Line by line: The governor pulls no surprises before signing the new budget
Akron Beacon Journal Editorial July 1, 2007 Ted Strickland emphasized in signing the new state budget over the weekend the many areas of agreement with the legislature, Democrats and Republicans crafting a spending plan that attracted just one dissenting vote. The governor hardly jeopardized the climate of cooperation with the 38 line-item vetoes he registered before adding his signature to the document. By way of perspective, Bob Taft exercised almost 30 vetoes in each of the previous two budgets. Clash though he did with lawmakers, Taft would be expected to get along more affably with his fellow Republicans. Strickland deserves credit for delivering no surprises, the Democrat's vetoes largely reflecting long established positions and understandable efforts to protect executive authority. One item that fits in the first category was the veto of a new voucher program for special education students. Speaker Jon Husted has argued admirably on behalf of families that would benefit. The trouble is, as the governor has suggested consistently, such enthusiasm for vouchers has translated into pushing forward without addressing fully the consequences of such an approach, in particular, the lack of oversight and the indirect cost to public schools. In a similar spirit, Strickland vetoed a provision that would have favored abstinence-only programs. For starters, studies have revealed such programs do not deliver as promised. What the governor did was ensure that the approach isn't exclusive but part of a larger effort to develop effective sex education. In the realm of executive authority, Strickland excised a provision requiring the governor to get Controlling Board permission to spend $325 million in the Medicaid reserve fund. This legislative bid to break with past practice seemed less about effective oversight and more about annoying the executive, lawmakers seeking unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles. The legislature could override any of the vetoes. That isn't likely, to say the least. The hope is, the capacity to work together will endure, and even deepen. With the budget out of the way, the challenges are larger. Repair school funding? That will require uncommon cooperation and leadership.
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