Check out the letter to Sherrod Brown urging relief.

"With a heavy heart, I'm sad to report that on June 5th, 2008, the beloved "Pepper Van" met its untimely end...felled by a storm-tossed tree in Wyoming, Ohio."

But let us not remember how She passed, but how She lived. She came to us in 2001. She logged hundreds of miles carrying a generation of Cincinnatians to and from parades and delivering signs to thousands of households...always reliable, always workmanlike. And even when backed into a building or driven into other vehicles, She never complained.

DaVinci once reflected: "As a well-spent day brings happy sleep, so a life well used brings happy death." While it ended poorly, the Pepper Van indeed led a life well-used.

As we enter the post-van era, it's time to create new memories! Please join us this Fourth of July.

We will be marching in Madeira on Thursday at 6:30pm. On Friday July 4th, we will march the streets of Montgomery, Northside and Sharonville. Joining us for even one parade will be a great help.

If you would like to volunteer in one or all of the upcoming parades, just email Bridget at Bridget@davidpepper.com.

"We at the County are working hard to do our part to reduce emissions and pursue a 'green agenda,'" David said. "We want to do all we can to partner with other governments in the region to do the same."

The Summit will be held:

Please RSVP for this event, by Monday, May 25th to bridget.doherty@hamilton-co.org. If you have further questions, please feel free to contact Assistant County Administrator, Jeff Aluotto at 513-946-4439.

And I have to say, I'm so glad I did. It's not only a citizen's duty-it's an eye-opening and educational experience that benefits every citizen who does it.

I happened to serve on the grand jury (probably would not have made it onto a regular jury). For two weeks, I and 10 other dedicated citizens from all across Hamilton County heard case after case, and deliberated about whether or not to indict fellow citizens for alleged crimes. I can't reveal any specifics, but I can tell you how rewarding the experience was in general.

In this month’s newsletter, foster and adoptive parents take center stage. Hamilton County recently launched a new campaign to increase the number of parents willing and able to create a new safe home for our foster and adoptive children. Also inside are the results of last weeks survey. Just click on this link to read more.

Happy New Year, and thank you for your support and friendship.

As we begin this new year, I wanted to provide a summary of the County’s accomplishments in 2007, and the challenges and priorities we face for 2008. Overall, it was a busy and productive first year for me as a County Commissioner. Let me first say that it’s a wonderful position, with so much opportunity to make a difference—for the entire community, and individual lives. It is a great mix of policy and execution, which suits my interest in style. And for the most part, even in a challenging environment, we at the County were able to work well together—across party lines, and across a broad array of departments and offices.

Most importantly, I think we made some very positive strides in cleaning up a mess that was left by some reckless decisions in prior years. The “cleaning up” we did in 2007 will put us in a strong position to take big steps forward this year and beyond on our key priorities. While we have a long way to go, I was proud to see in a recent survey that the citizens’ view of “County Political Leadership” was at its highest point in years.

The voluntary salary givebacks come as part of a tight budget in which County Commissioners froze wages, made job cuts, and eliminated other services in an effort to close a large budget deficit while holding the line on taxes. Each Commissioner is returning $2,372.00 to the County General Fund.

“When we’re asking so much of our workforce in difficult times, we have to lead the way,” Commissioner David Pepper said."

Today, Hamilton County Commissioners unanimously passed a resolution supporting and advancing a community effort pursuing solutions to teen driving fatalities in the community and State.

In response, a grassroots group organized a Teen Driving Summit last August, which included County leaders, and a coalition of parents, law enforcement officials, insurance companies and driving schools discussed proactive measures to safeguard young drivers. Recommendations were made regarding ways to increase personal responsibility, driver safety, and awareness, while equipping young drivers with the very best instruction, understanding, ongoing education, and accountability. The group also concluded that state legislators need to close the current loopholes in driver license laws and explore ways to reduce crash risks for young drivers by focusing on research and outreach efforts.

The resolution passed today supports this effort, and echoes the need for a comprehensive study to identify best practices, current laws and instructional guidelines on teen driving.

“This is an issue that needlessly devastates families and communities, and we need to do whatever we can to reduce the number of fatal teen crashes on our roads,” said County Commission David Pepper, who brought forward the resolution.

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They filled this gap while keeping their commitment not to raise taxes.

