12/1/2010
A letter was sent Wednesday to the State Senate President, Bill Harris, R-Ashland, from State Representatives Denise Driehaus, D-Cincinnati, and Mike Foley, D-Cleveland. In the letter, the State Representatives urged the Republican-controlled Senate to take action on the three bills passed in the House, which provide relief from mortgage foreclosure.
The letter from Driehaus and Foley stated, “It is incumbent upon us as lawmakers and public servants to hold this industry to the legal standards already in place and to put in place common-sense and equitable regulations to ensure a crisis of this magnitude never happens again.”
The spokeswoman of Harris, Maggie Ostrowski, mentioned that the State Senate is in the process of reviewing pending legislations so that it would be able to settle on which of these legislations needed top priority. Ostrowski, however, did not give any indication whether the foreclosure relief bills are in that group.
So far, there are 54 bills that have been signed into law by Gov. Ted Strickland during the two-year legislative session. These include regulations for new casinos and the state budget.
This coming January, the Republicans will take control of all state government, from the House and Senate to the Executive. Democrat Ted Strickland will be replaced by Republican John Kasich as governor. The GOP was able to retain control of the Senate, while managing to grab control of the House.
Republican legislators have stated that it is important to give Kasich a free hand, particularly in setting new priorities for the state.
