The Politics of the Opioid Epidemic in Ohio
Dayton, Ohio Mayor Nan Whaley Andrew Welsh-Huggins / AP Photo
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Also in our State and Local Daily Digest: Iowa department launches review of state’s child-protection system; Pennsylvania Republicans push pension reform; and Lincoln’s trolley troubles.
CITY HALLS | The cities of Dayton and Lorain in Ohio are planning to sue manufacturers and distributors of painkillers, drugs that have had serious impacts on their cities. “This is about justice for our communities,” Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley, a Democrat who entered the Ohio governor’s race last month, said at a news conference on Monday. Last week, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine, a Republican expected to be a candidate for governor, filed a lawsuit against five major opioid manufacturers and their subsidiaries. Whaley said: “We’ve gotten too little help from the state, which has done too little for years. Even the state’s lawsuit does not go far enough to hold responsible all the bad actors that created this epidemic.” The opioid abuse epidemic is expected to be a top campaign issue in the 2018 governor’s race. [Toledo Blade; WHIO-TV]
The Detroit Pistons are planning to vacate their arena in suburban Oakland County, Michigan, and relocate to a newly built facility in downtown Detroit. But the plan for the new Little Caesars Arena isn’t a done deal yet. At least one member of the Detroit City Council, Raquel Castañeda-López, plans to vote against the proposal on Tuesday, saying she’s not satisfied with the community benefits. [Detroit Free Press]
PUBLIC SAFETY | Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback has not yet said whether he’ll sign a bill approved by the state legislature with bipartisan support that would allow hospitals to continue ban concealed firearms from their facilities. The National Rifle Association and a some conservatives have objected to the bill. “These are heartfelt, difficult issues,” Brownback said. “This is a strong second amendment state so you’re trying to address those issues.” [The Kansas City Star]
CHILD WELFARE | The Iowa Department of Human Services, which has been under scrutiny since two girls adopted out of foster care died of starvation, is working with the Child Welfare Policy and Practice Group, an Alabama-based private consultancy, to the state’s child protection system. State lawmakers on Monday held a hearing into the department’s practices and the starvation deaths. [The Des Moines Register; Radio Iowa]
INFRASTRUCTURE | On May 15, Alaska Gov. Bill Walker sent a seven-item infrastructure wish list to President Trump and White House budget director Mick Mulvaney. The letters and the list have been obtained through a public records request by Alaska Dispatch News. One request is particularly notable, given Trump’s decision to pull the United States out of the Paris Climate Agreement. Walker is asking for $124 million to help relocate the southwestern Alaska village of Newtok—a community that is disappearing as sea levels rise and land sinks. [Alaska Dispatch News]
Lincoln, Nebraska’s launch of two rubber-tired trolleys will be delayed at least 10 months, after minor problems were discovered with the vehicles that has spawned a legal battle over who owns them. Bolts hadn’t been coated for rust protection, etched windows had been mispositioned, seat padding was forgotten and one wouldn’t start. A $500,000 check was due to National Bus Sales, which had its assets purchased by Creative Bus Sales during the holdup. Now the latter can’t produce proof of ownership, and the former can’t be reached. Contract termination and a procurement reset is likely. [Lincoln Journal-Star]
Watch a semi-truck crash into a low-clearance railroad bridge overpass in Tonawanda, New York. [The Buffalo News]
HOUSING | Oakland, California must build a minimum 870 affordable housing units a year to meet Regional Housing Needs Assessment Goals, but last year only 39 units were approved in favor of 2,212 market-rate apartments and homes. Contracting discrimination against women and non-whites could be partly to blame. [East Bay Express]
PENSIONS | New Republican legislation to overhaul public pensions in Pennsylvania is moving rapidly through the GOP-controlled legislature with Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf expressing support for paying down system debt. If passed, future state government and public school hires would be given the choice between the current plan and a 401(k)-style benefit. [Pittsburgh Post-Gazette]
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