Q&A: Ohio's Senator George V. Voinovich
Senator George V. Voinovich, known as “the Senate’s top debt hawk,” has long championed the cause of fiscal responsibility. As the governor of Ohio from 1990 to 1998, he held budget growth to its lowest rate in 30 years. As the mayor of Cleveland from 1979 to 1988, he established a system of public and private partnerships and helped government “work harder and smarter and do more with less,” and spurred what is known as Cleveland’s Renaissance.
Sen. Voinovich often goes to the Senate floor to remind his colleagues of the importance of fiscal responsibility. The senator is also calling for a “Second Declaration of Independence” from foreign sources of energy. He has advanced an aggressive agenda that seeks to protect manufacturing and has worked to answer the nation’s healthcare troubles with the Health Partnership Act. Additionally, he is fighting hard to ease the burden on our cities from unfunded mandates by the Environmental Protection Agency on their sewers and water infrastructure systems.
A lengthy list of awards recognize his leadership as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, a county commissioner, a county auditor, a mayor, a lieutenant governor, a governor and a U.S. senator. But the reward of his leadership is found in the people whom he serves. Municipal Leader is honored to host Senator George Voinovich in this issue’s Q&A.
Q: As we are all aware, the foreclosure crisis and its impact on the economy, particularly in Ohio, and across the nation, is one of our most pressing challenges. What is your advice on what the federal government should do, both in the short-term emergency in which our communities are suffering and in the long-term regarding the public policy options needed to prevent its reoccurrence?
As the former mayor of Cleveland and lifelong resident of our city, I know that you are acutely aware of how serious the problem has become in our hometown. As in the past, we look to you for guidance and leadership as all Ohioans grapple to deal with this crisis and its multitude of negative consequences for the quality of life and sustainability of our neighborhoods. - Dona Brady, Councilwoman Ward 19 - Cleveland, Ohio
A: As a former mayor and governor, I bear a very special concern about the impact the nation’s foreclosure crisis is having on families across Ohio. My hometown of Cleveland has been hit especially hard by this crisis. In fact, three houses right in my neighborhood are boarded up – the previous owners, victims of foreclosure, having walked away, leaving their abandoned homes to be vandalized.
I am deeply committed to finding solutions to help ease this crisis and help Ohio homeowners stay in their homes. I have successfully passed two pieces of federal legislation to address the mortgage crisis, and I continue to look for additional solutions to provide relief in Ohio.
The first piece of legislation, the Mortgage Cancellation Relief Act, passed the Senate and House and has been signed into law by the president. I was moved to draft this bill after hearing stories about homeowners working out deals with their lenders and lenders forgiving part of the mortgages to make payments more affordable. I was then shocked to learn the IRS was taxing that loan forgiveness as income. This additional tax liability – which can add up to tens of thousands of dollars – actually penalizes those who are trying to work out their financial problems in a responsible manner. Altering this tax penalty encourages homeowners and lenders to work together voluntarily so that payments are manageable and foreclosure can be avoided. So far, this is the only bill to become law that directly attempts to ease this crisis.
My second piece of legislation, the Expanding American Homeownership Act, was passed overwhelming by the House and was largely adopted by the Senate Banking Committee in its Federal Housing Administration (FHA) Modernization Act, which passed the Senate. This bill will allow Americans facing foreclosure or resetting interest rates to refinance without the usual burdens associated with a FHA loan by increasing and simplifying FHA’s loan limits. The differences between the House and Senate bills are currently being worked out, and I am hopeful that a final bill will be sent to the president soon for his signature.
Both of these pieces of legislation will be tools that families can use to work through the foreclosure crisis and preserve their homes as well as their communities. And although great strides were made in enacting my Mortgage Relief Act, there is still much to be done.
In addition to these two efforts, I believe we need additional resources for rehabilitating foreclosed properties and for housing counseling to ensure Ohioans who need help can get it. I look forward to a continuing federal, state and local partnership in search of additional ways to address the foreclosure crisis and make sure that the American dream of homeownership remains an achievable goal for Ohio’s families.
