Ohio is now the only one of the 50 states that reduces unemployment insurance by 100 percent of Social Security payments received by jobless workers. Thus, many older workers find when they lose their jobs that their unemployment insurance is reduced or cut to zero. Ohio Senate Bill 116, introduced by Sen. Joy Padgett, would eliminate this Social Security “offset,” as it is called. Policy Matters Research Director Zach Schiller testified in support of the bill at an April 24 hearing of the Senate Finance and Financial Institutions Committee.

Read Zach Schiller’s Ohio Senate Committee testimony

In 2005, Policy Matters Ohio testified in the Ohio legislature against sweeping tax law changes that gave massive tax breaks to wealthy individuals and certain segments of the business community. As the Ohio House of Representatives considers making changes to the budget submitted by Governor Strickland, we call on legislators to take stock of the effects of tax reductions on public services and consider whether the tax changes have helped the economy. Nearly two years after the tax changes, Ohio’s total non-farm payroll employment stands at 5.43 million, barely higher than in the summer of 2005. The manufacturing sector, which was supposed to be the main beneficiary of tax reduction, lost nearly 29,000 jobs since June 2005. House Bill 119 reflects continuation of anemic revenue growth from previous years: Aid to local governments is barely increased after years of being frozen, higher education continues to be squeezed, and it is a struggle to find revenue even to restore parents’ coverage under Medicaid to 100 percent of the poverty level.

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May day - Jonathan Cohn, a senior fellow at the national think tank Demos, and a senior editor at The New Republic, traveled the country talking to those who have suffered from our dysfunctional health care system. He’ll be at the Cleveland City Club on Friday May 11 to discuss his new book Sick: The Untold Story of America’s Health Care Crisis—and the People Who Pay the Price. The book inspired a cover story in the New York Times magazine, catapulted itself onto the NYT bestseller list, and is inspiring discussion and action to cure health care. 

Rescued! – We’ve saved Amanda Woodrum from drowning in a sea of other, less enjoyable job offers. Amanda founded the Akron Law student newspaper, earned a Master’s in Economics and a law degree, and worked at the City of Cleveland Law Department and the Summit County Council, where she received a commendation. That experience and her rave references earned her a slot as our new Columbus-based Policy Liaison. Welcome, Amanda!

Elderly, out of work, and out of luck – Yesterday Research Director Zach Schiller testified to the Senate Finance Committee on a proposal to join every other state in the nation by restoring to retired workers the ability to receive full unemployment compensation when they lose their jobs. Right now, Ohio is the only state that reduces unemployment benefits by 100 percent of Social Security payments. A fix is likely to be voted out of committee next week.

Tax cut fallout – In 2005, we said that ill-advised tax cuts would lead to insufficient revenue for needed services and wouldn’t help the economy. They were rammed through anyway, and we’ve still lost manufacturing jobs since, for a variety of reasons. Now the lack of revenue forces us to choose between college affordability and health care for the poorest. Yet our research has shown that states with strong public sectors have stronger economic growth. Our statement on the budget summarizes these issues.

Dollars that make sense - Over 800,000 Ohio families received the Earned Income Tax Credit in the 2005 tax year, helping workers with modest incomes get by. David Rothstein’s new report shows that Ohio could add more than 40,000 recipients with more aggressive outreach. A state component could help further. Read what we’ve said.

Save the planet and the date – Jerome Ringo, President of the national Apollo Alliance for Good Jobs and Clean Energy, will come to Cleveland State’s Levin College Forum on Thursday, May 31st from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. to talk about how smarter energy policy could help Ohio’s economy. 

Executive decision – The national think tank Dēmos has added our director Amy Hanauer to the Executive Committee of its board of directors. Hanauer will bring the concerns facing Ohio workers to this leading national organization.

That’s all!
The Policy Matters Ohio Team 

Ohio job market shows uptick

Ohio’s job market showed an uptick in March, reversing the recent trend, according to seasonally adjusted payroll numbers for nonfarm wage and salary jobs released April 20 by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS). The gain was the largest in any month since January 2006. However, month-to-month data can be volatile and are later revised, so it is unwise to put too much weight in a single month. Job losses earlier last winter still have left the state with fewer jobs than it had last fall or a year ago.

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