Tennessee Agrees to $8.8 Million More in FastTrack Incentive Grants

Schneider Electric building

Tennessee’s Department of Economic and Community Development has handed out more than $8.8 million in incentives since it last posted FastTrack incentives for February.

Those include $3.4 million to Schneider Electric in Mount Juliet and Smyrna, $2.5 million to Shoals Technologies Group in Portland, $1.6 million to Nokian Tyres in Dayton and $1.3 million to an unnamed project.

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Commentary: One-Size-Fits-All Education Doesn’t Work Well, but Diversity Advocates Are Hitting the Accelerator

There’s a world of difference in the abilities of elementary school students in the Trotwood-Madison City School District, outside Dayton, Ohio. Some low-performing fifth graders are only capable of reading first-grade picture books with basic words like dog and cat, says Angie Fugate, a district specialist focusing on gifted education. In the same classrooms, the aces read at a sixth-grade level, devouring thick novels that adults also enjoy, including the Harry Potter series.  

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Ohio Gubernatorial Candidate Nan Whaley Announces Coalition of Mayors Who Have Endorsed Her Campaign

A gubernatorial candidate and her running mate have formed a coalition of more than 40 Ohio mayors who are supporting their bid Governor and Lieutenant Governor. 

“Today [Cheryl Stevens] & I are proud to announce a new coalition supporting our #OHGov campaign – Mayors for Whaley-Stephens! As two former mayors, Cheryl and I can’t wait to work with local leaders across Ohio to ensure each community has its own chance at economic success,” former Dayton Mayor Nan Whaley announced on Twitter. 

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Bill Would Put All Potential Ohio Sales Tax Increases Before Voters

A Dayton area Ohio senator wants voters to have the final say on county sales tax increases, introducing a bill that would require a vote on tax hikes.

Senate Bill 93 would require any county commission to get voter approval before raising the county rate of sales and use tax. Two statutes currently allow for counties to raise sales taxes, but voter approval is not always required.

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Exclusive: One-on-One Interview with Dayton Mayoral Candidate Rennes Bowers

Three candidates are running to become the next Mayor of Dayton after incumbent Nan Whaley announced she would not seek reelection in 2021 – former Dayton firefighter and chief Rennes Bowers, former Dayton Mayor Gary Leitzell and current Dayton city commissioner Jeffrey Mims.

The top two vote getters next Tuesday, May 4, will square off in the November general election and the winner will become the Mayor of Ohio’s sixth-largest city.

The Ohio Star conducted an exclusive one-on-one interview with Bowers to ask him what drove his decision to run, how he plans to improve Dayton and what he believes distinguishes him from his competitors.

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Ohio Gunman’s Alleged Pot-Smoking Friend Who Bought Him Gun Parts Charged with Federal Crimes, Feds Say

Federal authorities announced Monday they made an arrest in the investigation into the Aug. 4 mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio.

Authorities arrested Ethan Kollie, a friend of gunman Connor Betts, Friday and charged him with possession of a firearm by an unlawful user of a controlled substance and making a false statement regarding firearms, authorities announced Monday in a press conference.

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Commentary: Obama Is Wrong About America Leading the World in Mass Violence

The predictable has followed the atrocities in El Paso and Dayton. Barack Obama raised the standard when he issued a statement condemning “language coming out of the mouths of any of our leaders that feeds a climate of fear and hatred or normalizes racist sentiments.” This is a bit rich coming from someone who sat with his wife contentedly in the pews of Jeremiah Wright’s Chicago church for 20 years listening to his white-baiting apologia for black violence and international terrorism, including the 9/11 attacks.

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Steve Gill Talks to OANN’s Neil McCabe About Antifa’s Influence Behind the Dayton Mass Shooter and Their Protected Status

On Tuesday’s Tennessee Star Report with Steve Gill and Michael Patrick Leahy – broadcast on Nashville’s Talk Radio 98.3 and 1510 WLAC weekdays from 5:00 am to 8:00 am – with Leahy on out of studio, Gill talked to Neil McCabe of One America News Network about the recent mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio and the shooters disturbing background.

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Ohio’s Dayton Police Called Heroes – Responded within a Minute to Mass Shooting at Historic Oregon District

DAYTON, Ohio — The beautiful tree-lined, brick-paved streets of the Historic Oregon District were eerily quiet Sunday following a mass shooting outside Ned Peppers Bar on East 5th Street earlier that morning. Nine victims have been confirmed dead thus far and more than two dozen injured. Police, who were on the scene within one minute, shot and killed the suspect. Praise for their fast response is coming in from all around the city, and state including from the Oregon District itself.

