The Cleveland Plain Dealer

The numerous service cuts and job layoffs proposed by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority couldn’t come at a worse time. Riders who still have jobs need to get to work. Riders without jobs need public transit to help find one. And no one wants to see bus drivers and mechanics laid off while Ohio’s unemployment rate climbs.

But the grim economic conditions slamming RTA are painful but familiar.

With consumers hoarding their pennies, the county’s 1 percent sales tax — providing up to 70 percent of the system’s $260 million annual budget — can’t bring in enough to keep the current flotilla of buses on the road without, it appears, some concessions from union employees.

Unfortunately, the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 268, which represents about 1,800 bus drivers, and RTA management are experiencing road rage. The union wants to discuss safety issues, while General Manager Joe Calabrese is bent on negotiating cost-cutting measures. Both sides need to address both issues through negotiations.

Of course, few matters generate as much heat as changing or eliminating bus routes — as Calabrese well knows by now. It’s understandable. Many bus patrons have everything riding on their neighborhood buses, and there is likely to be a furious outcry at RTA’s public meetings on route changes in January.

RTA needs to reconsider both the severity and scope of its proposed route cuts. But attacking Calabrese won’t change things. Fares provide just 20 percent of operating costs. The sad truth is that RTA loses money every time a bus leaves the garage; as with all public transit systems, it needs public subsidies to survive.

The better route is to change the woeful support the state of Ohio gives to mass transit. This state ranks 40th among the 50 states in its aid to public transit as a percentage of its transportation budget, according to Policy Matters Ohio. Per capita, Pennsylvania spends 33 percent more.
To make matters worse, a constitutional amendment Ohio voters adopted in 1947 forbids any portion of the gas tax from being used except on highway programs. The amendment is outdated and ought to be changed.

The ban may have been appropriate when Ohio needed to build highways, but it’s no longer justifiable. In the 21st century, the public needs buses and trains to ease congestion, cut pollution and streamline travel while boosting jobs.

Other ideas some states have explored to broaden the base of support for public transit include imposing small extra fees on motor vehicle registrations and tire purchases.

The federal government has been generous with money for eye-catching construction projects like the RTA HealthLine on Euclid Avenue — but stingy with operating dollars except in some limited cases.

Yet the same philosophy that lies behind projects such as the HealthLine — promoting public transit as a green investment and economic development lever — applies more urgently to keeping public transit viable. Otherwise, these larger investments will become a waste of taxpayers’ dollars.

RTA needs state and federal support to stay on the road. The public should demand it.

Full Article (PDF version)

In metropolitan areas around the country, immigrants are contributing to the economy in very close proportion to their share of the population, according to this report by the Fiscal Policy Institute. Their examination of the role of immigrants in the 25 largest metropolitan areas in the United States shows that immigrants in the Cincinnati and Cleveland metropolitan areas have higher labor force participation and higher total earnings per worker than in most of the other metro areas studied.

The report looks at all immigrants—documented and undocumented, ranging across the economic spectrum. In the 25 largest metropolitan areas combined—comprising more than half of the country’s Gross Domestic Product, and 66 percent of all immigrants—foreign-born workers are responsible for 20 percent of economic output and make up 20 percent of the population.

Press Release

Full Report

This state-by-state report from the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy analyzes how much of a share different income groups pay in state and local taxes.  Updating a 1996 report, this edition shows the distributional impact of state and local tax systems in 2002, and how the regressivity of these systems changed during the 1990s.

*November 18, 2009 (Update) – ITEP issued a new Who Pays? report in November 2009, which is available here. Tax levels in the 2003 report are not comparable to those in the new version because of a variety of methodological changes in the way taxes and income are computed.

Press Release

Ohio Tables

Ohio’s manufacturing sector is a prime first target for achieving energy savings and emissions reductions. To reduce our dependence on polluting fuel, most of which is purchased from outside Ohio, we can help our manufacturers better manage energy use. Savings could be reinvested in facilities, products, and workers.

We recommend the state of Ohio: support climate change legislation; extend and expand Ohio’s Advanced Energy Fund, which is currently set to expire and is wholly inadequate in size; provide free industrial energy assessments, efficiency training, and implementation assistance to manufacturers to encourage private investment; and, investigate the potential for municipal power authorities to build combined heat and power plants on brownfields in order to provide manufacturers affordable and stable energy prices through long-term power purchase agreements (green incentives). The resulting energy savings can solidify Ohio’s manufacturing stronghold in the new global clean energy economy, and make Ohio a more sustainable and vibrant state with a vital role in the nation’s future.

