Rep. Miller announces bill to provide more resources to local economies

State Rep. Adam Miller (D-Columbus) today announced the introduction of House Bill (HB) 740 , bipartisan legislation with Representative Steven Arndt (R-Port Clinton) that would give port authorities, Community Improvement Corporations (CIC) and Community Development Corporations (CDC) in Ohio the ability to tap into the state’s bonding authority.  The state would then provide those proceeds to the port authorities, CICs and CDCs for economic development projects.

“If we want Ohio to lead in economic development, we must give these local entities the power of the state’s bonding authority,” said Miller. “We must do everything we can to support these local political subdivisions and organizations in their efforts to equip communities with the economic tools to bring business to our state. I believe this bipartisan, common-sense legislation would do just that.” 

The bill would create the Economic Development Bond Bank that would make loans to port authorities, CICs and CDCs for qualifying economic development projects. This will enable the entities to leverage the state’s financial advantage in the global marketplace. Ohio has a number of loan funds and bank funds, but none are specifically for economic development at the local level.

According to the County Commissioner’s Association of Ohio, the state has more than 50 port authorities. Each is unique to the local economy and activities range from economic development to general community improvement. There are more than 250 economic development CICs and more than 240 CDCs in Ohio.