League of Women Voters of Ohio
Hamilton County, OH November 4, 2003 Election
	Dwight K. Daum Answers Questions Candidate for Member Council; City of Reading; Ward 1

The questions were prepared by the LWV Cincinnati Area and asked of all candidates for this office.

Read the answers from all candidates.

Questions & Answers

1. How would you implement your top priority?

Reducing spending, reducing taxes and attracting new business to Reading must occur as a package. The first step is to reduce unnecessary spending within all departments, including City Council. To do this, an audit of each department is required. It may also be helpful to encourage all City employees to anonymously suggest ways to reduce expenditures - possibly with a percentage cash reward after one year of demonstrated savings for adopted suggestions.

2. Numerous important issues including transportation, land use planning, housing and economic development for the Greater Hamilton County regions are being deliberated by OKI's Land Use Commission and Hamilton County Regional Planning Commission and Planning Partnership COMPASS; how engaged should local government be in these planning activities? If elected, how would you participate in these planning activities?

Local governments should be heavily engaged in all regional planning. Additionally, legislation must be enacted to provide local veto power and control over various regional government efforts along with regional organization accountability to local governments. This will have to be done at the regional and state levels. Once elected, I will bring legislation to council for these purposes.

3. Ohio Department of Natural Resources in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the National Recycling Coalition conducted a state-specific study and found recycling businesses in Ohio generated $650.6 million dollars in state government revenue. If elected how would you promote recycling and support recycling programs currently in place in your community to reduce solid waste generation?

Since this applies more to the state level than the local level, the real question should be, "If the state is taking in so much in taxes, why does it want to collect and hold for 30 to 90 days all local taxes as well?" Answer: The state should keep its hands out of the pockets of local governments. It may be possible for a 30 day delay by the state in releasing tax money to cause Reading to be unable to meet payroll if the city budget gets tighter.