LORDSTOWN Village council opposes electronic services act

The resolution will be forwarded to several state officials.
By SHERRI L. SHAULIS
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
LORDSTOWN -- Village officials oppose a section of the Ohio Legislature's Biennial Budget Act of 2003.
Council unanimously passed a resolution Monday that opposes the proposed Electronic Government Services Act, which is a part of the legislation.
The measure, which has already passed the state House of Representatives and is now before the Senate, would prohibit municipalities and other local governments from providing information technology-based services if they are also available from a private entity.
"Basically, it deals with electronic transferring of information," Mayor Arno Hill said. "It kind of prohibits us from providing any of those services. They don't want us to do anything."
Hill said the measure would effectively stop communities from participating in "e-government," or offering government services by electronic communications. That means no more municipal Web sites, or even fiber optic networks, he said.
What it says
The resolution reads, in part, that if approved by the Senate, the act would "seriously impair the ability of local governments to enter the information age" and "would prevent efforts to make government more accessible to citizens."
The resolution also says the proposed act would violate the Home Rules powers allowed for under the Ohio Constitution and would prohibit many local governments from continuing to provide services they offer through the Internet.
Council will forward a copy of the resolution to Ohio Senator Marc Dann, as well as to members of the Senate Finance Committee, state Attorney General James Petro and Gov. Bob Taft.
slshaulis@vindy.com