend its optical device technology to the new area of nanophotonics—technology in which computer chips and electronic devices will be powered by light rather than electricity. “There is a real need to create smaller, faster, better and cheaper devices for all sorts of applications in telecommunications, medicine, aerospace, defense and more,” Sriram says.

 

Ohio’s BRTT (Biomedical Research and Technology Transfer) Commission was created to assess the state’s current programs in the biomedical industry, focusing on job creation and improved public health. The commission will determine the distribution of grant funds for biomedical research and tech transfer. According to Ohio’s Edison BioTechnology Center, the state employs more than 31,000 people in the life sciences industry at almost 1,000 firms. Of these employees, biological scientists make up more than 15,000 positions, or nearly 50 percent. These firms have generated $10 billion in sales and $133 million in new capital investment.

 

Meanwhile, 13 Ohio counties have formed a cooperative effort, called Team Northeast Ohio, to stimulate economic development in the region that includes such major cities as Cleveland, Akron, and Youngstown. The group wants to build on the region’s strengths, such as its large manufacturing base, to stimulate growth, says Dennis Eckart, president and CEO of the Greater Cleveland Growth Association, one of Team NEO’s six founding partners.

Good; this is exactly what Ohio needs if we want to remain competitive in the future. We also need to improve our schools, and make college affordable (easier said than done).

WE need a whole lot. The most important in my view is retaining our best and brightest. (youngins) Make Ohio a place that people want to move.

From the 12/7/04 Dayton Business News:

 

 

Dayton projects net $7.5M from state

 

The state of Ohio, through its Third Frontier Project, has awarded more than $7.5 million in grants to Dayton projects to further research and develop the transition of technology to the marketplace.  The local money is part of $10 million given to organizations statewide as part of the annual Wright Project Awards, according to information released Monday by the state Department of Development.  "Ohio's future is in the hands of those who are able to take a great idea, develop it and produce a functional product that can be manufactured and sold throughout the world," said Gov. Bob Taft in a news release.

 

Full story at http://dayton.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2004/12/06/daily8.html

 

From the 4/26/05 Enquirer:

 

 

Gov. Taft resubmits high-tech bond issue

Third Frontier now part of $2B package

The Associated Press

and The Enquirer

 

COLUMBUS - Voters will get another chance to approve a $500 million high-tech development program this November - two years after narrowly rejecting the idea, Gov. Bob Taft said Monday.  This time the Third Frontier program is part of a $2 billion bond package that also would provide money for road, bridge and water line improvements and for preparing sites for industrial and business expansion.  Local road, bridge and water projects would get $1.35 billion over 10 years, and the cleanup projects would get $150 million over seven years.  The $500 million for attracting high-tech businesses and training a work force also would be spread over seven years.

 

Full story at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050426/BIZ02/504260338/1076/rss01

 

I am glad that he is trying again.  It is sad how this state is dragged down by ignorant voting trends. 

I honestly think it would have a better chance of passing if Taft's name wasn't all over it.

This is an awful idea.  You don't get jobs handing bags of money out.  You create jobs by keeping the taxes low, so people actually want to come here.

 

What if all these companies go bankrupt and end up swindling the state?  Also, what business does the state have picking winners from losers (i.e. discriminating amongst industries?).  If we had tried to put lots of public money into the internet in 1999, we'd all be fucked right now, becausse it looked so promising at the time but then all the dotcoms went bust.  Silicon Valley was hit by the dotcom bust, but it wasn't as bad as you think because those firms actually wanted to be there.  They weren't there because of taxpayer funded subsidies.  So the area did well when the times were good, and when the dotcoms went bust it was rough but things began to pickup in other sectors as time went by.

 

Also what if these companies come here for the handout, setup employment, and then when the handout runs out they just close shop or move someplace else?  Many clever people will be starting new tech companies (in name only) *just* to get the handout.

 

Taft is stupid.  This plan will bring exactly the kind of businesses we don't want in Ohio: those who just want a handout.  Schemes like this have never created sustained employment.  Why don't they just cut the taxes, and let companies keep real money that they've earned lawfully?  I think every business should be treated the same, and there should be few or no tax breaks given out that discriminate and zero subsidies.  Even those "rednecks" down South know more about Economics than the GOP and the Democrats in this state put together.

