Statehouse Journal Friday, May 4 Administration Unveils Plan To Consolidate ODMH And ODADAS The Kasich Administration announced efforts Friday to combine two cabinet-level agencies on mental health and addiction services into one department. The Department of Mental Health and the Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services will start consolidating their "back office" functions over the next year and will ask the General Assembly to create a new combined agency in July 2013, the administration announced. ODADAS spokeswoman Stacey Frohnapfel-Hasson said the administration plans to include the proposal in the biennial budget bill to be introduced next spring. State Revenues Surge Again In April, Now $350 Million Ahead Of Estimates Strong personal income tax receipts during the key month of April pushed state coffers further into the black with two months remaining in the fiscal year, as total tax receipts now stand at about $350 million more than analysts expected when generating estimates a year ago. While Gov. John Kasich's administration has being doing its best to temper enthusiasm over the state's budget picture and the potential for increased program spending in the near term, the ongoing revenue surge is sure to keep stakeholders energized in their push to convince the apparently more receptive General Assembly to mitigate past spending cuts. Tax receipts in April totaled $2.15 billion, with PIT receipts accounting for nearly $1.3 billion, according to Office of Budget and Management preliminary revenue figures. The tax collections were $84.4 million, or 4.1%, higher than estimates generated for the current two-year state operations budget (HB 153 ). Churches Join Fray Over Early Voting; Elections Repeal Negotiations Ongoing Church leaders joined the group seeking to overturn a controversial GOP-passed election law Friday in ask- ing Republicans to restore the final three days of early in-person voting. Meanwhile, negotiations are continuing between the petition committee and legislative leaders over a possi- ble deal where petitioners and Democrats withdraw their referendum from the November ballot if Republi- cans agree to allow the final three days of early voting before Election Day to proceed. Last week during session, House Republicans suddenly called off action on a bill to legislatively repeal last year's election law (HB 194 ) to allow time for negotiations. Democrats say the majority's repeal measure (SB 295 ) would leave intact a provision shortening the early voting period, a key target of their referendum ef- fort. While House Republicans are discussing the issue, Senate President Tom Niehaus (R-New Richmond) said Thursday he was not involved in the negotiations and believed the early voting period was a separate issue, since it was included in legislation (HB 224 ) passed after House Bill 194 Alan Miller , President | Scott Miller , Vice President | Kent Cahlander , Editor | John Chalfant , Marcus Roth , Rachel Buccicone , Staff Writers 17 S. High St., Suite 630 | Columbus Ohio 43215 | Telephone: 614.221.1992 | Fax: 614.221.7844 | [email protected] GONGWER NEWS SERVICE STATEHOUSE JOURNAL Southwest Ohio Chosen For Federal Initiative That Pays For Proactive Primary Care Up to 75 medical practices in the Cincinnati and Dayton area will revamp their delivery of primary care with the support of $15 million per year in federal funds, the Cincinnati-based Health Collaborative said Friday. The federal Center for Medicare and Medicaid Innovation has chosen the Cincinnati-Dayton area as one of seven regions to participate in a trial program over four years. The Comprehensive Primary Care initiative aims to foster collaboration among public and private health care players to strengthen primary care, ac- cording to CMMI. "Greater Cincinnati and Dayton was selected because our commercial insurance plans were able to point to collaborative efforts by a variety of stakeholders already underway to support comprehensive primary care using the Patient-Centered Medical Home mode as well as integrated technology, outcome measurement systems, and support for payment models that reward healthier patient outcomes," Collaborative Executive Director Greg Ebel said in a release. Other Headlines Task Force Meets To Discuss Funding, Efficiencies For State Court System Capitol Scene: Mecum Named Director of OACCA From Congress: Kucinich Calls Unemployment Rate Decrease Sign Of Weak Recovery; Fudge; Brown; Turner Court Briefs: Schlichter Sentenced To 10 Years; 250 Pass Bar; Juvenile Court Courses Created; OSBA President Elected; Trial Management Seminar Held … Ohio Business: AEP Tries To Intervene In FirstEnergy Plan; Macy's Sales Up; Cedar Fair Revenues Increase; Cardinal Health Income Rises … Agency Briefs: AG Announces Demolition Grant Guidelines; JobsOhio Discusses Commitments; Fraud Database Launches Monday, May 7 Controlling Board Approves Funding For OARnet Expansion The Controlling Board on Monday approved $3.1 million to fund an expansion and enhanced speed for the Ohio Academic Resource Network, effectively adding two more hubs for the broadband system. Gov. John Kasich announced during his State of the State address that the OARnet broadband for higher education institutions would be strengthened from 10 gigabits per second to 100 gbps. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, February 7, 2012) The uncontested Controlling Board action allows for Portsmouth and Wooster to join Akron, Athens and Youngsown as hubs under Phase II of the development that the state has described as helping to advance research and job growth across Ohio's medical research, higher education, manufacturing, engineering and technology networking corridors. Page 2 GONGWER NEWS SERVICE STATEHOUSE JOURNAL "This is the new gold standard for technology and information sharing, and we want to ensure that the en- tire state benefits from its potential," Gov. Kasich said in a release. "Portsmouth is a gateway to Southeast- ern Ohio, and Wooster serves as an important agricultural stronghold as home to The Ohio State Univer- sity's Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center and Agricultural Technical Institute. Both cities are natural selections from a geographic and economic standpoint." Oil And Gas Well Construction Rules Clear Final Hurdle Long awaited regulations on oil and gas well construction cleared a legislative panel Monday despite linger- ing concerns from some environmental groups. The Department of Natural Resources rules that withstood consideration by the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review were years in the making and stem from a major overhaul of oil and gas regulations the passed the legislature last session (SB165, 128th General Assembly). ODNR spokeswoman Heidi Hetzel-Evans said the rules would ensure oil and gas operators follow certain practices to ensure the safety of nearby residents and the environment. Administration Unveils New Prescription Guidelines For Opioids; Kasich Calls Stan- dards ‘Huge Step' Gov. John Kasich on Monday heralded a new set of statewide guidelines to prescribe painkillers, saying the development was a major advancement in Ohio's efforts to address its increasing opioid problem. While not meant to replace individual clinical advice, the Opioids and Other Controlled Substances (OOCS) guidelines provide a general approach for emergency departments and acute care facilities, according to the administration. "This is a really big deal to be able to get the emergency rooms to agree that they're going to enter a protocol so that we're not going to allow people to go in there, get these prescriptions and be able to sell them," Mr. Kasich said in a release. "This is a huge step, and I can't tell you how happy I am that the urgent care people raised their hands and said, 'We want to be a part of it'." The governor's Cabinet Opiate Action Team developed the guidelines over the last several months, Mr. Kasich's office reported. The administration has taken aim at the problem given some troubling trends. Schools, Businesses, Competitors, OCC Push Back On AEP Rate Case Businesses, schools, competitors and consumers generated a wave of opposition to American Electric Power Ohio's rate plan as the groups recently filed testimony intervening in the case. Many of the witnesses asked the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio to reject AEP's proposed rate plan, which would hike rates by an average 5% rate across all customer classes starting in June, with smaller ad- ditional increases in 2013 and 2014. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, March 30, 2012) AEP says the rate plan would mitigate rate increases that were authorized in the original electric security plan (ESP) and ensure a fast and orderly transition to the competitive market, while offering investors some measure of financial stability. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, March 30, 2012) Certain charges that AEP's competitors pay would gradually decrease each year until that transition, which would occur more quickly than a market rate option, according to the utility. Proposed capacity costs, which are charged to competitive retail providers to use AEP's lines to sell electricity to their customers, are higher than the current market rate, but the company says it's still a discount from its own costs. Seitz Says He's Not Fretting Corporate Sponsors' Flight From ALEC American Legislative Exchange Council board member Sen. Bill Seitz said recent corporate defections from the conservative policy organization were more of a "bump in the road" than a reason to lose sleep for Ohio's dozens of ALEC members. Page 3 GONGWER NEWS SERVICE STATEHOUSE JOURNAL In recent weeks, several major corporations have disaffiliated themselves with ALEC after progressive groups stepped up criticism that the think tank pushed for "stand your ground" legislation in Florida that hindered the prosecution of Trayvon Martin's alleged killer. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, April 18, 2012) Procter & Gamble, Wendy's, Coca Cola, Pepsi, Kraft, Yum! Brands, and McDonald's are among several ma- jor corporate sponsors that have cut ties with the group, according to the Center for Media and Democracy's ALEC Exposed, which has led a national opposition campaign.