Another election came and went this week, this time deciding plenty of local levies and amending the Ohio Constitution to allow the state to sell off $2.5 billion in bonds over the next ten years to fund local infrastructure projects.
I’ll go over news from the election and plenty more.
• The story: Hundreds of people in Montgomery County alone were bit by a dog in 2024 and the problem of loose dogs is only growing, leading lawmakers and community leaders to seek solutions.
• Solutions : Montgomery County officials are working to address loose dog complaints through education and population control via spay and neuter services — but expanding shelter space or adding another shelter location is not a part of their strategy.
• Quote: “No single shelter can accommodate the vast number of lost and stray dogs in Montgomery County, where approximately 140,000 dogs reside. Expanding shelter capacity is not the solution,” said Montgomery County Animal Resource Center director and dog warden Amy Bohardt. “Shelters that expand have increased staffing, veterinarian and construction costs while space remains limited. You cannot build your way out of this problem.”
• Legislation: There will be more attempts to legislate the problem, but previous efforts have repeatedly fallen short in the Ohio legislature. Bills were sponsored after a fatal mauling in Dayton in 2014 and another three years later, but none passed the Ohio General Assembly.
Voters discuss priorities & key ballot issues on rainy Election Day
• The story: Voters in the Dayton and Springfield areas braved a chilly and rainy Tuesday to cast their election ballots on school levies, funding for city police forces, or the statewide infrastructure bond program.
• Two voters: In Springfield Twp., Amy Galbreath and Devin Burke both said they were focused on the Clark-Shawnee school income tax levy. Burke said he believes in supporting education and schools after he attended Shawnee schools himself and his sister was a teacher for 32 years.
• Quote: “The school issue is the most important. If you don’t have a good school system, your property value goes down,” Galbreath said, focusing on the big picture. “Children are the future, so we need to keep them educated.”
• Turnout: Huber Heights City Manager John Russell said he took a vacation day to stand outside the polls, in the rain, with a sign to support the city’s income tax renewal. “I’ve seen a lot better turnout. I think the weather, and that it’s not a general election probably keeps some people away,” he said.
• ‘No justice’: Montgomery County community members called on their county commission to use their voice for change at the region‘s jail, where nine inmates have died in the past 2.5 years.These cries were met, mostly, with silence. Sydney Dawes has the story.
• Dayton Commission runoffs: Incumbent Darryl Fairchild, along with Darius Beckham, Karen Wick and Jacob Davis will advance to the November general election in the Dayton City Commission races after being the top four vote-getters in a special election Tuesday, according to the unofficial final results from the Montgomery County Board of Elections. Here’s Cornelius Frolik.
• A bridge too far: Greene County residents who live near an old deteriorating bridge are continuing to oppose its repair and replacement, a $1.8 million state-funded project that proponents say will improve emergency response times and transportation issues in the area. London Bishop has the story.
• Fiscal crisis: Ohio county boards of developmental disabilities are reporting an uptick in expenses linked to an increase in the number of people served and the cost to deliver services. All the while, Montgomery County ranks last in the state in terms of local revenue per capita. Here’s Sydney Dawes.
State political news of the week
• Bonding time: Ohio voters overwhelmingly approved Issue 2, a state constitutional amendment to allow the state to issue up to $2.5 billion in bonds for infrastructure improvements. Here’s Cornelius Frolik.
• Wait, what’s a bond?: With all this talk about Issue 2 and a potential $600 million bond package for the Cleveland Browns, I set out to explain how government debt works on the state level, and to determine why Ohio voters have to approve borrowing money for roads and bridges, but not for a football stadium. Here’s my story.
National political news of the week
• Gunning for cuts: The federal government abruptly canceled a community violence prevention grant, freezing $1.24 million for Springfield’s local efforts to curb gun violence, particularly among young people. Jessica Orozco has the story.
• Sitting it out: Amid heightened scrutiny of federal lawmakers and their personal stock trades, a Dayton Daily News investigation found area members of Congress have quit playing the market — if they ever started in the first place. Here’s the story from Dave Levinthal.
• ‘Risky endeavor’: In this piece, Tom Gnau takes readers through time to explin how the area’s Wright-Patterson Air Force Base set the stage 30 years ago for the historic Dayton Peace Accords to end a war between Croatia, the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. Here’s the story.
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