Low taxes don't necessarily create economic development and high taxes don't necessarily dissuade it. If that was the case, no business would want to locate in San Franscisco, Chicago, New York City, or other high-tax locales. Amenities, many of which are publicly provided through taxes, can be a big draw for employers seeking a greater quality of life, just as low taxes can be for other employers. There is no one-size-fits-all approach.

 

KJP

Low taxes don't necessarily create economic development and high taxes don't necessarily dissuade it. If that was the case, no business would want to locate in San Franscisco, Chicago, New York City, or other high-tax locales. Amenities, many of which are publicly provided through taxes, can be a big draw for employers seeking a greater quality of life, just as low taxes can be for other employers. There is no one-size-fits-all approach.

 

KJP

 

You should have read my other thread on taxes.

 

Like I've pointed out before, low taxes = growth.  If you look at the list of fastest growing states in the past ten years, they practically read like a list of states with lowest income taxes (which are the most important to keep low).

 

NOw I'm glad you brought up the example of NY and CA, which is also a point I covered.  Some states can get away with charging high taxes.  Why?  Because people will put up with high taxes, regulations, and other hassles to live in the NYC area or in California.  San Fransisco has such great weather and spectacular natural beauty that they could send the hangman from door to door to extort money out of people and lots of folks, especially rich folks, would still trip over themselves to live there.  During the Dot Com rush lots of corporations moved to Silicon Valley even though it was pretty stupid from a business POV with the regions high costs, but all the workers of those firms wanted to be in California, and there is value in that for keeping people happy.

 

Now Ohio isn't like that.  Lets face the facts.  None of our cities are in the league of internationally renknowned metropolises like NY, San Fransisco, or Chicago.  People aren't lining up to pay money to live in Ohio.  Ohio is not that much different than say, Michigan, Indiana, or even Kentucky and Pennsylvania.  But we have lost more jobs than all of them.  All of thosse states have lower taxes and hence higher growth than Ohio does.  No professional looks at Ohio with its 9 income tax brackets and wants to live here.  And no corporation is eager to setup industry in this state with its obtuse business taxes.

 

Even if you are one of those anti-growth types that does not want more jobs in Ohio, you have to realize that every state has some churning of jobs.  Some businesses go bust, and other ones pop up to replace them.  Here in Ohio, we lost 200,000 jobs.  There are other states that lost jobs too, but you don't see it because they replaced them.  NC's whole furniture industry is going bust, but iit makes little difference because there are so many new jobs popping up in the state that pay well.  Here in Ohio, we are losing jobs, and we are not even able to replace the ones that are lost because of the bad business/political climate in the state.  It's got nothing to do with weather/unions/lack of nightclubs downtown/lack of education, or whatever else people claim is the problem.

I somewhat agree with Locutus, if we are talking about "picking winners" through some sort of industrial/buisness investment policy.

 

However, investing in infrastructure and human capital as an economic developement strategy is what Ohio (& other states) did in the 19th Century.  The state support of canals, munciple and, in some cases, state support of railroad construction, and the land-grant college and ag extension system were all about using govt. revenue to support communications and transportation infrastructure, and to provide the knowlege base for economic growth via R&D, education, and technology/knowledge transfer (thats what the "agriculture extentsion" concept was about).

 

Since California was mentioned, it was fairly heavy public investment that made ag and urbanization even viable there, but the state college system also provided the intellectual capital and innovations for agribiz in the state.  Not so much hi-tech, tho, as it was Stanford that led to that buisness being located in the Bay Area. 

 

So, there is strong historical precedent for state support of economic developement.  I am leery, though, of a state subsidized venture capital fund.

 

Locutus,

 

Here you go again, looking at the world through tax-free glasses.  It is much more complicated than you make it out to be.  You are against taxes and you will shape any situation to support your view.  I would love to have 0% taxes, but you need to look at reality and the peculiarities that each situation presents.  A rigid, black and white view will do a lot of damage.

 

I agree that you can't support industry that is dying.  I have no clue why Bush chose to prop up the steel industry ove the past few years.  That was a mistake.  However, investing in the latest technology will give our state an advantage and help create jobs and an environment that attract other similar companies.  It is already being to work in Cleveland.  We need to keep it up.

