Check For Yourself

Protecting the Middle Class

ATTACK:    Ken Blackwell’s allies say Ted Strickland is bad on taxes.

FACT:    Ted Strickland has always worked to protect families and tax cuts for the middle class.

Check for yourself: Ted's Voting Record

Strickland voted to reduce capital gains taxes for small businesses and family farms and to eliminate the capital gains tax on the sale of homes up to $500,000 and to extend tax relief to families for educational expenses throughout all four years of a college education. 
[H.R. 2014, 6/27/97, H.R. 2014, 7/10/97, and H.R. 2014, 7/31/97]

Strickland voted to allow the self-employed to deduct the full cost of their health insurance policies and give all households a credit of up to $1,000 for the purchase of long-term care.
[H.R. 2488, 7/22/99]

Strickland voted to extend tax credits to businesses conducting important research on new technologies and to provide tax relief to employers to hire disabled and other hard-to-employ workers.  [H.R. 1180, 11/18/99]

Strickland voted for estate tax relief for individuals, small businesses and family farms. 
[H.R. 6, 2/10/00]

Strickland voted to give permanent tax relief to businesses that hire disabled and other hard-to-employ workers.  [H.R. 3081, 3/9/00]

Strickland voted to study ways to reform and simplify the U.S. income tax system. [H.R. 4199, 4/13/00]

Strickland voted for estate tax relief for individuals, small businesses and family farms.  [House Amendment 763 to H.R. 8, 6/9/00]

Strickland voted to eliminate the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing taxes jointly. [H.R. 4810, 7/12/00 and H.R. 4810, 7/18/00]

Strickland voted to protect social security benefits from taxation. [House Amendment 1041 to H.R. 4865, 7/27/00]

Strickland voted to eliminate the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing taxes jointly.  [House Amendment 23 to H.R. 6, 3/29/01]

Strickland voted to offer tax relief for those providing foster care and adopting children.  [H.R. 586, 5/15/01]

Strickland voted to eliminate the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing taxes jointly and to reduce individual income tax rates and to provide a one-time tax rebate. [House Amendment 35 to H.R. 1836, 5/16/01]

Strickland voted to provide tax relief to businesses affected by the 2001 terrorist attacks.  [H.R. 3090, 10/24/2001]

Strickland voted to eliminate the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing taxes jointly.  [H.R. 4626, 5/12/02]

Strickland voted for estate tax relief for individuals, small businesses and family farms.  [House Amendment 502 to H.R. 2143, 6/6/02]

Strickland voted to eliminate the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing taxes jointly.  [H.R. 4626, 6/13/02]

Strickland voted to study ways to reform and simplify the U.S. income tax system to encourage economic growth.  [House Con. Res. 141, 4/10/03]

Strickland voted for estate tax relief for individuals, small businesses and family farms. [House Amendment 171 to H.R. 8, 6/18/03]

Strickland supported families by voting to end the marriage tax penalty.  [H.R. 4181, 4/28/04]

Strickland supported targeted middle class tax relief by voting to rescind the alternative minimum tax, which is an additional tax that middle class taxpayers should not have to pay, on families making less than $250,000.  [House Amendment 522 to H.R. 4227, 5/5/04; H.R. 4227, 5/5/04]

Strickland supported targeted, middle class tax relief to low- and middle- income families by voting to keep more taxpayers in a lower bracket and making permanent the lower bracket. 
[House Amendment 524 to H.R. 4275, 5/13/04]

Strickland supported families by voting to make the child tax credit permanent expanding it to more hardworking taxpayers and making it easier for our soldiers to qualify for the credit. [House Amendment 544 to H.R. 4359, 5/20/04]

Strickland supported families by voting to extend relief from the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing jointly and to make the child tax credit permanent and available to more taxpayers. [H.R. 1308, 9/23/04]

Strickland voted for the deductions of state and local retail sales taxes and college tuition expenses, and tax incentives for small businesses and brownfields clean-up.  In addition, Ted supports targeted middle class tax relief by voting to rescind the alternative minimum tax, which is an additional tax that middle class taxpayers should not have to pay, on families making less than $200,000. [H.R. 4297, 12/8/05] 

Responsible with Taxpayer Money

FACT:  Ted Strickland has returned over three quarters of a million dollars in unused funds from his congressional office to the U.S. Treasury.

Check for yourself: Letter from the House Member Services Department (.pdf)

FACT:  Ted Strickland has refused mid-term pay raises.