Q: Health care and the lack of health care are at the center of a national debate. It seems to me, and many Ohio sheriffs, that those with mental and physical illnesses are confined in our jails. Many with mental illness would not be incarcerated if it were not for their illnesses. Ohio, which already has a shortage of services, is proposing an additional reduction in spending for healthcare. Mental health funding faces another $50 million-plus reduction. Two more mental health hospitals face closure. The burden is inappropriately being shifted to our jails and prisons. It makes no sense that, upon arrest, Medicaid benefits are cut off, and jails must provide healthcare. Will the federal government assist with soaring costs of medicine and healthcare for our inmate population? - Daniel A. Dunlap, Lake County Sheriff
A: An estimated 57.7 million Americans – one in four adults – suffer from a diagnosable disorder of thought, mood or behavior. Some of these disorders include depression, phobias, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. These are real diseases that cannot be willed or wished away. Like physical health, mental health is important at every stage of life.
Fortunately, mental illnesses are often treatable. Medicines and therapy can improve the lives of most people with mental illnesses, and rates for treatment of mental disorders often equal or surpass those for physical conditions. But not everyone has access to the treatment and rehabilitation they need. This is why I am proud to be a co-sponsor of the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007. The legislation would guarantee mental health parity to 87.4 million employees covered by self-insured plans as well as 31 million employees covered by insured plans. It would help close the widening gap in insurance coverage between physical and mental illnesses. With my support, the full Senate passed the Mental Health Parity Act by unanimous consent last September, and we are currently working to find commonality between this legislation and a similar bill in the House.
Overall, the biggest domestic challenge facing this nation is reducing health care costs and providing coverage to quality, affordable health care for all Americans. For too many years, I have listened to my colleagues on both sides of the aisle talk about the rising cost of health care and the growing number of uninsured Americans. Yet, at the federal level we’ve only been tinkering around the edges of the problem and have not been able to find a meaningful solution.
I have introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation with my colleague Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) that aims to break the log-jam here in Washington and allow states to experiment with various strategies for health care reform. The Health Partnership Act would support state-based efforts to reduce the uninsured, reduce costs, improve quality, improve access to care and expand information technology. It is important that we pass this legislation and provide a platform from which we can have a thoughtful conversation about health care reform at the federal level.
Q: When can we expect the federal government to formulate and implement a legitimate energy policy that addresses the nation’s need to wean ourselves from our dependence on fossil fuels (other than clean-burning fossil fuels) in favor of alternative sources of energy? - Richard R. Benson, Jr., Wooster Law Director
A: Establishing a sound energy policy focused on a clean, reliable, cost-effective and diverse energy supply is critical to protecting and growing American jobs and reducing energy costs for millions of families and businesses. It is time for a “Second Declaration of Independence” from foreign sources of energy. It is critical to both our economic and national security interests.
The energy bill that passed in 2005 was a tremendous step toward energy independence, marking the first time in decades that the United States has developed a comprehensive energy plan. This bill included a number of provisions to expand our portfolio of domestic energy resources, such as increasing the national use of ethanol to 7.5 billion gallons; calling for public-private clean coal research and development to keep coal-fired electricity cost-effective and competitive; and creating $2.9 billion in renewable and clean energy tax incentives to support the development of wind, biomass, geothermal, landfill gas and trash combustion facilities. But we must do more.
It is important to remember that establishing a sound energy policy, protecting the environment and stimulating the economy are interdependent priorities. As Ranking Member of the Clean Air and Nuclear Safety Subcommittee, I believe that both the development of clean coal technologies and the safe and secure growth of nuclear power can play an important role in harmonizing the country’s need for energy independence, economic competitiveness and a healthy environment.
