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Housing remains a struggle for Ohioans in Appalachia

Counties in Appalachian Ohio are gripped by a kind of generational economic sluggishness that leaves too many facing not just food insecurity, but housing insecurity as well. But U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development data shows only about one-fourth of the state’s emergency shelters are in Ohio’s 32 Appalachian counties. “We have a vast shortage of homeless shelters,” Chasity Schmelzenbach, executive director of the Buckeye Hills Regional Council, according to a report by the Ohio Capital Journal, said. HUD’s 2022 data showed an average of more than 10,600 people ...

Leave faith-based counseling up to parents, not schools

State Rep. Reggie Stoltzfus, R-Paris Township, is the primary sponsor for a bill that takes an unusual approach to the lack of student support services in some Ohio schools. House Bill 240 would allow public schools in Ohio to employ chaplains. Yes, you read that right. Stoltzfus believes students and staff need more community-based support in times of adversity, according to a report by News 5 Cleveland, and he believes chaplains can provide it. “I imagine these people are going to be very well known in the communities and very well trusted,” Stoltzfus told the news station. “I ...

Best of luck to all of our fall sports participants

Ready or not, here it comes. Another school year has arrived. Yes, already! Classrooms open for many next week. But fall sports have already begun. Most of our area teams kick the 2023 season off Friday. All sports are special — especially for the student-athletes involved — but it seems fall sports come with so much anticipation and eagerness. It is all part and parcel with a new school year and all the excitement that comes with fresh classrooms full of kids. A high school stadium on a game night is often the place to be. It’s not just the game on the field but the ...

The wait continues for tighter rail regulations

For six months, politicians and railroad industry leaders — well, mostly Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw — have loudly proclaimed their desire to “make right” what happened in East Palestine. Since the February derailment, there have been hearings and meeting, promises and … almost no progress. According to a report by The Associated Press, major obstacles have been GOP leaders in Congress and the railroad industry. “These rail lines pass frequently through Republican areas, small towns with a lot of Republican voters,” Ohio’s Republican U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance said. “How ...

Special election posed challenges for some poll workers in Ohio

To their credit, poll workers in Ohio managed to pull off an August election despite the shortened timeline and issues ranging from hastily switched polling locations to machine malfunctions. According to a report by the Ohio Capital Journal, those challenges did not turn into serious problems. But election watchers and the workers who held everything together have raised some alarms. “It’s more indicative of an election that boards of elections were not fully prepared for, and that poll workers were not adequately trained for,” Nazek Hapasha, policy affairs manager for the League ...

Another example of oversight needed over state officials

What a shame Ohio public officials continue to prove to state residents it is necessary to keep a close eye on them. Most recently, we learned the Office of the Ohio Inspector General has a long list of findings in reaching its conclusion that the Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission has failed to comply with procurement process requirements. It is a good thing an anonymous tipster let the OIG know what was happening. That led to an investigation into whether “the processes OTIC used for the soliciting, awarding, and payment for Construction Administration and Inspection, and ...