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Article published Sunday, December 26, 2004

GOP shows who's in charge in Columbus

By JIM PROVANCE
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU


COLUMBUS - Conservative Republicans flexed their muscles in 2004, pursuing an agenda of allowing Ohioans to carry hidden handguns, a ban on gay marriage, and a business-backed crackdown on lawsuit verdicts. While the Buckeye State lived up to the hype as the key to the White House, campaign fund-raising scandals plagued Republicans in the House, Senate, and state treasurer' office.

And through it all, Ohio quietly set another record pace for a calendar year with seven executions, second only to Texas nationally.

"Some have said the legislature has threes caucuses: the Democrats, conservative Republicans, and the other Republicans," said John Green, political science professor at the University of Akron.

"That happens when one party is in charge," he said. "I don't think that means Republicans can't govern. They can, but there is the intraparty dispute as well as the disputes between the major parties."

This year may have been the calm before the storm of 2005. The state must plug what has been projected to be a $4 billion hole in the next two-year budget even before additional spending is factored in.

Lawmakers must decide whether to keep the promise that a sales tax surcharge of a penny on the dollar will expire as scheduled June 30. A petition drive led by Secretary of State J. Kenneth Blackwell to force lawmakers to prematurely repeal the tax hike came up short.

"The Speaker [Larry Householder] was unable to throw off the shackles of the [campaign finance] scandals to pursue his own agenda; so he was compelled to embrace the agenda of the far-right members of his caucus on social issues," said House Minority Leader Chris Redfern (D., Catawba Island).

But some of the issues, although stymied for years until now, crossed Republican-Democrat lines. Mr. Redfern, for example, supported the law allowing Ohioans to carry concealed handguns, a reflection of his rural district.

Campaign scandals
Sen. Randy Gardner (R., Bowling Green) would like to think the campaign finance reform bill he championed would have passed even if three associates of state Treasurer Joe Deters had not pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges in connection with a purported "pay-to-play" scheme to steer state investments to campaign contributors.

Or if federal and state investigations had not been launched into the campaign tactics of Speaker Householder (R., Glenford) and two consultants for the House Republican caucus.

Or if Sen. Jeff Jacobson (R., Vandalia) had not removed himself from near certain election as the next Senate president after admitting he used a Montgomery County Republican Party operating account to indirectly hire those same aides to advance his leadership aspirations.

By the time the first special session on a single issue in 28 years came to a close two weeks ago, lawmakers had passed a bill requiring public disclosure of campaign contributions and expenditures for every elected office in Ohio.

"I think clearly a case could be made that events over the last two years created the climate that allowed for this kind of reform," said Mr. Gardner.

Democrats abandoned the bill, however, once the GOP quadrupled contribution limits to candidates, failed to shut down accounts used by county parties to circumvent contribution limits to statewide candidates, and restricted the use of labor money to influence elections.

Concealed carry
It appeared at the close of 2003 that yet another attempt to make Ohio the 46th state to allow law-abiding citizens to carry handguns hidden had fallen short.

But holiday negotiations led to passage in early 2004 of a bill that Gov. Bob Taft said met his standard of having at least the acquiescence of most law enforcement.

The law went into effect with much fanfare in April. Statewide, 38,434 permits had been issued through Sept. 30 Fewer than 1 percent of applications had been denied.

Gay marriage
The battle over gay marriage began early in 2004 with passage of Ohio's Defense of Marriage Act, reasserting that it was state policy that marriage be between a man and a woman.

But church and other groups succeeded in taking the issue to the next level, gathering enough signatures to ask voters to approve an amendment to the Ohio Constitution to prohibit government recognition of same-sex marriages.

The amendment passed with 62 percent of the vote, despite opposition from Mr. Taft and some other state leaders that a prohibition against governments providing health insurance or other benefits to same-sex couples could harm the ability of Ohio businesses to recruit talent.

Tort reform
The state Supreme Court has repeatedly struck down legislative attempts to restrict jury awards in civil litigation in the past, but Republicans and the business community banked that recent elections have changed the court's philosophy.

The result was passage of an avalanche of business-backed tort reform in 2004, enough to prompt Speaker Householder to suggest Ohio now has the most business-friendly legal climate in the nation.

Ohio became the first state to implement a medical standard that those exposed to potentially deadly asbestos and silica must meet before they may sue those who manufactured, sold, or used it.

Noneconomic damages for pain and suffering in product liability and other lawsuits would be capped in less serious cases and judges would be required to review verdicts in cases involving catastrophic injury to see if an award was too high.

Lawmakers also granted immunity from lawsuit to doctors volunteering free care for the poor in their own offices rather than in free clinics.

Contact Jim Provance at: jprovance@theblade.com or 614-221-0496.