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Vigorous discussion and news at Buckeye State Blog re: what’s going to happen with the school funding issue. I left this comment which indicates my concern about all the connections and names popping up re: pursuing a constitutional amendment to alter the formula.
What I didn’t get to write about last night was the topic of how, during the 126th legislative session in 2005, the Legislative Office of Education Oversight was eliminated and to what extent was that all in the plan, at least, the Republicans plan and the charter and voucher school proponents’ plan.
Now, the BSB post implies that the constitutional amendment approach began to be considered “all the way back” in 2005. Hmm, say, August ’05 when news of the oversight office’s elimination was coming out? Anyone think that the elimination of the oversight committee was coincidental with everything else going on re: school funding efforts and how different sides paint the others and with what available data?
Number one – let’s kill all the lawyers redux: number one? Let’s make sure there’s no data.
I don’t know – I really don’t actually know. I wasn’t following things so closely then. Who was and what can you tell us about that move and its connection to these current efforts re: revamping school funding formulas?
According to this 8/05 Akron Beacon Journal op-ed, by none other than Scott Piepho, the oversight office was the closest to keeping tabs on…charter schools. Don’t want to see what’s really going on with them in the big picture? Just get rid of the entity that oversees them. Read Scott’s entire piece – it’s excellent.
Should we check and see which lobbyists and which legislators were most involved in getting rid of the nonpartisan oversight entity? Anyone want to put money that White Hat and/or David Brennan shows up somehow? I don’t actually know, I’m just pointing this out.
What am I saying? Let’s not be fools and let’s all keep our eyes open, please. Jerid posits that lobbyist Betts – the repository for contract bids to help the organize and push the constitutional amendment for school funding – seems to be a “good guy” when it comes to solving the school funding issue.
Jerid also mentions that Eric Fingerhut’s name appears to be associated with the constitutional amendment efforts at some point or points. That interests me, I’m a big fan of Eric’s. However, Eric also supported OLE/Issue 3 and I disagreed with him on that, even though his position on it impacted me very much. Additionally, Eric is listed as one of the state senators who, in 9/05, sought to re-instate the LOEO (along with Fedor, Dann, Zurz, Roberts and Hagan) through SB 161 (it went no where). So any clarification from him directly or anyone else familiar with Eric’s efforts on behalf of school funding (I should look back at his MTB sessions) would be welcome (and not sneered at, promise).
As for Betts? Absolutely not yet would I consider him a “good guy.” Still, maybe, yes. But right now? No way. Not me. I need more – and I wouldn’t sneer at that either.
Pho – maybe you can help?
By Jill Miller Zimon at 3:09 pm January 6th, 2007 in Politics
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[...] recognize the hypocrisy. Ok – maybe not. Of course, I continue to harbor anger about the Ohio legislature’s 2005 killing of the office that oversaw charter schools. Moving [...]