Saturday, December 11, 1999
Corporate community failed to sway Cincinnati school votes
BY HOWARD WILKINSON
The Cincinnati Enquirer
Cincinnati's corporate community spent $336,942 — or $9.26 per “yes” vote — and still failed to pass a levy for Cincinnati Public Schools (CPS) on Nov. 2.
In addition, three Cincinnati school board candidates backed by business interests outspent the opposition, but only one was elected.
Cincinnatians Active to Support Education, the pro-school levy campaign committee, received about 90 percent of the money it spent on Issue 11 from Cincinnati businesses, including $50,000 from Procter & Gamble.
Eleven companies gave $10,000 or more — Cinergy, American Financial, Ashland, Cincinnati Financial Corp., Delta,Federated, Fifth Third Bank, Firstar, General Electric, Krogerand Western-Southern Life Insurance.
The Coalition Against Taxes and Spending, the organized opposition to the levy, was outspent by about 17-to-1, with a $20,000 radio ad campaign.
Still, the additional 4.5-mill levy was voted down by 52 percent of the voters in the CPS district.
In the school board race, former Ohio Gov. John Gilligan was the top vote-getter in a six-candidate field. He spent $70,000, with little business support.
Two other candidates, incumbent Art Hull and Louis Buschle, both had major backing from Cincinnati businesses and lost. Mr. Hull spent $41,357 and Mr. Buschle was the top spender at $80,953.
The only candidate with business support to win, incumbent Rick Williams, spent $51,799. Florence Newell, a first-time candidate, won a seat on the school board spending only $9,101.
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