News and Analysis
Ohio Fares Well in Site Selection’s 2015 “Governors Cup”
March 4, 2016Texas and Kentucky have again won Site Selection magazine’s Governors Cups for attracting new facilities in 2015 – Texas for total qualifying projects and Kentucky for total projects per capita.
Ohio claimed second place for total projects (517) and third when measured by projects per capita.
Ohio was second in both dimensions in 2014.
The Governors Cups reflect yearly project totals as tracked by the Conway Projects Database. Qualifying projects must meet one or more of these criteria for inclusion in the database: a minimum capital investment of $1 million, 20 or more new jobs created, and 20,000 or more square feet of new space.
Ohio is an Automotive Powerhouse
March 4, 2016According to a blog post byJonathan Bridges, Director of Automotive, JobsOhio, “Ohio produced more than 1,568,311 cars and trucks last year at six different assembly plants across the state. In addition to passenger vehicles, Ohio is home to significant production of medium and heavy-duty trucks from multiple original equipment manufacturers. Automotive companies have invested more than $5.8 billion over the last five years, sparking the creation of more than 20,000 direct jobs across the state.”
Kasich Senior Advisor Chabria Steps Down
March 4, 2016Gov. John R. Kasich recently announced that Senior Advisor Jai Chabria, a key member of the governor’s executive staff from the beginning of the Kasich Administration in 2011, is stepping down from that position to return to the private sector. He’ll have a role in the RNC convention this summer in Cleveland.
The Manufacturing Value Chain is Much Bigger than You Think!
February 26, 2016The Manufacturers Alliance for Productivity and Innovation (MAPI) just released a study that shows that the effect of manufacturing on the U.S. economy is much larger than traditional measures indicate.
Says MAPI: “The traditional finding is that manufacturers’ proportion of gross domestic product (GDP) is only about 11% and manufacturing’s share of economy-wide full-time equivalent employment is just 9%. Since this excludes manufacturing activities such as research and development, corporate management, logistics operations, and advertising and branding, those figures are merely the tip of the iceberg.
” … manufacturing’s footprint is much larger than merely the value-added at the factory loading dock. Manufacturing plant activities lie near the center of a substantial and complex value chain that is composed of an upstream supply chain that gathers materials and services and a downstream sales chain that moves goods to market and sells and services goods. Manufactured goods are also intermediate inputs in nonmanufacturing industries’ supply chains.”
MAPI finds: “The manufactured goods value chain plus manufacturing for other industries’ supply chains accounts for about one-third of GDP and employment in the United States. The domestic manufacturing value-added multiplier is 3.6, which is much higher than conventional calculations.”
Marietta, Here the Governor Comes!
February 26, 2016Governor John Kasich has announced that his sixth annual State of the State address will be held in Marietta on April 6. The speech will begin at 7 p.m. at the Peoples Bank Theatre.
The governor started the popular new tradition of getting out of the state capital city for the State of the State in his second year. He’s taken the show to Steubenville, Lima, Medina and Wilmington the past four years. He takes along his top executive talent and the entire General Assembly for a full day of events in the community.
Senator Obhof Gets Promotion
February 26, 2016Senator Larry Obhof (R-Medina) was elected Senate President Pro Tempore this week. Senator Obhof replaces Senator Chris Widener (R-Springfield) who resigned office this month. Obhof had been challenged by Senator John Ecklund (R-Chardon). Obhof is the favorite to become Senate president next session, when the current president, Keith Faber, will be term-limited.
Sen. Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville) replaced Obhof as Senate majority whip.
Obhof and Manning are good friends of Ohio manufacturing.
Meanwhile, Senator Bob Hackett (R-London) was sworn in to fill Widener’s vacant seat. Hackett had been one of the three state reps in the district.
Governor Reappoints Haque to PUCO
February 26, 2016Governor Kasich has appointed the highly-regarded Asim Haque to a second term at the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO). Haque’s term will run from April 2016 to April 2021.
Congratulations, Commissioner Haque!
Kasich Tops Rivals vs. Clinton in Ohio
February 26, 2016The latest Quinnipiac poll taken in Ohio shows Governor Kasich handily beating either Hilliary Clinton (by 17%) or Bernie Sanders (by 19%) in a general election vote. He outdistances Trump, Rubio and Cruz in beating the Democrats. No Republican has ever gotten to the White House without carrying Ohio.
The poll shows Senator Rob Portman in a dead heat with former governor Ted Strickland.
Are You a Manufacturing Voter?
February 26, 2016
We are an army of 12 million men and women who make things in America. If all 12 million of us vote, imagine the impact we could have in Ohio and in Washington.
In 2016, OMA and the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) will combine forces to support the manufacturing vote.
Watch this short video to see how to register and/or have voting reminders emailed to you. In 2016 be a Manufacturing Voter!
Pass it on!!
OMA Signs onto Biotech Food Labeling Letter
February 26, 2016The Coalition for Safe & Affordable Food submitted this letter to Senator Sherrod Brown to express support for legislative language recently released by Senate Agriculture Committee Chairman Pat Roberts that promotes a national uniform solution for biotech labeling.
The letter says, “Biotechnology has led to increased crop yields, decreased use of pesticides, and lower food costs for consumers. Congress must ensure we avoid senseless mandates that will thwart agricultural advancement and hurt consumers—especially those low income Americans who can least afford to pay more to feed their families.”
And, “Mandatory on-pack labeling of foods produced using biotechnology would mislead consumers and drive up their grocery bills.”