WFCN –
This month, 21 News revealed that Job Ohio used to use a clandestine decision-making process to distribute funds that were formerly part of the state budget.
For example, at the West Warren Industrial Park, members of the group used the funds for their personal projects. The current request is to prolong the agreement until 2053 with the state’s controlling board.
After discussing the company’s lack of public openness, members of the Ohio Controlling Board have begun to demand explanations from JobsOhio.
Ohio Controlling Board member and State Representative Bride Rose Sweeney urged the organization to “look back and open up the books and show us and prove to us the ethicacy of your organization and that we should continue to have that” now that it has been operating for more than a decade.
Funds for JobsOhio come from the state’s liquor profits, which were part of the state budget prior to JobsOhio’s 2011 takeover. They are requesting an extension of 14 years before they stop getting the liquor revenues from the state, as that arrangement is supposed to last through 2038. With an extension, the charity would be able to retain liquor proceeds until the year 2053.
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Sweeney claims that the expansion, which she predicted may cost approximately $10 billion, is her main beef, and not with JobsOhio’s work for the state.
“There was an amendment added that I would say that most lawmakers were aware of, that was inserted, likely in the middle of the night, into a 6000 page bill that are dealing with school funding, our jails, major major issues,” he stated.
The extension is not mandatory under HB 33; rather, it is permissive upon request. According to the bill:
The initial transfer agreement of the enterprise purchase project may be extended for an extra fifteen years from the end of the original term by the state, at any time and with JobsOhio’s permission, through the execution of a new agreement in compliance with this chapter. The controlling board must accept this extension before it may go into force.
“Should we be making a decision for 15 years, which is likely going to be a 10 billion dollar of what could be a state asset, giving that away with no hearings, no public input,” he asked.
Additionally serving on the board, Representative Tom Patton expressed his eagerness to meet with JobsOhio in order to gather more information.
21 News contacted JobsOhio to inquire about the early necessity of an extension, but they refrained from providing a clear response. A statement was instead released in which “several business organizations” expressed their desire for it. According to JobsOhio Press Secretary Matt Englehart, the state receives seventeen cents in tax income for every $1 that JobsOhio spends.
Since investments are confidential, it is impossible to tell if they would have gone through regardless of the JobsOhio funding.