Steel industry dying?  Lakshmi Mittal became the world's 3rd richest man after he acquired ISG, a collection of reinvigorated Ohio steel mills.

 

Just goes to show that no one knows what the next big thing will be.  Government attempts to predict what the next big industry is going to be will invariably be doomed.  :drunk:

 

$50,000 of economic activity is $50,000 of economic activity whether it comes from an auto plant, a newspaper, a school, a hospital, a software company, a law firm, etc.  The thing is, it's not the place that picks the industries, but typically the industries that pick the place.  That's just how it goes.  To catch those industries, the best thing the government can be is pro-business in general.  They should help any person who wants to setup shop in Ohio, whether they are building a steel mill or a tech company, start up their business.  However, there shouldn't be any discriminatiion between industries, and there shouldn't be any subsidies.

And yet, the mills still only provide a tiny fraction of the employment that they did when they were the major jobs generator for this city in the late 19th and early 20th century.  Was it a bad call for Ohio to have built the railroads in the mid to late 1800's then?  Perhaps Cleveland would have been better off had it not received harbor improvements and the Ohio Canal in the early 1800's?  Really that was just a handout to our agriculture and grist mills businesses, which boomed in the mid-1800's.  Gee, I guess you're right!  Government attemts to predict the next big industry really are invariably doomed!

Locutus,

 

Business is very diverse.  Tennessee has very low taxes and there is much industry locating here. Why? Because they don't have to pay large wages to the workers.  It is not all about the corporate tax as you suggest.  You argue as if all states are on a level playing field.  States such as Ohio are not and in order to attract businesses, it has to be innovative and create an environment where the most promising businesses will succeed.  So, you are telling me that government has no clue whatsoever which types of businesses will thrive. C'mon, I know you don't really believe that.

 

In the end, government should not be short sighted.  Unfortunately, politicians are not looking long term.  If the state really wanted to thrive, it would have to invest heavily in education.  Lower taxes as much as you can, but throw tons of money at a good education system.  There would be some lean years, but it would eventually pay off.  However, no one really has the guts to try that. 

Roads, canals, bridges, expressways, sewer hookups, water, etc. are capital improvements, not handouts genius.  :roll:

 

Also the railroads werre built with private money.

Locutus,

 

Business is very diverse. Tennessee has very low taxes and there is much industry locating here. Why? Because they don't have to pay large wages to the workers. It is not all about the corporate tax as you suggest. You argue as if all states are on a level playing field. States such as Ohio are not and in order to attract businesses, it has to be innovative and create an environment where the most promising businesses will succeed. So, you are telling me that government has no clue whatsoever which types of businesses will thrive. C'mon, I know you don't really believe that.

 

In the end, government should not be short sighted. Unfortunately, politicians are not looking long term. If the state really wanted to thrive, it would have to invest heavily in education. Lower taxes as much as you can, but throw tons of money at a good education system. There would be some lean years, but it would eventually pay off. However, no one really has the guts to try that.

 

Ohio can invest in education all it wants, but that doesn't mean people will stick around.  And they don't.  Ohio is #1 in the country for college graduates who move elsewhere upon graduatiton.  That's your tax dollars at work.  Doesn't make much sense to spend all that money educating people so that other states can benefit from them.  There has to be job growth in the state.  There has to be policies that directly affect job creation, like low taxes and infrastructure, but not handouts.

 

Also a lot of states with real shitty education systems have no problem creating high paying, "new economy" jobs, like Texas, Florida, Georgia, etc.  Why?  They attract smart people from other states with their pro-growth policies, people from states like Ohio.

 

Also I don't think anything is wrong with the current level of education spending in Ohio.  I know the teachers unions don't think its enough, but I think its satisfactory, and I think the results Ohio is producing in education is better than average.  The solution iis not to tax  the fuck out of anyone else remaining in the state, give more money to teachers unions for a marginal improvement in education, and ship more graduates off to other states, because there are no jobs in the state.

Roads, canals, bridges, expressways, sewer hookups, water, etc. are capital improvements, not handouts genius. 

 

You obviouslyb didnt read my post as I was talking about education and knowlege transfer too...selective reading on your part, no doubt.

 

Also the railroads werre built with private money.

 

some were some werent and some were a mix.

 

Umm...Locutus?  Who acquired the rights of way for the railroads?  That's a pretty good chunk of what they cost.