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Ohio Gov. DeWine Declares State of Emergency in Three Counties Amid Tornado Wreckage

by Tyler Arnold   Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine declared a state of emergency in three counties in the western half of the state after a swarm of tornadoes killed at least one person and injured at least 130 others late Sunday in Ohio and Indiana. The deceased has been identified as 81-year-old Melvin Dale Hannah of Celina, Ohio. He was killed when tornado winds blew a parked car into his home. The state of emergency declaration allows “agencies to provide resources and support beyond their normal authority, under the direction of the Ohio Emergency Management Agency (EMA),” according to a news release. It also allows the Department of Administrative Services (DAS) to suspend normal purchasing requirements to allow necessary spending for recovery efforts and resources, such as water or generators. The three Ohio counties included in the state of emergency are Greene, Mercer and Montgomery. The City of Dayton in Montgomery County sustained heavy damage. Dan Tierney, a spokesman for DeWine’s office, told The Center Square that the cost estimate for the damage will come in about a week or so, and that it is far too early to estimate. Although reports are still coming in, dozens of buildings have…

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Deadly Tornadoes Hit Ohio, Trotwood Suburb Badly Damaged

  TROTWOOD, Ohio – A series of storms tore through Ohio Memorial Day evening, spawning multiple tornadoes and leaving at least one person dead. The death occurred in Celina, north of Dayton, when a car was thrown into 81-year-old Melvin Dale Hannah’s home, killing him while he slept.  The EF3 that hit Celina destroyed or severely damaged at least 40 homes.  An EF3 has winds in excess of 135 mph. Seventy-five miles south one of Ohio’s largest cities, Dayton, was struck with at least two EF3 tornadoes in Trotwood and Beavercreek.  The twin twisters occurred just 30 minutes apart.  Both mayors declared a state of emergency in their suburbs.  Widespread power outages will take days to repair, according to Dayton Power & Light, and Montgomery County citizens are being asked to conserve water since one of their main treatment plants has lost electricity. Businesses and homes were hit hard.  One bystander seen surveying the debris declared he would not be working for awhile since the building where he was employed had no power and was significantly damaged.  His co-worker’s situation was worse; he’s out of work until the building is repaired and lost his home in nearby Brookville.  That same twister…

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Ohio Cities Partake in Pro-Abortion ‘Stop the Bans’ Protests

  Pro-abortion activists across the country organized “Stop the Bans” rallies on Tuesday, several of which occurred in Ohio. In Columbus, protesters lined the streets outside of Gov. Mike DeWine’s office, chanting: “Keep abortions safe and legal!” Several protesting outside the governor’s office for the ‘Stop the Ban’ protest pic.twitter.com/kda5faqQpl — Alexis Moberger (@alexiswsyx6) May 21, 2019 The crowd later made its way to the Ohio Statehouse, where not too long ago a controversial “heartbeat bill” threw Ohio into the national conversation surrounding abortion. Crowd continues to grow! Protest has now moved to the statehouse. Dozens here to protest against Ohio’s heartbeat bill. Similar abortion protests happening in several cities across the country pic.twitter.com/pQPBw8RbS3 — Alexis Moberger (@alexiswsyx6) May 21, 2019 “It’s really important that women have the freedom to choose what to do with their own bodies,” one protester told ABC 6. “I hope that Governor DeWine is paying attention to this because women are his constituents too and he can’t ignore us.” In Dayton, protesters gathered outside of a Premier Health clinic, which has apparently refused to sign a transfer agreement with a nearby abortion clinic. “We are here today because so far Premier Health has refused to…

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Lucas County and Dayton Seemingly Paid Up to $12,000 for Nonprofit’s ‘Welcoming’ Community Designation in Ohio

  Lucas County, Ohio joined the City of Dayton Tuesday as the newest member of Welcoming America’s “Certified Welcoming” program. According to the organization’s website, the “Certified Welcoming” program “formally evaluates and assesses your community’s efforts to provide an inclusive place for all.” “Candidates submit an application; complete a self-assessment; and receive an evaluative site visit and a detailed final report that identifies local strengths and provides a road map for areas of growth,” the website states, noting that the certification process generally takes between six months and a year. The “certification fee” for eligible cities is $12,000, but was discounted to $6,000 for 2019, according to the website. The “Certified Welcoming” label is valid for three years, and participating communities must continue to “meet the core criteria” listed in Welcoming America’s “Welcoming Standard.” The Lucas County commissioners were joined by a representative from Welcoming America Tuesday for a press conference to announce the designation. “When people come here, when people aspire to come here, when people work hard to come here, we are a welcoming community, and we have a certification to prove it,” Commissioner Pete Gerken said, according to The Toledo Blade. Lucas County is the fourth community…

