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The
Cleveland Plain Dealer
www.cleveland.com
Glenn will co-chair efforts for environmental tax issue
Friday,
July 14, 2000
By
JULIE CARR SMYTH
PLAIN
DEALER BUREAU
COLUMBUS
- Ohio’s most prominent Democrat, John Glenn, has agreed
to act as co-chairman for Citizens for a Clean Ohio, the
organization promoting a $400 million environmental bond
package on the November ballot.
Glenn,
a retired U.S. Senator and the first American to orbit the
Earth, joins the bond fund’s originator, Rep. Gov. Bob Taft,
in chairing the group - lending valuable nonpartisan support
to Issue 1.
"To
have Gov. Taft and probably the most famous Democrat in
the state will be very good for the campaign," political
scientist Herb Asher said. "It sends a nice signal
to voters of different political persuasions that this is
a nonpartisan issue. It lends some visibility and legitimacy
to the effort."
Glenn
was traveling yesterday and couldn’t be reached for comment.
But campaign spokesman Mark Weaver said Glenn was eager
to not only endorse the issue but work for it.
"He
believes it’s a good thing for the environment and for the
people of Ohio," Weaver said. Getting fully behind
Issue 1 has confounded some environmental groups because
it has two parts.
Taft
proposes using $200 million of the money to finance projects
that preserve green space and clean water, and the other
$200 million to fund cleanups of contaminated urban sites,
commonly called brownfields.
The
sites are now cleaned up under the Ohio EPA’s Voluntary
Action Program. Under VAP, private developers pay to clean
up an urban polluted site in exchange for a promise from
the government not to sue them.
The
program is the only state-run cleanup program in the Midwest
without the blessing of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency. The federal agency, in discussions with the Ohio
EPA, is asking the state to monitor the cleanups more closely.
Environmentalists
have feared bond money would somehow be used to bolster
VAP, which they have criticized for being too friendly to
industry.
Taft
has said he intends to clarify soon his intentions for the
bond money. Until then, most environmental groups are withholding
their endorsements. It would ultimately be up to state legislators
to determine the exact uses of the money.
Jack
Shaner of the Ohio Environmental Council said, "On
balance, we think there’s more good for the people of Ohio
in the proposal than bad, though there are some serious
questions. "
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