Check for yourself:  Letter from the House Member Services Department (.pdf)

FACT:  Ted Strickland has paid for his own health insurance.  Since 1999 alone, Strickland has given back more than $40,000 in health insurance benefits to the U.S. Treasury. 

Check for yourself:  Letter from the House Member Services Department (.pdf)

Protecting Social Security

ATTACK:    Ken Blackwell’s allies say Ted Strickland voted to increase Social Security taxes. 

FACT:    Ted Strickland has always worked to protect Social Security. 

Check for yourself:  Ted's Record

Strickland Opposed Privatization of Social Security.  According to the Youngstown Vindicator, Ted Strickland and Timothy J. Ryan “were together Wednesday at Copeland Oaks Senior Center in Sebring signing a pledge promising to oppose any efforts to privatize Social Security.” [Youngstown Vindicator, 8/15/02]

Strickland received 100% from the Alliance for Retired Americans in 2004 and 100% from the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare in ’01-’02.

FACT:  Blackwell Supports Privatizing Social Security and even Released the Social Security Numbers of Millions of Ohioans.

Check for yourself:  Blackwell's Record

Blackwell Favors Privatizing Social Security.  In March 1998, Blackwell was appointed to the 1998 National Summit on Retirement Income Savings.  The summit explored ways in which Americans can better invest their personal savings towards retirement.  According to the Columbus Dispatch, “Blackwell favors privatizing Social Security by permitting younger workers the option of individual investment funds, similar to the system that has saved Chile's retirement system from bankruptcy.”  [Columbus Dispatch, 3/10/98]

Blackwell: “Privatization Offers Huge Benefits for Most of the Country.”  In March 1996, Blackwell wrote an editorial calling for the privatization of Social Security in the United States.  Blackwell said, “Privatization offers huge benefits for most of the country, increasing personal wealth, savings and tax revenue. Since most individuals and the broader federal budget would gain from privatization, those gains will compensate for the immediate transition costs.”  [Columbus Dispatch, 3/3/96]

Social Security Numbers Posted on Blackwell’s Web Site; Blackwell Ignored Complaint and Removed 1 ½ Year Later Only After Being Ordered by Court. In 2004, Blackwell’s office received a complaint regarding the posting of Ohio citizens’ Social Security numbers on their website.  Blackwell did nothing for a year and half until a Federal Court ordered him to remove the sensitive material.  In March 2006, U.S. District Judge Michael Watson ruled that Social Security numbers posted on the website through Ohio Secretary of State’s office must be removed.  Blackwell stated that the numbers had not been removed earlier because state law didn’t address removing the numbers from the document.  [AP, 3/29/06; AP, 3/21/06]

Weeks Later, Blackwell’s Office Released Social Security Numbers of Millions of Voters. Only weeks after a Federal Judge ordered Blackwell to remove Ohio citizens Social Security numbers from the office website, Blackwell released the Social Security numbers of millions of voters on 20 computer disks when it fulfilled requests for voter data.  Blackwell said that the numbers were accidentally included on the discs and that all the vendors who had received them had returned the information to the Secretary of State’s Office.  [Columbus Dispatch (Page 1 // Page 2), 4/28/06]

Eliminating the Marriage Penalty

ATTACK:    Ken Blackwell’s allies say Ted Strickland voted to raise taxes on married couples.

FACT:    Ted Strickland has voted to eliminate the additional tax burden married couples pay when filing taxes jointly.  

Check for yourself:   H.R. 4810, 7/12/00; H.R. 4810, 7/18/00; House Amendment 23 to H.R. 6, 3/29/01

Job Creation

FACT:  Ted Strickland has a plan to create new jobs for Ohio and protect the ones we have. 

Check for yourself:  Strickland’s TurnAround Ohio Plan

As a member of Congress Ted Strickland worked in a bipartisan way to protect jobs at Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel and to create thousands of new jobs by expanding Route 35 in Southern Ohio.   

FACT:  Ted Strickland has a plan to bring us the jobs of the future by making sure that Ohio has the most educated workforce possible.