 

As far as relevance, one might ask if a research center is a capital improvement.  Or how about an incubator?  How about fiber optic networks? These are the types of things that most of these funds are to being used for, as I understand it.  Much of the rest is going to subsidize early stage research that will utilize the above infrastructure (intellectual capital improvements, perhaps?).  This isn't basic operating revenue, which is a different thing entirely. 

 

And again, you act as if the rest of us are idiots, when you're the one without the first clue of how finance and economics work (in the real world, not a textbook).  All you have is an Econ 101 understanding and your ideology.  That's alright if you realize your limitations, but you keep throwing in petty little insults at everyone else's intelligence.  That makes you sound not only like an uninformed ideologue, it makes you sound like an asshole.  Not to mention an asshole that can't even spell or punctuate properly while insulting other's intelligence.

 

So, please kindly fuck yourself.

 

Genius.

The types of infrastructure necessary for growth are changing.  Canals, roads, etc were very important and to an extent, they still are.  However, intellectual infrastructure is more important and will continue to be.  That is why education is so important.  From pre-k through grad school.  Studies show that for every dollar invested in pre-K eductation, a state sees a 17fold return.

 

I agree that we need to retain more of our youth--the question is how do we do that?  Kids don't run off to New York because of the high or low taxes.  They go there because of the city's mystique and because they can find a job.  Job growth (if ever) will come to Ohio because of diverse grouping a factors.  Not just one.   If you lowered taxes, you would see a greater amount of poverty in this state and a worsening of the public school system.  Public schools are often equated with quality of life.  Quality of life is a major factor in bringing and retaining business.  Locutus, it is not as easy as you think.  I am sick of selfish minded folk who only worry about their paycheck. They hate to see taxes go up because it means less for them.  They often disguise their selfishness to their own selves and others by adopting the small-minded view that lowering taxes is the one and only way to economic success.  If it were, then I would be all for it.   

You probably think that if $5000 spent on a kid creates X amount of results, then $10000 creates 2X.  And if we spend a million, then we'll create another Einstein.  I'm afriad you don't understand the concept of diminishing returns.

 

If we keep taxes high, I guarantee that we'll end up in living in a state of stupid people, a state of dullards worse than the deepest redneck reaches of the South.  Why?  Because most smart people go to college, graduatte, and then get good paying jobs.  They don't want to be fucked over by Ohio's 9 tax brackets.

 

Once I'm out of medical school, I don't want to pay 7.5% of my income to the state ggovernment.  You might that think that's selfish, but I don't care what you think.  People respond to incentives.  And the incentives here in Ohio are to fuck ovver the people who earn the most money and create the most economic output.  If I can have several thousands of dollars more each year by living in Texas or Florida, you better believe that I'll take it because I have student loans to pay off.  I've taken advantage of the system that you speak in favor of, the spending on public education.  I'm being educated at a publically funded medical college.  But if the state wants to screw me afterwards, I'm not going to stick around.  In fact, from my class historically 60-70% of the grads. do residencies in other states.

Locutus,

 

If you only care about your wallet and nothing else, then good luck with life.  By the way, TN, which has the 3rd lowest tax burden, sends 75% of its medical students out of state for residencies. My wife, who is one of them, will be heading to Ohio for her residency.

Your wife's probably got you supporting her.  She doesn't have to worry about little things like "money".

I wish that I was supporting her.  With what doctors make, I would be doing quite nicely.

Here are excerpts from the Cincinnati Business Courier, the Dayton Business Journal, and Columbus Business First, respectively (punch has posted Cleveland's in one of the bioscience threads if you want to check that out):

 

 

CINCINNATI

Three high-tech projects involving researchers in the Cincinnati area landed about $50 million in funding from Ohio's Third Frontier Project.  In one such project, Cincinnati-based Atricure Inc., the University of Cincinnati and several other institutions around the state are collaborating to develop am Atrial Fibrillation Innovation Center.  According to a news release. the project received about $23 million in Third Frontier grants that will help the center develop both surgical and non-invasive treatments to prevent and cure electrical disturbances in the heart that can increase the risk of stroke and death.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/stories/2005/05/09/daily20.html

 

 