The growth of nuclear power will also afford a huge opportunity for the expansion of manufacturing and the creation of jobs in Ohio. Last August I hosted a roundtable on nuclear energy in Cleveland with area industry and community leaders. During the discussion, I outlined my strategic plan to help spur new nuclear plant licensing and construction and discussed how Ohio-based businesses and communities can benefit from the resurgence of nuclear power both within the United States and abroad.
Finally, we must continue to encourage the development of alternative and renewable energy sources to reduce our dependence on both foreign oil and fossil fuels. Last year, Congress passed the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which will increase the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) to 36 billion gallons by 2022. Additionally, Ohio is quickly becoming a world leader in renewables by developing and manufacturing materials derived from renewable resources like corn and soybeans. I am excited about recent developments in cellulosic ethanol research and was proud to visit new ethanol plants across the state that, according to some estimates, will help Ohio produce 900 billion gallons over the next three to five years.
We can no longer ignore or merely feign interest in our country’s energy needs, nor can we be unrealistic or shortsighted in our solutions. There is too much at stake.
Q: Stark County has lost thousands of jobs in the past few years. Stark County had 2,812 foreclosures filed in 2007, and the State of Ohio had about 94,000. The foreclosure crises are real in Ohio and across the country. Ohio is one of the states that has been hit the hardest in these crises, and people are struggling every day to find solutions to save their homes and pay their mortgage and property taxes. With the increase in school levies and the cost of living going up, tax payers are very concerned about how they will make ends meet. As a county treasurer, I am very concerned for not only Stark County, but the rest of Ohio as well. I would like to see some action from the House and the Senate to start taking care of our people in the United States and create new job growth and less tax burdens. What are your plans to help create new jobs and retain the ones that we have? - Gary D. Ziegler, Stark County Treasurer
A: I am also very concerned with the state of Ohio’s struggling economy and I am working hard from several different angles to ease the pain and help ensure that Ohioans can find high-paying jobs. As I mentioned earlier, I worked to protect Ohio homeowners from unfair tax penalties through passage of my Mortgage Cancellation Relief Act which was signed into law in December 2007.
I am also an ardent supporter of putting private investment capital to work in some of our most economically distressed communities through New Market Tax Credits (NMTC). With that in mind, I co-sponsored the New Markets Tax Credit Extension Act of 2007 to ensure the continuance of the NMTC through 2013. NMTCs are designed to stimulate private investment and economic growth in low-income communities that are often overlooked by traditional investors. In 2007, five Ohio awardees were granted NMTCs totaling $340 million.
In order to create new jobs, I introduced legislation in March aimed at making it easier for states to implement regional workforce and economic development programs that meet the needs of the workers and employers. I am very disturbed that despite the fact that Ohio has an unemployment rate above the national average, its companies are still unable to find the highly skilled workforce needed to succeed in the global marketplace.
The Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development Act of 2008, or the WIRED Act, will assist states in attracting and retaining businesses and jobs by helping to ensure that states have the necessary flexibility when spending federal workforce development funds. Currently, it is relatively difficult for states to quickly move federal workforce dollars to address different workforce development needs. The WIRED Act is designed to allow states to use federal workforce money in a more flexible manner. In addition, the WIRED Act will allow state and local governments to leverage federal economic development dollars for development of a well trained workforce.
My legislation works to ensure that America’s workforce includes the right people with the right skills in the right place at the right time. Local economies are where companies, workers, educators, researchers, entrepreneurs, philanthropies and governments come together to create competitive advantages and where new ideas and knowledge are transformed into advanced, high-quality products and services.
Q: In order to encourage and facilitate economic development, local communities are often required to expend significant amounts of funds for infrastructure improvements. Certain types of improvements, such as water treatment facilities, require adherence to federal standards that typically add to the cost. Should the federal government take on a greater partnership role with local communities in order to stimulate economic development opportunities? - Patricia Geissman, Medina County Commissioner
A: Maintaining and upgrading our aging water infrastructure is good public policy and should be a top priority. Unfortunately, the federal government has taken it upon itself to impose costly mandates on local governments with little consideration of how they will be met and who will pay. We are asking our communities to do the impossible.