Press Release

Executive Summary

Full Report

Julie Van Wagenen, a summer 2009 Policy Matters intern, produced a series of videos showing Policy Matters staff explaining the organization, the work we do, and our values. Take a look:

Amy Hanauer

Zach Schiller

Pam Rosado

David Rothstein

Shanelle Smith

Dominant public perceptions of government undermine efforts to engage citizens in the day-to-day work of the public sector and the many challenges, decisions and competing priorities that face our public systems. However, it is possible to create a more productive conversation about government and its unique role by consciously tapping into alternative and more supportive public attitudes. 

The Challenge 
Most people only dimly understand government and how it works. 
Three dominant, negative images (one vivid and another blurry) distort thinking.
• The Blurry Bureaucratic Blob – wasteful and inefficient, distinctions between what is public and what is private (and why) are fuzzy at best 
• Government as Vending Machine – a “consumer stance” narrows the view of government to a “what’s in it for me, can’t we get it cheaper” perspective. This narrow transactional analysis does not support the civic approach needed to address public issues. 
• Government as political theater – mere partisan squabbling, a spectator sport that has nothing to do with me. 

Implications: 
• Once triggered, these dominant perceptions short-circuit more pragmatic considerations of government and its role. 
• Any policy or program initiative that requires government is inherently suspect. 
• Debates about public programs and how to pay for them are poisoned before they begin. 

The Antidotes 
We can help people understand the issue by framing the conversation differently. We should start by emphasizing the mission and purpose – the unique and fundamental value of government, the common good and public purposes for which it exists. 

We can also help our case by providing concrete and vivid images of the public systems and structures that undergird our quality of life and the functioning of our communities. 

Finally, we should try to promote citizen-manager thinking – We are the stewards and managers of the public systems and structures that we have created and benefit from; responsible management and stewardship are essential. 

Making the Case: 
• Elevate discussions about public sector priorities to the unique values and mission of government. 
• Help people remember the decades of investment in the many and varied public systems and structures that help to create community well-being. 
• Help people to ask: “what do we need to get done for the good of our communities?” Beware of triggering consumer thinking that reduces any consideration of government action to “what is it going to cost me?” 
• Find practical ways to make governmental functions more inviting, transparent and responsive to citizen involvement. 

The Message
A vibrant public sector helped to make America and Ohio great places to live. Whether it was setting up one of the best education systems in the world, establishing stellar universities, and ensuring that Americans were among the most educated and skilled workers or putting in place a transcontinental railroad and highway system that paved the way for industry to thrive and grow, Americans and Ohioans have historically used our public systems and structures to create a vibrant and successful society. Our focus on the common good spurred us to vastly reduce poverty among the retired elderly, put in place standards for worker safety, and clean up our air and water. By using government as our tool for public purposes we worked to ensure an educated populace, a skilled workforce, a thriving economy and a safe environment. In recent years, we’ve lost sight of some of these proud traditions and we’ve allowed our regulatory protections to collapse, inequality to grow, our safety net to unravel and our education levels to fall behind. New challenges further threaten the public structures that have made Ohio and America global leaders in the past. It is time for our state and national policy decisions to better reflect the unique role that government can and should play in creating a thriving society and addressing the challenges and opportunities of a new century. 

The Project
Policy Matters Ohio and Demos are partnering on a project to reach out to citizens and leaders in Ohio about the value of the public sector. Our goal is to help Ohioans understand how better policies will ensure a stronger public sector and a more successful Ohio. We can conduct workshops, give talks, review documents or strategize about how best to understand what government does for Ohio and how best to create an effective, responsive and excellent public sector. If you are interested in learning more, please contact: 

For more information, see http://demos.org/publicworks 
Demos Associate Program Director Patrick Bresette 512-303-5899,pbresette@demos.org; 
Policy Matters Outreach Coordinator Pam Rosado 216-361-9801prosado@policymattersohio.org 

Dēmos is a national non-partisan policy research and advocacy organization that works with advocates, community leaders, and policymakers around the country in pursuit of: a vibrant and inclusive democracy; a more equitable economy; an empowered public sector that works for the common good; and responsible engagement in an interdependent world. 

Policy Matters Ohio is a non-profit, non-partisan policy research institute with offices in Cleveland and Columbus. Policy Matters uses research, advocacy, media work and outreach to promote a more equitable, prosperous, sustainable and inclusive Ohio. Find us at www.policymattersohio.org. 

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