DAYTON

Ohio's Third Frontier Project awarded 10 Dayton-area businesses and institutions $22.5 million to develop and commercialize nanomaterials.  The funds are part of the Wright Centers of Innovation grant program and were announced Tuesday.  The technology funding will be used to create the Ohio Center for Multifunctional Polymer Nanomaterials and Devices.  The money will be used to purchase advanced specialty equipment to develop the new materials aimed at improving the strength and durability of components eventually used in automobiles and other manufactured products, according to the release from Lt. Gov. Bruce Johnson.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/dayton/stories/2005/05/09/daily11.html

 

 

COLUMBUS

Ohio's Third Frontier project approved $36 million for projects spearheaded by Ohio State University.  Two of the latest grants will create Wright Centers of Innovation, collaborations between institutions to develop specific technology.  One $22.5 million award will create the Ohio Center for Multifunctional Polymer Nanomaterials and Devices, an effort to use nanotechnology to create materials to improve the strength and durability of components for cars and other manufactured projects.

 

http://www.bizjournals.com/columbus/stories/2005/05/09/daily20.html

 

That's the first time I've seen "Wright centers of Innovation" mentioned anywhere, outside of two Geography classes I had with Dr. Cox at OSU (1999/2000).

>The groups joining forces on the project are the Air Force Research Laboratories at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Cornerstone Research Group, Crayex Corp., the Dayton Area Graduate Studies Institute, EMTEC, National Composite Center, University of Dayton, Vector Composites Inc., WebCore Technologies and Wright State University in collaboration with Ohio State University Research Foundation, as well as several other businesses around the country.

 

 

They have been trying to do this technology transfer thing for some time now.  This fed into Hobsons "pork barrell" strategy to get new facilities for the Materials Lab on WPAFB...

From the 5/14/05 Enquirer:

 

 

Barely exploring the Third Frontier

Columbus, Cleveland get most grants, as fewer proposals coming from here

By John Byczkowski

Enquirer staff writer

 

There's one part of Ohio's Third Frontier program that Cincinnati has down pat.  It's the "third" part.  Cincinnati institutions have captured just $44.6 million of the $321 million in Third Frontier program grants made since 2002, far behind the $122.6 million sent to Cleveland and $102.2 million sent to Columbus.  And local institutions were shut out in this week's grants of $75 million - all of which went to Cleveland and Columbus.

 

The program was intended to build technology industries and create jobs statewide, but 70 percent of the money - almost $225 million awarded over four years - has gone to Cleveland and Columbus, according to data from the Ohio Department of Development. 

 

Full story at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050514/BIZ01/505140356/-1/rss

 

The whole thing is rife with corruption.  It's not about whose got the best idea.  It's about whose got the best political skills.  Or whose got the best lawyer.  That's why when the government tries to pick winners from losers, it fails.

Locutus,

 

Your general 'anti-government at all costs' propaganda is way too polar.  You just can't make statements like those above without providing any sort of proof.  You lose any credibility that you may have had.  "The whole thing is rife with corruption."  How so?    Please explain how it is "about whose got the best political skills."  Or, "whose got the best lawyer."  Please explain the role that lawyers have in this process.  Where is the corruption? 

 

I know that you dislike this because it is funded through tax dollars.  But, do you really know so much about the process so that you could call it "rife with corruption." 

 

C'mon.  Add something to this board.  You form your opinions before even looking at the facts of the situation.  Show some wisdom and take a second to think about the differing factors that affect a situation.  Until you do so, you only give us a reason to believe the opposite of what you propound.     

It was in response to the previous post that Cincinnati is getting the shaft.

 

All I know is that other states who have tech economies don't need to hand out bags of money to get the businesses there.

 

Are we getting businesses that are interested in being in Ohio, that have real, profitable, long-term business concepts?  Or are we getting businesses that have devised clever schemes to eat taxpayer funded handouts and then close shop?  Or if they are legitimate companies, where is the proof that once their handout runs out, they will actually stay in Ohio, and not just move to Silicon Valley?  If a company naturally sets up shop in Ohio,, you can tell they have some interest in the state - i.e. the state is good place for them to do business.  If a company comes to Ohio because you hand them $25 million, then it's probably likely they are coming there for the money rather than for your state.

 

Also, if these guys need money, why can't they get it from banks or venture capitalists?  That raises the question that maybe we are getting the crappiest of crappy tech companies that have business concepts so badly put together that the only ones dumb enough to fund them are state bureacrats handing out other people's money.

