A Time for Hard Decisions in Columbus…
I do not envy anyone in State leadership today. The tsunami in our national economy which first hit Washington DC has now come to Columbus.
Since the state of Ohio, from a constitutional perspective, cannot have a bi-annual budget deficit, now is the time for some very hard decisions. No matter what the final decisions are, all of us are going to feel real, significant financial pain, or at least real disappointment.
Every decision has significant pro’s and con’s — spending cuts, increased taxes, gambling. The fact is there are no perfect solutions to help Ohio move easily forward.
Press clippings that speak to this challenge include: Columbus Dispatch, Dire costs to fixing budget hole, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Both parties in the state budget debate fear decisions that could leave them vulnerable to campaign attacks, and Akron Beacon Journal, Closing Ohio budget gap would be painful.
Now is the time where government leadership really counts and while the decisions have not been made to date — but will be made by June 30th — I have to say that I have been impressed by the leadership in the State across the board.
Like it or not, these decisions and their impact on Ohio’s future may very well be the most important decisions in our lifetime.
Ray Leach is CEO of JumpStart and brings his energy and leadership experiences from founding five high growth entrepreneurial and intrapreneurial endeavors in the last 20 years. Ray is a Sloan Fellow and earned an MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management. He also earned a BA in Finance from the University of Akron.