2012

(Columbus, Ohio) Franklin County provided additional funding in the Board of Elections budget to support extended and weekend voting hours in the 2008 Presidential Election and the 2010 Gubernatorial Election. Last week’s directive by Secretary of State Husted to restrict early and in person voting hours discriminates against Franklin County residents and limits their ability to participate in the democratic election process.

Striving to increase the early detection of developmental delays in children ages two-and-a-half to four years old - and give more of these children the skills to succeed in school and life - Franklin County Commissioners and the United Way of Central Ohio are expanding a groundbreaking program to offer free learning checkups to area preschoolers.

Strengthened by better-than-expected consumer spending, improving home sales, and a resilient local economy, a mid-year financial update to the Franklin County Commissioners shows that the County is on track to be slightly under budget by year end, having braced well for a slower-than-expected national recovery and major cuts from the Ohio Statehouse.

Following standard safety procedures aimed at keeping the public, county employees and courtroom officials and visitors safe from harm, Franklin County Commissioners were notified and have been monitoring a series of bomb threats made against County-maintained buildings Monday morning.

In response to Friday’s widespread weather and power outage disaster, the Franklin County Board of Commissioners held a special Emergency Meeting on Sunday, July 1, to approve a countywide declaration of emergency.

Recognizing the valuable impacts professional and amateur sports are having on Central Ohio, Franklin County Commissioners are celebrating a new report from Forbes magazine listing the county-owned Columbus Clippers as one of the most valuable minor league teams in America.

In the on-going effort to give more than 1600 young people in Franklin County jobs and internships this summer, County Commissioners are directing $2.8 million in federal funds - part of President Obama’s Summer Jobs Plus initiative - to connect low-income and disconnected youth to paid employment.

Playing a unique role in the effort to create at least 525 new full-time local jobs at a growing Columbusbased company, Franklin County Commissioners are expected to approve a first-of-its-kind economic development grant aimed directly at training workers for the soon-to-be-created job openings.

Backed by historic new federal rules that prohibit landlords and home-loan lenders from discriminating against gay and transgender people, Franklin County Commissioners and the City of Columbus - with support from Columbus City Council - are partnering with the area’s two largest local equality organizations to ensure fairer access to the dream of homeownership.

Less than nine months after a major redesign of Franklin County’s website, County Commissioners are receiving national recognition as having one of the most transparent government websites in the nation.