Despite the cuts, Commissioners were able to honor their commitment to public safety:
• They rejected recommendations that might have reduced Sheriff road patrols in county townships
• They supported the increased prosecution of the County’s most violent offenders through Project Disarm, which guarantees tough, federal sentences for those violating gun laws; as well as Countywide SWAT and Search and Rescue efforts
• They supported additional funding for Coroner O’Dell Owens’ work to solve crimes
• They supported continuing the work of the Criminal Justice Commission, and the reforms it is undertaking to relieve jail overcrowding
• They proposed a funding partnership with the City of Cincinnati in an effort to reestablish OTR Patrols in the future, and will explore creating Countywide Hotspot Patrols

Commissioners also focused on the economic growth of the county by restoring investments in the Hamilton County Development Corporation, as well as the Regional Planning Department’s effort to help communities across Hamilton County grow.

The Commission continued to invest in efforts to consolidate services among multiple levels of government throughout the County, in order to improve services and reduce the long-term tax burden on citizens.

“Citizens want us to do more with less, and today all three commissioners united around a budget that does exactly that,” Pepper said. “We are making the necessary cuts to live within our means without raising taxes, but continuing to invest in public safety and economic growth.”

“This is a responsible roadmap out of the crisis we’re in,” Pepper said. “We get through the budget emergency, while doing all we can—with limited resources—to deal with the safety challenges we face.”

The four key parts of the plan are:

3. Reduce Juvenile Crime and Prevention. The County must pursue reforms and investments that reduce juvenile crime, add diversion efforts, and improve the juvenile justice system’s effectiveness at keeping young people from becoming adult criminals.

4. Address Long-Term Space Needs. With the budget stabilized and reforms moving forward, the County will be better able to make responsible short- and long-term space decisions regarding jailspace, including exploring renting space at lower cost from Kentucky, and identifying long-term resources to do this responsibly.

“We need to take a deep breath, and pursue a responsible process to get us out of the bind we are in,” Portune said. “We need everyone to understand that we must balance our budget first, before we responsibly tackle our safety concerns that must begin with reforming the system."

The Commissioners plan incorporates some of the suggestions made by fellow Commissioner DeWine, along with other opponents of Issue 27. The Commissioners also welcomed input from all citizens on how to best move forward.

In 1996, Commissioners used the property tax rollback as an inducement for voters to support a sales tax increase for riverfront development. Since its passage, 30% of the sales tax proceeds have been used to offset property taxes.

In response to a looming budget crisis and potential credit rating downgrade, the county administration prepared 6 options for reducing the property tax rollback that could have generated up to $20 million. All were rejected by commissioners, who opted to continue to rollback at the level promised to the voters.

"We can not go back on a promise made to the taxpayers over a decade ago," said County Commissioner David Pepper. "While we have to tackle our tough budget issues, we can not do so by raising property taxes."

10 Month Results: In just the first ten months of the Homeowner Preservation Partnership (through October 2007), the counseling agencies have reported very positive results.*

• From 1/1/07 through 10/30/07, the Hamilton County Homeowner Preservation Initiative has saved over 400 homes from foreclosure, well ahead of the goal of saving 300 homes in 2007.

• With the estimated community cost of a foreclosure being as much as $60,000, the small investment in counseling has preserved up to $24 million in property value.

• The need is considerable. Counselors are currently scheduling appointments an average of 21 days out. They have received thousands of requests for service.

• In 2006, the City’s emergency mortgage assistance saved 22 homeowners who had an average family size of 4, resided in their homes for an average of 6 years, and had an average home value of $86,736. A 1-year follow up found that all but one of these homeowners remained stabilized in their homes.

• Foreclosure Prevention: Clerk of Courts Greg Hartman is taking the lead in disseminating foreclosure prevention information to homeowners in jeopardy. This is critical because new predatory practices specifically target these already vulnerable citizens.

• Public Awareness: Councilman Jeff Berding is spearheading the Don’t Borrow Trouble Campaign. Working with the County and the Preservation Initiative, Don’t Borrow Trouble is a comprehensive consumer awareness approach that combines public education and counseling services to help homeowners recognize and avoid bad lending practices.

• Enforcement: The Partnership is also collaborating with the Office of the Ohio Attorney General, who plans to aggressively enforce a new state law, S.B. 185, that allows for prosecution for predatory lending practices.