Groups fuel bulk of feedback on Ohio tax change

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Ohio legislative leaders have received scores of e-mails from Ohioans who have been told by a conservative anti-tax group that a proposal to delay planned income tax reductions is a “retroactive tax increase.”

Another driving force behind constituent feedback on the proposal is school districts and mental health providers. Both interests fear the possibility of more budget cuts and support the tax change.

An Associated Press public records request found that the organized interests were behind the bulk of correspondence to the House speaker, Senate president and other leaders.

Gov. Ted Strickland has proposed freezing the final round of income tax cuts for two years to erase a roughly $850 million budget gap. The measure has passed in the House and was sent to the Senate.