Speaker 1: Listen, it's something new.
Speaker 2: Anything Trump does. I think you know leave during every day?
Speaker 1: What do we have to do?
Speaker 2: You know?
Speaker 1: Fifty five KARC the talk station atoh five Here fifty
Speaker 1: five kr CD talk station. Happy Wednesday. Judg en Off
Speaker 1: Alton about him in the hour has this case every Wednesday.
Speaker 1: And I'm happy to welcome to the fifty five CARS
Speaker 1: Morning Show. High State Senator George Lyon, currently serving his
Speaker 1: second term of the High State Representative people of the
Speaker 1: fourth Senate District covering the majority Butler County, elected by
Speaker 1: his Senate College the Service Senate Minority Whip Majority rother
Speaker 1: Whip for the one hundred and six thirty six General Assembly.
Speaker 1: He previously served a couple of terms Ohio House of
Speaker 1: Representatives and he's here in the fifty five kr SEE
Speaker 1: Morning Show to talk about the Ohio budget bill. Mike
Speaker 1: DeWine vetoed sixty seven provisions in the bill. We'll talk
Speaker 1: a little bit about that. Welcome back, Senator Lang. It's
Speaker 1: a pleasure having you on the morning show.
Speaker 2: Brian Gabe, great to be back with you. Thanks for
Speaker 2: having me my friend in sixty seven vetos. Can you
Speaker 2: imagine that one of the last time you had to
Speaker 2: sign something sixty seven times.
Speaker 1: You know, it's just fond memories of the two seconds
Speaker 1: that Ronald Reagan had the line item veto and then
Speaker 1: the Supreme Court found it unconstitutional. We do have it
Speaker 1: in the state of Ohio for whatever good or bad
Speaker 1: it brings about, and it brought about some bad the
Speaker 1: other day, Mike de Wines sort of revealing his true
Speaker 1: nature politically. But let's start by congratulating you and our
Speaker 1: other elected officials for capping the income tax at two
Speaker 1: point seventy five percent flat for everybody.
Speaker 2: You know, it's been my number one objective since I
Speaker 2: got up to the State House eight years ago, and
Speaker 2: my ultimate goal is to eliminate the income tax all together. Yeah,
Speaker 2: and you know, it may take Micah a week or
Speaker 2: two to get over his cramping hands and maybe corporal
Speaker 2: tunnel syndromel set in. I don't know, but I feel
Speaker 2: really really good about our odds of eliminating the income
Speaker 2: tax altogether under a Governor Ramaswami.
Speaker 1: Well, since the future governor of the state of Ohiaramaswami
Speaker 1: was on my program yesterday, he embraced that concept completely.
Speaker 1: I asked him about that very specific thing he said, absolutely,
Speaker 1: we are going to eliminate the income tax completely. I mean,
Speaker 1: talk about creating a more competitive state. It's going to
Speaker 1: be wonderful. It's going to be wonderful for the state
Speaker 1: of Ohio.
Speaker 2: Mike, it really is. And if you just look at
Speaker 2: what happened in Ohio in the last fifty years, go
Speaker 2: back with me to nineteen seventy. Not only was the
Speaker 2: music a lot better back then, but in nineteen seventy,
Speaker 2: Ohio itself was rock and rolling. We're making automobiles, tires,
Speaker 2: consumer goods, steal We are the economic epicenter of the
Speaker 2: United States of America. And fast forward to twenty twenty.
Speaker 2: In nineteen seventy, Ohio was the twelfth largest economy in
Speaker 2: the world. In twenty twenty, Ohio became the twenty fourth
Speaker 2: largest economy in the world. We're still slightly larger than Morocco, Mike,
Speaker 2: but we're shadow of where we used to be. And Oh,
Speaker 2: I'm sorry, Brian. And in nineteen seventy, Brian, the average
Speaker 2: Ohioan made ten percent more than the average American, Bryan.
Speaker 2: In twenty twenty, the average Ohioan made twelve percent less
Speaker 2: than the average American. And in nineteen seventy, we go
Speaker 2: from twenty four congressmen to fifteen. What happened the income tax.
Speaker 2: We put the income tax in in nineteen seventy one.