I strongly believe that the federal government must step up to the plate when it comes to water infrastructure improvements. If the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is going to impose these mandates on struggling state and local governments, then it should provide funding and flexibility for compliance, something I have aggressively fought for.
One of the most effective and popular sources of funding for wastewater collection and treatment projects is the Clean Water State Revolving Loan Fund (SRF) Program. Billions of dollars have been distributed though the program to upgrade the nation’s aging wastewater infrastructure.
That is why I am continually disappointed that the president’s budgets propose severe spending cuts for the program. I recently sent a letter to EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson expressing my anger with the proposed 2009 budget cut for Clean Water SRF to $555 million – the lowest funding level in the program’s history. I would like to increase the funding for this program to $1.35 billion to ensure Washington isn’t forcing cities into bankruptcy.
Last September, I attended an Environment and Public Works Subcommittee hearing titled “Meeting America’s Wastewater Infrastructure Needs in the 21st Century.” At the hearing, I stressed my concern about the lack of funding for water and wastewater infrastructure projects to fulfill mandates from EPA.
This concern moved me to co-sponsor the Water Quality Investment Act, which would authorize $1.8 billion in federal grants to fund the repair and replacement of combined sewer overflows and sanitary sewer overflows. My legislation holds the federal government responsible for paying its fair share for the nation’s pressing water and wastewater infrastructure needs.
With a recent EPA needs survey indicating that Ohio must invest more than $10 billion to upgrade its water treatment plants, this issue is not going to disappear. I will do everything in my power to ensure that something is done about this massive federal unfunded mandate and environmental and public health crisis in the making.
Q: In his book, “School Reform from the Inside Out,” Richard Elmore (2006) writes that present U.S. educational reform movements are based on two central ideas:
- Teaching and learning in U.S. schools and classrooms is emotionally flat and intellectually undemanding/unengaging.
- Reform is based on the premise that “all students can learn.”
What reformers seem to mean by this is that “all” students – or most students – are capable of mastering challenging academic content at high levels of understanding, and the fact that many do not is more a case of how they are taught rather than whether they [the students] are suited for serious academic work. Would you agree or disagree with these central ideas, and what is your vision for the future of K – 12 public education? Should we continue to stress high test scores based on academic ability, or should we be more concerned with creativity and identifying each student’s gift (i.e. Gardner’s Theory of Multiple Intelligences)? - Wade Lucas, Green Local Schools Superintendent
A: Providing every child with the opportunity for a world-class education is the best way to help every Ohio citizen make the most of his or her God-given talents. It is also our most effective economic development tool and the best investment we can make in the future.
As you know, in January 2002, President Bush signed the No Child Left Behind Act. The law reauthorized funding for the Elementary and Secondary Education Act and implemented new requirements for schools and teachers.
While I supported many provisions of the bill, I felt I had to vote against the final measure because I believe it impedes local control of education in Ohio and across the nation. In my 40 years of service to Ohio, I have learned that it is those closest to our parents and students – the state and local leaders – who know our students the best and who are able to understand their specific educational needs. As I have often said, one size does not fit all when it comes to education.
I do however believe we have a responsibility to give our children the skills they will need to participate and be successful in the global economy. That is why I was an original cosponsor of the America Competes Act. Among other initiatives, this legislation, which became law last year, aims to create a workforce full of educated and motivated young Americans.
Right now, we are not getting the job done. Globally, the United States ranks seventeenth in the proportion of college-age population earning science and engineering degrees. The Competes Act will provide scholarship and training programs to recruit new K-12 science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) teachers and for student-focused STEM programs. These include: grants to states for public, specialty and secondary schools in science and mathematics; Advanced Placement (AP) or International Baccalaureate (IB) courses at the high school level; scholarships and fellowships for undergraduate and graduate students; and enhanced mentoring for postdoctoral scholars. NEO