 

Also why the discrimination in favor of tech companies?  Nobody knows what sector of the economy is going to take off in the future.  That's why the government is not supposed to discriminate.  3 years from now, there could be another massive tech bust.  Ohio is putting all its eggs in one basket once again.

Well, in regards to Cleveland..

 

Most of the funding goes to tech transfer.  The technology is already present.  Scientists at the Cleveland Clinic and Case have come up with the tech.  It is to the advantage of the entrepeneur to be near the scientists (constant questions, etc).  That is why two companies are moving from MN to Cleveland.  Usually, there is a contract in place that makes the funding contingent upon the company staying in town.  If that contract is broken, there are liquidated damages that would also serve as as deterrent to leaving.

 

The problem with the VCs are that they are usually in the big cities.  They like to invest in companies that are close to them so that they can keep an eye on their investment.  Also, other VCs like to help their hometowns and will require the company to move to, say, Boston, in order to get the funding.  That is why the Third Frontier cash is such a help.  Unfortunately, there is not a great amount of Ohio VCs.  The Clinic got so much money because of the greatest potential to great jobs and draw in out of state customers.

Re Grasscats Enquirer article (post # 29)...I am suprised that Dayton didnt get any of these grants as technology transfer from WPAFB is supposed to be part of the local ecocnomic developement strategy...

Quote: All I know is that other states who have tech economies don't need to hand out bags of money to get the businesses there.

 

 

Your right they dont now *for the most part* but you can bet your ass 7-15 years ago Massachusets was handing development money out left and right...now look what they have in Cambridge alone!  Gentec, nanothis, quantum that.... trust me the govt helps in more palces than one would think.  It just takes a savy govt to be ahead of the curve.

Re Grasscats Enquirer article (post # 29)...I am suprised that Dayton didnt get any of these grants as technology transfer from WPAFB is supposed to be part of the local ecocnomic developement strategy...

 

Dayton got $22.5M.  See post #26.

From Crain's Cleveland, 6/6/05:

 

 

Job creation slow-go under Third Frontier

By SHANNON PETTYPIECE

June 06. 2005 6:01AM

 

Northeast Ohio has attracted the lion's share of the money the state has distributed under Gov. Bob Taft's Third Frontier initiative.  But unless there is a big hiring spurt during the next few years, it appears the number of new jobs yielded by the state's outlays will lag projections significantly.  As of last January, Northeast Ohio companies, hospitals and colleges had received $80.9 million under the Third Frontier program, which was established in 2002 to help commercialize new technology and create high-tech jobs in Ohio.  That money attracted roughly $115 million in federal grants and private investments, according to state records and data from the grant recipients.

 

Full story at http://www.crainscleveland.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050606/SUB/506060312/1006&Profile=1006

 

Way to f*ck everything up!  From the 6/23/05 Toledo Blade:

 

 

INVESTMENT SCANDAL FALLOUT

Credibility of governor hurts chance to put Third Frontier issue on ballot

By JIM PROVANCE

BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU

 

COLUMBUS - Concerns over Gov. Bob Taft's credibility in the midst of a growing workers' compensation scandal are hurting the chances of getting his pet Third Frontier bond issue on the Nov. 8 ballot.  Nearly all Democrats are balking at linking renewal of a popular 10-year public works bond issue with Third Frontier for fear his problems and growing public distrust of Columbus will drag them both down at the polls.  "It does influence our decisions on Third Frontier," said House Minority Leader Chris Redfern (D., Catawba Island).  "The very same people who are telling us one thing as it relates to Tom Noe are prepared to run the campaign for Third Frontier."

 

Full story at http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050623/NEWS24/506230458/-1/NEWS

 

Taft doesn't seem to have a lot of friends these days.  From the 6/24/05 Dayton Daily News:

 

 

House backing shaky on Third Frontier ballot issue

By William Hershey

Dayton Daily News

 

COLUMBUS | Ohio House Speaker Jon Husted, R-Kettering, said Thursday he does not have the votes to pass a resolution that would place a bond issue including $500 million for Gov. Bob Taft's Third Frontier program on the Nov. 8 ballot.  "It doesn't look good," Husted said.  House leaders will keep trying to round up the votes, but if they don't there would be no reason for the House to come back next week before recessing for the summer, he said.