Speaker 2: One tax after another, one regulation after another, Brian, we
Speaker 2: started driving businesses away and people went to where the
Speaker 2: jobs were. No state in America got their butt kicked
Speaker 2: worst in Ohio in terms of congressional representation loss from
Speaker 2: nineteen seventy to twenty twenty. By the way, last year,
Speaker 2: the average Ohioan made four percent more than the average American.
Speaker 2: And I guarantee you we're going to add a congressman
Speaker 2: in twenty thirty.
Speaker 1: Appreciate your optimism, sharing the optimism of vivek Ramaswami, he man.
Speaker 1: I'm telling you can't help but being thus and optimistic
Speaker 1: about the future. When you talk to that guy, he
Speaker 1: really is a cheerleader for the state in the future.
Speaker 2: And you know, Ohio's future is bright. I mean, if
Speaker 2: you just look at what does happened since we have
Speaker 2: started lowering income sackers. Then it started about twenty years ago.
Speaker 2: We got real serious about it about eight years ago,
Speaker 2: and look what happened, Brian. Look at all the companies
Speaker 2: coming back to Ohio, Amazon, Honda, Google, Ford andrew O,
Speaker 2: Intel building the biggest chips factory, and the Galaxy right
Speaker 2: here in Ohio. But what I'm more excited about, Brian,
Speaker 2: are the little guys. In the last six years, two
Speaker 2: point one million startup businesses in Ohio, more than the
Speaker 2: previous twenty years combined. Ohio. Last year, fourteen percent of
Speaker 2: all startups in America were in Ohio. We are the
Speaker 2: startup capital of the world. We're just not the state
Speaker 2: to keep your business where the state to start it.
Speaker 2: I want to make us a state to grow it,
Speaker 2: to keep it, and to stay here.
Speaker 1: Well, and also to market itself. So those businesses that
Speaker 1: are dealing with outrageous taxes and outrageous regulatory issues, that
Speaker 1: they want to move to the state of Ohio, like
Speaker 1: so many states are. So many companies did moving out
Speaker 1: of New York and California. Now, speaking of that, I
Speaker 1: understand that the governor, one of the vetos, he stripped
Speaker 1: out the reins acts, reforms that would have strengthened legislative
Speaker 1: oversight of these ridiculously costly regulations. This is one of
Speaker 1: the things Americans for Prosperity has its eye on. By
Speaker 1: way of overriding the veto. Were you a little shocked
Speaker 1: that he did that? And do you have any concept
Speaker 1: of or any idea of knowing why Governor de Wine
Speaker 1: pulled that particular one out.
Speaker 2: I believe everything that Governor the Wine vetoed, his motives
Speaker 2: were pure. I do believe he's a good man. I
Speaker 2: believe I disagree with him often, but I believe his
Speaker 2: motives were pure. But this one, I truly believe that
Speaker 2: Governor de Wine thinks that government knows best. We had
Speaker 2: a meeting with the Department of Taxation, with the director
Speaker 2: and a few of their deputies, UH several years ago,
Speaker 2: with several of my colleagues in the House of Representatives,
Speaker 2: myself and Senator Johnson, and it was obvious that the
Speaker 2: bureaucrats were in charge. They did not listen to a
Speaker 2: thing we said. We did not intimidate them, and it
Speaker 2: was a simple fix that they could have made without
Speaker 2: any legislative action, and they told us no. You know
Speaker 2: that It's one of the problems with term limits, although
Speaker 2: I fully support it, but term limits you end up
Speaker 2: giving power to lobbyists and bureaucrats, at least lobbyists. I
Speaker 2: understand their motive. It is the profit motive, a pure
Speaker 2: and noble motive. But these bureaucrats, they scare me and
Speaker 2: I don't understand their motive. And they are they are
Speaker 2: They have way too much power and Columbus today.
Speaker 1: Well, they're not accountable to the people, as you point out,
Speaker 1: if they're not elected, they don't have to run for reelection,
Speaker 1: they get to make any decision they damn well please
Speaker 1: and can well ignore the even just the concept of
Speaker 1: representative democracy is he just pointed out in that one illustration.