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Feds Bust 60 For Alleged Participation in Illegal Prescribing and Distributing of Opioids, Other Narcotics, As Well As Alleged Health Care Fraud

The U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday announced a major multi-agency national bust against 60 people for their alleged participation in the illegal prescribing and distributing of opioids and other dangerous narcotics and for health care fraud schemes. The DOJ announcement is available here. The defendants are from 11 federal districts and include 31 doctors, seven pharmacists, eight nurse practitioners, and seven other licensed medical professionals, including Ohio. “The opioid epidemic is the deadliest drug crisis in American history, and Appalachia has suffered the consequences more than perhaps any other region,” Attorney General William P. Barr said. “But the Department of Justice is doing its part to help end this crisis. One of the Department’s most promising new initiatives is the Criminal Division’s Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid Strike Force, which began its work in December. Just four months later, this team of federal agents and 14 prosecutors has charged 60 defendants for alleged crimes related to millions of prescription opioids. I am grateful to the Criminal Division, their U.S. Attorney partners, and to the members of the strike force for this outstanding work that holds the promise of saving many lives in Appalachian communities.” In the Appalachian Regional Prescription Opioid Strike Force’s Southern District…

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Radical Abortionist Martin Haskell’s Dayton Clinic One Step Closer to Shutting Down

An Ohio court of appeals recently ruled in support of a decision to revoke the license of Martin Haskell’s Dayton-area Women’s Med Center abortion clinic, meaning either the clinic will close or the case will head to the Ohio Supreme Court. Haskell owns and operates three abortion facilities across the country, one in the Dayton suburb of Kettering, another in Cincinnati, and a third in Indianapolis. According to the pro-life organization Operation Rescue, the Women’s Med Center is one of six abortion providers that openly performs abortion throughout all nine months of pregnancy. In 2016, the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) revoked the Kettering clinic’s ambulatory surgical facility license. In order to maintain such a license, abortion clinics are required by state law to have written transfer agreements with a hospital within a 30-minute radius in the event that a patient needs emergency medical care. Abortion clinics can also apply for a “variance” of the written transfer agreement that includes the names of physicians with admitting privileges who have agreed to treat women with abortion complications. Haskell’s Women’s Med Center clinic in Dayton has been unable to ever obtain a written transfer agreement with a local hospital, and its variance…

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Ohio Republicans Look to Crack Down on Sanctuary Ordinances After Dayton Public Schools Declares Itself a ‘Sanctuary District’

Two Republican state representatives in Ohio introduced a bill Tuesday to ban sanctuary ordinances after the Dayton Public Schools Board of Education voted to become a “sanctuary school district” last week. House Bill 169 was introduced by Reps. Niraj Antani (R-Miamisburg) and Candice Keller (R-Middletown), who said in a joint press release that the school district’s “new policy requires the school district to not cooperate with federal immigration officials, not allow federal immigration officials inside school buildings, and bans the collection of the immigration statuses.” The Dayton Daily News reports that the school board’s resolution was titled a “Safe and Welcoming School District,” and affirmed that the district “shall do everything in its lawful power to ensure that our students’ learning environments are not disrupted by immigration enforcement actions.” Under House Bill 169, “state or local government” agencies or a “political subdivision” would be prohibited from adopting “an ordinance, policy, directive, rule, or resolution that prohibits or otherwise restricts a public official or employee” from cooperating with federal immigration enforcement. Additionally, the bill would prevent sanctuary cities, counties, townships, or municipal corporations from receiving “homeland security funding and any local government fund distributions from the state.” “In the past few…

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Google Parent Company to Open Treatment Center in Dayton, Ohio

Alphabet Inc., the multinational conglomerate that both was established by and currently owns Google.com, has announced that they will be establishing an opioid treatment center in Dayton, Ohio. While this could be good news for a community that is still deeply in the midst of an opioid epidemic, the recent revelations about data collection by Google and other digital tech companies raise questions about the new treatment center. The effort, dubbed OneFifteen, will be headed by Andy Conrad, Ph.D. (pictured above) and housed in a new “tech enabled campus.” It will be an initiative of Verily, the development wing of Alphabet that deals with life sciences. The new facility was announced Wednesday in a blog post on the company website. The post points out the alarming statistics regarding opioid abuse and the intent of this new campus to treat these problems. It also explicitly notes that one of the biggest challenges to healthcare is a severe lack of data, most notably the data gaps. While this is undoubtedly accurate, there are many concerns with greater data aggregation. In recent years, data companies have proven themselves to be at best wildly irresponsible and at worst explicitly malicious in aggregating and then selling the personal data of individuals. The notion of this…

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