 

Full story at http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0623thirdweb.html

 

From the 6/25/05 Toledo Blade:

 

 

Short of votes, GOP delays final high-tech bond issue

BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU

 

COLUMBUS - Still short of votes to put Gov. Bob Taft's Third Frontier bond issue for research and development on the ballot, Ohio Senate and House leaders yesterday put the vote off until Aug. 2.  The deadline for legislative passage of a joint resolution for the constitutional amendment is Aug. 10.  House Republicans outnumber Democrats 60-39, but are unable to muster the supermajority 60 votes.

 

"It's my hope that, as we return to our districts, the people of Ohio will contact their representatives in the legislature to send the message of the importance of jobs and the economy for our state," said House Speaker Jon Husted (R., Kettering).

 

Full story at http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050625/NEWS24/506250421/-1/NEWS

 

Democrats initiate dialogue over Third Frontier proposal

The party wants to ensure the ballot issue will be fair to all areas of the state.

 

COLUMBUS (AP) — House Democrats, encouraged by Gov. Bob Taft's veto of a ban on embryonic stem cell research, would build support to put his high-tech bond proposal on the ballot if Republicans agree to certain conditions, the chamber's top Democrat said Wednesday.  The Democrats want Taft and majority House Republicans to agree to assurances that the ballot issue will be fair to labor and embrace all areas of the state, said Chris Redfern of Port Clinton, the Democratic leader.

 

Taft's proposal, which he calls the Third Frontier, was defeated by voters two years ago.  This year, it's part of a $2 billion package that also includes $1.5 billion in bonds for road, bridge and sewer improvements and industrial site cleanup.

 

Full story at http://www.vindy.com/content/national_world/307375343741840.php

 

I have a question, and I would be the one to raise it.... Why aren't investments in high-speed and regional rail part of the public works component of the Third Frontier? It seems to me that these types of investments would fit nicely with the vision for creating a more "intellectual economy." Using energy-efficient, high-technology rail systems are not only a way to safeguard the state's economy from a future of limited natural resources, but would create jobs that can't be exported overseas and catalyze spin-off development around stations in historic neighborhoods that have sat fallow since the government started the interstate highway program. Has anyone in the halls of power in Columbus thought of including rail in the Third Frontier?

 

KJP

From the 7/26/05 Toledo Blade:

 

 

'THIRD FRONTIER'

Columbus mayor supports Taft plan

BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU

 

COLUMBUS - Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman offered yesterday to work with legislative leaders to get Gov. Bob Taft's $500 million bond issue for high-tech investment on the Nov. 8 ballot, even as Democrats generally continue to oppose the plan.  Republican leaders plan to call a vote on Aug. 2 on the bond issue, which would be linked on the ballot with renewal of a $1.35 billion bond issue for local public works projects and $150 million in new borrowing for projects associated with "shovel-ready" industrial and business sites.

 

"I think the Third Frontier is good for our state, for our citizens, and the future of jobs and economic development in our state, and that's what leaders do," Mr. Coleman told about 300 gathered in Columbus for a Democratic Leadership Council meeting.

 

Full story at http://www.toledoblade.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050726/NEWS24/507260396/-1/NEWS

 

From the AP, 7/30/05:

 

 

$2B bond issue gets more likely

The Associated Press

 

COLUMBUS - Chances of putting a $2 billion bond package for road projects and high-tech jobs on the November ballot improved Friday after Democratic leaders agreed to promote a modified proposal to their members.  The House and Senate will debate next week whether to ask voters in a single ballot question to approve $500 million in development money for high-tech projects such as alternative energy and bioengineering, along with public works money for highways, water plants and cleaning up old industrial sites.  Democrats had opposed uniting the issues, in part because voters rejected the high-tech bonds in November 2003 despite lack of organized opposition.  House Speaker Jon Husted had said the resolution deserved a vote Tuesday with or without the needed Democratic support.