Speaker 1: So but I mean, whether his motives are pure or not,
Speaker 1: he stripped out the rains reforms, which would put that
Speaker 1: power right back in the hands of the legislative branch
Speaker 1: where it belongs.
Speaker 2: That's not as correct and then very disappointing.
Speaker 1: All right, So what is there a time frame to
Speaker 1: override these vetos? I know everybody's on break right now,
Speaker 1: Independence Day and otherwise, but are you gonna have to
Speaker 1: call people back to Columbus to vote on these or
Speaker 1: can you kick the can down for the road for
Speaker 1: a month or two and then vote on repeals? How
Speaker 1: does this work, Senator?
Speaker 2: Yeah, Constitutionally, we have until the very last day of
Speaker 2: this General Assembly, which would be December thirty first of
Speaker 2: twenty twenty six. The reality is there are quite a
Speaker 2: few things I think, at least speaking on behalf of
Speaker 2: the Senate that you know, we we had a leadership
Speaker 2: meet in and discussed a few things that we think
Speaker 2: are important to override. You know, every single override has
Speaker 2: to originate in the House. So no matter what we
Speaker 2: do in the Senate, because this is a House bill,
Speaker 2: it has to start in the House. I think the
Speaker 2: simple to your answer to your question is, yeah, we
Speaker 2: do have I believe the will for some VETO overrides.
Speaker 2: I don't think we have the will to override all
Speaker 2: the VETO overrides, but I think you will see us
Speaker 2: do some. I don't think we'll be called back during
Speaker 2: the summer. You know, everybody has summer plans. I have
Speaker 2: recently been diagnosed with stage four colo rectal cancer. Some
Speaker 2: treatments down in Tijuana and in July. And don't you
Speaker 2: dare awe me. I'm not a woe with me kind
Speaker 2: of guy. You cancer kind of guys. I'm taking I'm
Speaker 2: gonna kick your ass again. That's that's that's.
Speaker 1: Good for you man. That's a great attitude. To have,
Speaker 1: and I'm not a woe me guy either. After I
Speaker 1: got my parents a diagnosis, I'm playing that. I'm playing
Speaker 1: the cards that I've been dealt. And you know, there
Speaker 1: are a lot more people out there the deserving of
Speaker 1: prayer and sympathy than Brian Thomas. So I appreciate your optimism,
Speaker 1: but best to health to you and good luck with
Speaker 1: the fight, my friend. I know you can beat it.
Speaker 1: He vetoed a lot of the property tax reforms that
Speaker 1: were in the bill as well, and we are in
Speaker 1: desperate need a property tax reform, most notably seniors on
Speaker 1: fixed incomes. They're getting tax right out of their houses.
Speaker 2: Senator, you know it's it's not just seniors on fixed income.
Speaker 2: It is many, many people that the property taxes have
Speaker 2: been devastating to. And the original intent of the property
Speaker 2: tax Mike, when it was original had passed right, you
Speaker 2: had to vote on it, and keep in mind of
Speaker 2: all property tax level levies stayed local. None of it
Speaker 2: goes back to the state, but you had to vote
Speaker 2: on it, and your property taxes, the amount you personally
Speaker 2: paid would never go up unless you voted for another increase,
Speaker 2: and there was a chance that would go down is
Speaker 2: development and more homes were sold. But it was originally
Speaker 2: said that it would never go up. Well, as we know,
Speaker 2: we have bastardized that over the years and we have
Speaker 2: a system now where when valuations are your property go up,
Speaker 2: your property taxes go up commensurate with it. That was
Speaker 2: never the intention of the when we originally allowed property taxes.
Speaker 2: So we do need some reform so that every time
Speaker 2: a school district, every time a municipality, a fire district,
Speaker 2: a library, once more money, let them go to the people,
Speaker 2: make their case and let them convince the voters why
Speaker 2: they need more money. And you know, I do trust
Speaker 2: these bolt and then the good people at the since
Speaker 2: I public schools. But you know we can't just give
Speaker 2: them these bonuses every three years that gotuations increase with
Speaker 2: it has to stop.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, it should be a limit. You know,
Speaker 1: you're voting for X amount and that's all you are
Speaker 1: going to get. If your property tire, your valuation of
Speaker 1: your property goes up, you know, a thousand percent or something.
