I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by the continued far left agenda of former Statehouse reporters who love to take shots at the General Assembly’s Republican majority.
But maybe, just maybe, it would be a good idea for them to make an attempt to be fair and fact based. The recent column, “Ohio lawmakers make at least $71,099 each. What do taxpayers get?” written by Tom Suddes is a perfect example of lazy journalism.
Suddes opines that, “What do taxpayers get for this? Mostly a lot of mouth.”
He believes that people expect the Ohio General Assembly to pass hundreds of bills to justify our salaries. So, let’s talk about that.
Thomas Suddes doesn’t see value in hardworking Ohio lawmakers like me
The vast majority of my colleagues in the General Assembly are hardworking, have jobs outside the legislature and care very much about the State of Ohio and the hard-working Ohioans living in their districts.
Ohio lawmakers make at least $71,099. What do taxpayers get?
I’m a practicing emergency room physician. I received my M.D. from the Medical College of Ohio and have practiced medicine for more than three decades.
I serve as the chairman of the Senate’s Health Committee, and I know from experience what our medical professionals – our nurses, doctors, physician assistants and every person wearing a pair of scrubs faces every day.
As, we emerge from the pandemic, it is important to have a General Assembly with a wide range of knowledge from multiple professional platforms.
Mr. Suddes doesn’t seem to see the value in that.
We strive to make Ohio a good place to live and work
I have the same goal as when I was first elected to the General Assembly in 2014.
Make Ohio a great place to work and live.
The effectiveness of the General Assembly should never hinge on the number of bills passed.
I would suggest that most people would say quality over quantity. Would you rather take a dozen pills or a single multivitamin?
We could have added more road naming and awareness days to raise the overall number of bills passed. Those are also very meaningful, yet often dismissed by the media.
I sponsored a bill a few years ago to name part of State Route 55, Private Marc Cole Memorial Highway. Marc and I went to high school together and played football together. He died in the 1983 Beirut Marine Barracks bombing along with 282 other Marines. The dedication ceremony for that high school and for the family was extremely important and moving for the community.
The Health Committee often holds hearings on bills you might find ordinary or boring. But there is nothing boring about Sarcoma Awareness Day and Blood Donor Awareness day. What may just be another awareness day to the media, is real life to the families and doctors treating them. Their testimony is often heart wrenching.
Ohio Senate president: ’The rabid opposition to State Issue 1 is the height of hypocrisy’
The General Assembly has reduced the number of income tax brackets down to two. There were nine tax brackets just a few years ago.
The current budget we passed last June included a $3.1 billion tax cut, $2 billion more for public schools and $1 billion more for Medicaid. The budget also stood firm for parents looking for education alternatives for their children with universal EdChoice scholarships.
We passed Substitute House Bill 68 that protected children from radical sex change operations. It also included The Women’s Sports Act, which prevents biological males from playing against your daughter, and keeps them out of your daughter’s locker room.
These two issues are supported by about 70% of Ohioans across the state. Supported by a vast majority of parents, not newspaper editorial boards and columnists.
We are not stupid. Rights of ‘certain’ Ohio parents are under attack. We see that clearly.
There is more to the job than casting votes. We help constituents navigate the complex world of securing Medicaid benefits, or help a local government apply for grant money to fund a local project.
It seems that the one offering “mostly a lot of mouth,” is Mr. Suddes, who writes from his tower of judgment on the campus of Ohio University.
Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City) is a member of the Ohio Senate, representing the 5th district since 2019.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Thomas Suddes wrong to criticize what lawmakers do for $71,000 and up