 

Full story at http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050730/NEWS01/507300386/1056

 

From the AP, 8/3/05:

 

 

House OKs vote on bonds with condition

The Associated Press

 

COLUMBUS - With needed Democratic help, the House on Tuesday approved a ballot question for a $2 billion borrowing package that combines public works bonds for road repairs and water and sewer projects with bonds supporting high-tech industry.  The measure was sent to the state Senate with an 84-7 vote, with only one Democrat among the "no's."  Then Democrats got a surprise.  Their support was based in part on an agreement that lawmakers would not insert language into the constitutional amendment banning use of the bond money for embryonic stem cell research.  That agreement was followed, but after the vote Gov. Bob Taft's administration announced he would limit the embryonic research by executive order.

 

Full story at

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050803/NEWS01/508030368/1056/rss02

---

From the 8/3/05 PD:

 

 

House approves 'Jobs for Ohio' bid

Taft's Third Frontier stripped from issue

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

Julie Carr Smyth

Plain Dealer Bureau

 

Columbus - The Ohio House overwhelmingly agreed Tuesday to place a pro-job bonds package on November's ballot, after stripping it of references to Gov. Bob Taft's signature Third Frontier initiative.  The so-called "Jobs for Ohio" package is expected to clear the Senate today.  House Speaker Jon Husted, a suburban Dayton Republican, said scrapping the Third Frontier name places emphasis where it belongs.  He said most of the money will go to basic water, sewer, road and bridge improvements while only a portion will go to high-tech grants.

 

Full story at http://www.cleveland.com/ohio/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/news/1123061618160110.xml&coll=2

 

I just love these Jesus freaks that run our state (and federal) government. Each day we seem to move one step closer to a Christian Fundamentalist State.

 

KJP

KJP,

 

I think you're correct. I heard that at the last minute the House nixed the title "Jobs for Christians."

^ LMAO!

 

Here are the main aspects of the bond issue, BTW:

 

* $1.4 billion for public works projects around the state, including roads, bridges and water projects.

 

* $150 million to clean up old industrial sites, or brownfields.

 

* $500 million for the Third Frontier project, the state's plan to spur high-tech development in the state. The state would use the

 

* $500 million to provide grants or loans to tech companies or research institutions.

 

From the AP, 8/8/05:

 

 

PERSPECTIVE: Outnumbered Democrats got rare chance to flex muscle on bonds

CARRIE SPENCER

Associated Press

 

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Outnumbered for more than a decade, Democrats in the Legislature got a rare chance to flex their muscle on a hefty public borrowing package awaiting voter approval.  With some Republicans splitting from their leaders over a portion of the issue that they consider corporate welfare, and religious conservatives objecting to what they see as an implicit support of a type of abortion, the GOP needed Democrat help get the $2 billion bond package on the November ballot.  So the Democrats publicly disapproved or were silent for months, leading many statehouse insiders to predict the ballot question was dead for the year.  Instead it overwhelmingly passed the House and the Senate last week - after Democrats got changes they wanted.

 

Full story at http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/news/state/12328105.htm

 

From the 8/7/05 Dayton Daily News:

 

 

Nanotechnology could give Ohio edge in global economy

By Jim DeBrosse

Dayton Daily News

 

DAYTON | Someday, Ohio could be "the heart of it all" for making state-of-the-art automobiles, aircraft, biomedical devices and electronics.  Researchers here believe the region has its best hope of generating new jobs through the emerging field of nanotechnology — the science of constructing new materials from microscopic bits of matter just five to 10 atoms in size.  Nano-composite materials can have properties that make them ideal for making everything from tiny probes that can spot very early forms of cancer to automobile and jet engine parts that can operate at higher temperatures and with greater fuel efficiency.

 

Full story at http://www.daytondailynews.com/localnews/content/localnews/daily/0807xrdsnanotech.html

 

From the 8/15/05 PD:

 

 

High tech, highways reach out for money

State bonds proposal has share of critics

Monday, August 15, 2005

Becky Gaylord

Plain Dealer Reporter

 

When Ohio voters rejected Gov. Bob Taft's proposal to amend the constitution to spend an extra $500 million in bonds two years ago, the move denied money intended only for high-tech research and job creation.  This fall, voters who don't want the state to spend millions more on high-tech projects will also have to snub fixing local roads, bridges and sewers.  Two-thirds of a monster $2 billion statewide bond issue would go for those popular public works projects.

 

Full story at http://www.cleveland.com/news/plaindealer/index.ssf?/base/cuyahoga/1124098477199260.xml&coll=2