JEFFREY HARRIS

OHIO 5TH SENATE DISTRICT

COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNITY ADVANCEMENT INITIATIVE

CONNECT • EDUCATE • EMPOWER • BUILD • ADVANCE

Updated Policy Framework — September 21, 2026

I. THE PURPOSE

The Jeffrey Harris Comprehensive Community Advancement Initiative is a proposed state-policy framework designed to connect Ohio's state government with the actual economic, educational, housing, workforce, healthcare, infrastructure, public-safety, and community needs of the people living in Ohio Senate District 5.

The initiative is built around one principle:

Government should not measure success by how much it spends, how many programs it creates, or how many announcements it makes. Government should measure success by whether Ohioans are actually better positioned to live, work, raise families, build businesses, obtain education, remain healthy, and participate in their communities.

This initiative does not assume that state government can directly solve every local problem.

Instead, it establishes a framework for using the legitimate powers of a state senator and the Ohio General Assembly:

The objective is to make state government a more effective partner to communities.

II. THE FIVE-PILLAR MODEL

CONNECT

Connect Ohioans to government, education, workforce, healthcare, housing, transportation, and economic resources.

EDUCATE

Provide practical education that helps people understand their options and prepare for employment, financial independence, citizenship, and leadership.

EMPOWER

Give individuals the tools, skills, information, and partnerships necessary to advance themselves rather than creating permanent dependence on government.

BUILD

Invest in the physical, economic, educational, technological, and human infrastructure required for sustainable community growth.

ADVANCE

Measure whether policies actually improve outcomes and change programs when they do not.

III. TAXPAYER STABILITY AND RESPONSIBLE TAX REFORM

The problem

Ohio's tax structure is interconnected.

State income taxes, municipal income taxes, property taxes, school-district revenues, state foundation aid, local-government revenues, and state-funded property-tax relief all affect one another.

That means a tax cut that looks attractive in isolation can create pressure somewhere else.

The initiative therefore rejects a simplistic approach of:

"Cut one tax and hope everything works out."

Instead:

Reduce taxpayer pressure without simply transferring the bill to another taxpayer, school district, municipality, or county.

Proposed Ohio Taxpayer Stability Framework

1. Working Ohio Tax Credit

Develop a targeted state tax credit for qualifying low- and moderate-income working households.

Potential design:

2. Targeted Property-Tax Relief

Create targeted relief for qualifying owner-occupied households rather than promising the immediate elimination of Ohio's entire property-tax system.

Priority could be given to:

3. School Funding Protection

Any major property-tax reform should contain a statutory school-funding hold-harmless mechanism.

The goal:

Taxpayer relief should not automatically become a classroom funding crisis.

The state would need to identify the fiscal replacement before reducing a revenue source relied upon by schools.

4. Local Government Protection

A tax reform proposal should include an analysis of effects on:

State government should not reduce one taxpayer's burden by quietly shifting the same cost to local government.

5. Municipal Income-Tax Review

Rather than promising to abolish municipal income taxes, examine targeted state mechanisms that could reduce burdens on qualifying households while protecting municipal fiscal stability.

IV. A NEW FISCAL RULE

Every major tax proposal introduced under this initiative should answer five questions:

1. How much does the taxpayer save?

2. How much does the state lose in revenue?

3. What happens to schools?

4. What happens to local governments?

5. How will the state pay for the change?

No major tax-relief proposal should be presented as fully funded until a formal fiscal analysis identifies the revenue and expenditure consequences.

V. THE OHIO BUDGET ACCOUNTABILITY STANDARD

The state budget should be treated as a public contract between government and taxpayers.

For major appropriations, establish measurable performance reporting wherever practical.

A program should identify:

The principle:

If taxpayers are paying for it, taxpayers deserve to know what it accomplished.

VI. ATTAINABLE HOUSING AND SMART DEVELOPMENT

Ohio needs housing policy that recognizes two realities simultaneously:

People need more attainable housing.

And:

Communities need responsible development.

The initiative would build on existing state housing programs rather than duplicating them.

Proposed Housing Framework

Encourage:

Encourage infrastructure-first development.

New development should be coordinated with:

Preserve local authority.

The initiative would not impose one statewide neighborhood design.

Instead, it would provide communities with additional tools and incentives while maintaining legitimate local planning authority.

VII. BUILDING ON OHIO'S EXISTING HOUSING INVESTMENT

Ohio already has a $100 million Residential Development Revolving Loan program and additional Residential Economic Development District funding under the current budget.

The next step should be to examine:

Proposed measurement:

PUBLIC DOLLARS → HOMES CREATED/REHABILITATED → PEOPLE HOUSED → WORKFORCE IMPACT → LOCAL TAX BASE → LONG-TERM COMMUNITY EFFECT

VIII. OHIO WORKFORCE ADVANCEMENT INITIATIVE

Ohio's challenge is not simply unemployment.

A low unemployment rate can coexist with:

The initiative therefore changes the question from:

"How many jobs exist?"

to:

"Can Ohioans reach those jobs, qualify for them, obtain them, and advance after getting them?"

IX. THE WORKFORCE PATHWAY

Create a coordinated workforce model:

ASSESS

Identify skills, interests, education, barriers, and career goals.