Speaker 1: The amount of money taken shouldn't go up in a
Speaker 1: commensurate amount. It's capped at whatever was voted on in
Speaker 1: terms of overall dollars, right, is that how we're supposed
Speaker 1: to have it here.
Speaker 2: That's how we were supposed to have it here, and
Speaker 2: that's how we put it into the budget. Now that
Speaker 2: there were some that actually wanted to punish school districts
Speaker 2: and make it retroactive, I was not amongst those, you know,
Speaker 2: I don't think that it was the right thing to
Speaker 2: do to cost make sure the school district's a loss
Speaker 2: of money as a result of this, but just to
Speaker 2: make sure they didn't get a windfall as a result
Speaker 2: of this.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And I understand where you're coming from, because they
Speaker 1: acted in reliance on what they expected to come in
Speaker 1: and they planned accordingly, So to tell them it's taken
Speaker 1: away would put a lot of districts in a rather
Speaker 1: precarious position. So I understand where you're coming from on
Speaker 1: that one.
Speaker 2: And the other thing on education, he vetoed the educational
Speaker 2: savings account would allow some non chartered Christian schools for
Speaker 2: lack of a better term, participate in the voucher program.
Speaker 2: I was very disappointed in that as well.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and that's one that I find rather inexplicable as well.
Speaker 1: I mean, I thought he was a school choice kind
Speaker 1: of leaning guy.
Speaker 2: Yeah, you know, and there is a great Montssory School
Speaker 2: up in Liberty Township that does a wonderful job educating kids,
Speaker 2: not indoctrinating them, but truly teaching them how to think,
Speaker 2: and they're not able to participate in it. With this budget,
Speaker 2: they would be allowed to participate in the program, and
Speaker 2: the Governor's vetoed that is one of the ones that
Speaker 2: I hope my colleagues take up as a priority for
Speaker 2: an overriding.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and I suppose in terms of what my listening
Speaker 1: audience can do being get in touch with the representatives
Speaker 1: and tester them about bringing these to the floor for
Speaker 1: a vote, so you'll have an opportunity to vote on
Speaker 1: its Senator.
Speaker 2: That is correct, yep. And it's got to start in
Speaker 2: the House of Representatives. Call all your local house members
Speaker 2: and encourage in to take up the charge for the
Speaker 2: v tail overriding.
Speaker 1: All right, Especially, I would argue that RAINS Act, the
Speaker 1: Education Savings accounts, any property tax reforms. We desperately need
Speaker 1: that out here in the real world. Well, I'll look
Speaker 1: forward to I guess this will be a piecemeal kind
Speaker 1: of thing. You can pick off one at a time
Speaker 1: and over the period of time that you have, which
Speaker 1: is basically about what eighteen months or a year and
Speaker 1: a half or so.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, that is correct. You know, keep in mind
Speaker 2: we need sixty percent of the vote in order to
Speaker 2: do an override. So I think there would be a
Speaker 2: mistake for us to try to do too many at
Speaker 2: one understood, because you know, there are certain things that
Speaker 2: some of my colleagues, if they were left alone, would
Speaker 2: be a no vote on, and you know, the budget overall,
Speaker 2: usually you can get people to vote for things that
Speaker 2: they don't like in the budget. I have never voted
Speaker 2: for a budget that I liked everything that was in it.
Speaker 2: But as long as we continue in lowering taxes, lowering regulations,
Speaker 2: bringing businesses back, making Ohio more prosperous, I'm going to
Speaker 2: vote yes on it.
Speaker 1: Senator George Lang, it has been a pleasure talking with you.
Speaker 1: We show all the best in the world with your
Speaker 1: cancer fight. I know you're going to beat it. Sound
Speaker 1: really optimistic about that, and that's where it really starts,
Speaker 1: my friend. I look forward to having you back on
Speaker 1: the program to talk about well future legislations, the repeals,
Speaker 1: the votes, and anything else going on to the state.
Speaker 1: About how you know you have a welcome spot here
Speaker 1: in the morning. Should have passed long information to the listeners.
Speaker 2: Thanks Brian, and you have a great day, my friend.
Speaker 1: Thanks and a happy Independence Day to you.
Speaker 2: Sir.
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