Legislators vote to prohibit residency requirements: municipal leaders are

[geiger]

furious.

State Legislature's passage of House Bill #82 unconstitutional:

The new "law" fast-tracked through Committee and on to the Floor for a vote yesterday, prohibits political subdivisions from requiring employees to live in a specific area of the State.

Municipalities around the State are already conferring to see who will take it to court first.

1) It violates the sacro-sanct principle of home-rule, which, ironically, Republicans like to use as a mantra when it's convenient for them.

2) Ohio's State and Local Government Fund monies to municipalities continue to be slashed, and are having to make up locally. Meanwhile Ohio's economy continues its slump in the dumpers.

3) 75 percent or more of a City's budget goes to cover Personnel costs. Cities want and need money to stay in their communities; if staff move outside the community, they take their living and spending money elsewhere. From my experience in goverment, I would argue they take their investment/commitment/stake in and to community, too.


So, once again a bunch of seemingly-uninformed, intellectually lazy term-limited legislators shoot Ohioans in the foot, allowing themselves to be bamboozled by one singular special interest group.


I was happy, however, to see my old friend and former mayor Joe Kozuira of Lorain speak out against this bill, as did Barbara Sykes of Akron, both D's.