Ohio now has a real governor, Ted Strickland, who cares about citizens' rights and public health

What a great rebirth for Ohio. Sunday night, Ohio swore in our new Governor, Ted Strickland, and within 24 hours he vetoed the corporate and lobbyist planted, corrupt, anti-consumer, anti-American substitute bill 117, which was made to order for scam businesses to harm citizens. As Strickland states, " I will not allow this legislation in its current form, which drastically undermines current consumer protections, to go into effect during my administration." A Plain Dealer article on the veto [1] reports " Strickland also said the curb on suits against manufacturers "prevents cities from being able to seek justice on behalf of their citizens."" "Our new Attorney General Marc Dann, who, like Strickland, is a Democrat, said he would "vigorously" defend the governor's veto." The PD article highlights the fact that the Republican lawmakers who were responsible for the corrupt SB117 are acting as lawyers and judges now, and that they plan to waste Ohio taxpayer money fighting our Governor... " State Sen. Tim Grendell, a Chester Township Republican who voted for the bill, also said the veto is void because the governor acted outside his authority. He said members of the legislature and trade groups were likely to sue over the veto." Go for it... concerned citizens are certain to defend Governor Strcikland, and those legislators who think they can keep acting corruptly under our new leadership will quickly be eliminated from office, as suggested in a previous article on SB117 by Plain Dealer columnist Sheryl Harris [2], which provides "a list of the Northeast Ohio legislators who voted to curtail your consumer rights". In the new Ohio, such corruption will not be tolerated. Read more about the veto below.

News out of Ohio pasted below...puts to rest the loop about lead paint damage
awards being squashed

Stuart Katzenberg
Head Organizer
Maryland ACORN

Monday, January 08, 2007

Strickland vetoes consumer law change
4:50 p.m. (updated 5:01 p.m.)

Gov. Ted Strickland today vetoed a bill that would have limited the
damages consumers could collect from businesses that defraud them -- the
same bill that outgoing Gov. Bob Taft said he would allow to go into law
without a signature.

The same bill contained limits on the ability of cities and others to
sue manufacturers, a provision that particularly affected lead-paint
lawsuits filed against Sherwin-Williams Co. of Cleveland and other paint
makers.

Because Taft didn't either sign or veto, the 10-day clock continued to
tick on the bill. Strickland stepped in and issued the veto Monday, on
his first day in office. (Link: Governor's Web site)

As The Plain Dealer reported last week:

By declining to pick up his pen, Gov. Bob Taft has ushered into law
limits on the damages that consumers can collect from businesses that
defraud them.

The same legislation prevents cities and others from using
public-nuisance statutes to sue manufacturers whose products pose health
hazards. Six Ohio cities have used those statutes to sue makers of lead
pigments for paints.

Taft said Friday that he favored narrowing the legal tactics that
cities can use against manufacturers but that he could not sign
Substitute Senate Bill 117 because of the "unjustifiably low" cap on
damages available to consumers wronged by predatory lenders and others.

The Plain Dealer's Sheryl Harris has written extensively about the
proposed changes in her consumer column, as in this entry Dec. 24:

In a single vote, [the Ohio legislature] dulled the impact of the
state's predatory lending law before it even went into effect.

They arbitrarily limited awards for noneconomic damages to $5,000.

Simply put, they voted to protect businesses that cheat consumers
from having to pay the price in court.

Spurred on by the car dealer lobby, these legislators acted without
holding a single hearing.

Without asking for testimony.

Without allowing even one consumer to speak out.

From the governor's veto message:

Amended Substitute Senate Bill 117 greatly weakens current
protections provided to consumers in the State of Ohio. This effort to
amend the Consumer Sales Practices Act and arbitrarily limit awards to
victims for noneconomic damages to only $5,000 does not allow consumers
defrauded by companies to seek appropriate justice.

While weakening protections for consumers, at the same time the
bill strengthens protections for companies that may have been
responsible for products that have harmed and even continue to harm
children and others in Ohio. This prevents cities from being able to
seek justice on behalf of their citizens.

I will not allow this legislation in its current form, which
drastically undermines current consumer protections, to go into effect
during my administration.

Attorney General Marc Dann issued this statement:

"Among the last things I did as state senator was, first, to vote
against SB117, and then to join with then-Attorney General Jim Petro and
local elected leaders, as well as housing advocates from across Ohio in
urging Bob Taft to veto the bill," Dann said. "We asked the former
governor to do so because Senate Bill 117 threatened to disarm us in the
fight against predatory lenders.

"I commend Gov. Strickland for taking this action on behalf of the
people of the state of Ohio, and my office is prepared to vigorously
defend his veto in court if necessary. At the same time, I've advised
Senate President Bill Harris and House Speaker Jon Husted that I will
provide them with legal counsel if they choose to challenge Gov.
Strickland's veto."

Senate Bill 17 was sent to Gov. Taft on Dec. 27, 2006. Pursuant to
Article II, Section 16, of the Ohio Constitution, the governor has 10
days, Sundays excepted, to either approve of disapprove legislation
passed by the General Assembly. Jan. 8 is the 10th day for
consideration. Since the former governor neither signed nor vetoed the
bill, but sent it to the secretary of state's office unsigned, Attorney
General Dann advised Gov. Strickland that he, as the new chief
executive, had one day to decide the fate of the legislation.

Kim Fuelling
Program Coordinator
CCOAL - Concerned Citizens
Organized Against Lead
440-371-7588
fax: 440-353-1710

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