Check for yourself:  Strickland’s TurnAround Ohio Plan

As Ohio’s next Governor, Ted Strickland will work to ensure that:

• Every young child in Ohio has a fair start and will start school with the physical, social, emotional and learning tools they’ll need to succeed in the classroom and throughout their lives.
• All public schools are genuine learning communities – both student-centered and relevant to today’s world – with a challenging curriculum that raises aspirations and academic preparation and provides high-quality teaching.
• Every Ohioan who graduates high school will have a deposit in Ohio’s Knowledge Bank that will help fund his or her postsecondary education and that will allow family, friends, businesses, charities and the state to help.
• 230,000 more Ohioans will enroll in the state’s public and private universities during the next 10 years.
• Ohio’s success rate (those who graduate with a two or four year degree) will be improved by 20% in the next 10 years.

Gas Taxes

ATTACK:    Ken Blackwell’s allies say Ted Strickland voted to increase the gas tax. 

FACT:    Ted Strickland has voted to support renewable energy programs and has a plan to lower energy costs. 

Check for yourself: Ted's Voting Record

Strickland Voted For 10-Year Renewable Energy Reserve Program.  In 2001, Strickland voted for an amendment that would establish a 10-year renewable energy reserve program to purchase and store agricultural products needed to produce bio-energy and renewable fuels. [H.R. 2646, 10/3/01]

Strickland Voted to Authorize $10 Million for Public Outreach on Renewable and Alternative Energy.  In 2001, Strickland voted for an amendment that would authorize $10 million annually through fiscal 2006 for a partnership program between the EPA and private industry to promote and conduct public outreach on renewable and alternative energy. [H.R. 4, 8/1/01]

Check for yourself: Ted Strickland’s TurnAround Ohio Plan

Make Ohio a Leader in Developing Next Generation Energy.  A Strickland administration would build on Ohio’s strengths to make it a leader in developing and deploying state-of-the-art energy production technologies. Following are steps it would take:

A $250 Million Investment Plan.  As governor, Ted Strickland will propose setting aside 30% of Ohio’s tax-exempt bonds for next generation energy production projects. This will make available to private business and entrepreneurs approximately $250 million per year in low interest capital for new alternative energy projects. This funding will be budget neutral and won’t require taxpayer dollars.

Encourage the Development of a Wide Range of Alternative Energy Production in Ohio.  A Strickland Administration will complement the bond program with Third Frontier funding to create new jobs and a cleaner environment by investing in new, cutting-edge sources of energy including biofuels, solar, wind, and clean coal technologies.

Spur Hybrid Auto and Renewable Component Manufacturing. Set aside a part of Third Frontier funding and workforce training funds to provide capital and training support to Ohio’s manufacturers who are either making the transition to hybrid auto vehicle manufacturing or entering a new market for renewable energy, such as wind or solar.

Support Clean Coal Technologies. A Strickland administration will work to ensure that Ohio’s regulatory climate provides incentives for investment in a wide range of clean coal technologies. It will also encourage the development and implementation of advanced coal gasification technologies for a variety of purposes including electricity, liquid fuels and fertilizers.

Bring Ethanol Production and Jobs to Ohio.  Marshal the capital and demand to support establishment of Ohio ethanol plants that will produce ethanol to fuel Ohio’s vehicles and help stabilize gas prices for all Ohioans, preferably with a strong equity position for Ohio farmers. Such plants will lift average corn prices for Ohio’s farmers, generate construction and operations jobs for skilled workers, promote use of renewable resources and lessen Ohio’s dependency on foreign sources of oil.

Support development of infrastructure to make biofuels (ethanol, soy diesel, etc.) accessible to every Ohioan.  Expand present state incentives to partner with distributors and retailers to make blends such as B2, B20 and E85 available statewide.

Leading by Example.  A Strickland Administration will take seriously its responsibility to lead by example. It will use state purchasing power to boost demand for alternative energy sources and to ensure energy efficiency savings. Specific actions a Strickland administration will take include:

State will use and test new automotive technologies as they become available.  Every new vehicle purchased for Ohio’s state fleet, with the possible exception of public safety vehicles, will be required to be either hybrid, flex-fuel or hydrogen. In partnership with Ohio’s automotive manufacturers, the state will actively test new composite materials and propulsion technologies that improve vehicle energy efficiency and safety.

Energy Audit.  Within 60 days of taking office, a statewide energy audit will be launched to develop a strategy for making every state-owned building as energy efficient as possible. Not only will this save taxpayer dollars, but it could act as a catalyst for similar cost-saving measures in the private sector.

Launch a Governor’s Higher Education Energy Challenge.   Establish teams of students, faculty, administrators and facility staff to identify energy savings initiatives on their campuses. Awards would be established to reward the most innovative proposals implemented by campuses across the state.