PREPARE

Provide training, credentialing, remediation, and career-readiness support.

CONNECT

Connect participants with employers, apprenticeships, internships, schools, and training providers.

EMPLOY

Help participants move into actual employment.

RETAIN

Track whether employment continues.

ADVANCE

Measure wage growth, additional credentials, promotions, and career advancement.

This would build upon existing OhioMeansJobs, TechCred, CCMEP, career-technical education, apprenticeships, and other workforce infrastructure rather than creating a competing system.

X. YOUTH CAREER AND LIFE ADVANCEMENT

Develop stronger pathways for young Ohioans ages 14–24.

Priority areas:

Ohio's existing CCMEP system already serves youth ages 14–24 through career and employment pathways.

The goal should be to improve coordination and outcomes.

XI. EDUCATION: FROM SCHOOL TO LIFE

Education policy should prepare students for more than graduation.

The initiative would promote five educational pathways:

LEARN

Academic fundamentals.

DISCOVER

Career and talent exploration.

PREPARE

Technical, financial, professional, and life skills.

CONNECT

Employers, colleges, career centers, apprenticeships, mentors.

ADVANCE

Employment, higher education, entrepreneurship, leadership, and lifelong learning.

XII. FINANCIAL LITERACY

Expand practical financial education.

Students should graduate understanding:

The objective is not to tell young people what financial decisions to make.

It is to give them enough knowledge to make informed decisions.

XIII. SUPPORTING TEACHERS

The initiative would examine state policy affecting:

Teachers should have a meaningful voice in policies that directly affect classroom operations.

XIV. HEALTHCARE AFFORDABILITY AND ACCESS

Healthcare policy must recognize Ohio's fiscal constraints.

Medicaid and other public healthcare programs represent major components of the state budget.

Therefore, the initiative would focus on:

Prevention.

Primary care.

Rural/community access.

Behavioral healthcare.

Addiction treatment.

Workforce development.

Prescription affordability.

Care coordination.

Home- and community-based services.

Healthcare transparency.

XV. HEALTHCARE TRANSPARENCY

Explore policies that make healthcare costs easier for consumers to understand before non-emergency services when legally and practically possible.

Potential priorities:

The goal is not to promise that state government can dictate every healthcare price.

The goal is to use the state's legitimate regulatory and legislative authority to improve transparency, competition, access, and affordability.

XVI. ADDICTION RECOVERY AND WORKFORCE REENTRY

Ohio's recovery strategy should not end when someone completes treatment.

Create stronger connections among:

RECOVERY → EDUCATION → SKILLS → EMPLOYMENT → STABILITY

Potential partnerships:

The objective is to help people build stable lives after treatment.

XVII. FIRST RESPONDERS

Ohio's firefighters, EMS professionals, law-enforcement officers, dispatchers, and emergency personnel perform public service under extraordinary conditions.

The initiative would support policies involving:

Ohio already operates programs for firefighter equipment, communications, and Firefighter I training, so a future senator should evaluate those programs for accessibility and measurable impact rather than automatically creating another grant program.

XVIII. FIRST-RESPONDER MENTAL-HEALTH SUPPORT

Continue examining statewide support for first responders experiencing occupational trauma.

Potential policy components:

The purpose is to make seeking help compatible with professional service rather than treating it as a failure.

XIX. TRANSPORTATION AS ECONOMIC INFRASTRUCTURE

Transportation is not merely about getting cars from one place to another.

It determines whether people can reach:

The initiative would support:

The state should prioritize preservation and measurable need while evaluating new construction against long-term maintenance costs.

XX. SMALL-BUSINESS ADVANCEMENT

Ohio's small-business policy should focus on helping legitimate businesses move through the stages of:

START → SURVIVE → GROW → HIRE → INVEST → EXPAND

Potential reforms:

No government program should promise every business financing, contracts, or profits.

XXI. AGRICULTURE AND RURAL ECONOMIC STABILITY

District 5 contains agricultural communities as well as urban, suburban, and industrial communities.

Agricultural policy should address:

The initiative recognizes that Ohio's agricultural economy and manufacturing economy can complement one another.

XXII. SENIORS AND AGING WITH DIGNITY

Develop stronger coordination around:

The objective is to allow older Ohioans to remain as independent as reasonably possible.

XXIII. DISABILITY ADVANCEMENT

Disability policy should emphasize:

ACCESS

EDUCATION

EMPLOYMENT

INDEPENDENCE

DIGNITY

PARTICIPATION

The initiative would examine barriers involving:

XXIV. GOVERNMENT ACCESS

Government should be easier to navigate.

Develop a District-to-State Resource Navigation Model.

A constituent should be able to contact the district office and receive assistance identifying the correct state-level agency or program.

The office should track:

Personal information should be collected only as necessary and handled according to applicable privacy requirements.

XXV. LOCAL GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIP

Create a regular District 5 Local Government Roundtable involving appropriate:

The purpose would be to identify issues requiring state action.

The question:

"What is happening locally that Columbus needs to understand?"

XXVI. COMMUNITY SOLUTIONS COUNCIL

Establish a voluntary advisory structure bringing together:

This body would advise—not replace—elected government.

XXVII. CIVIC CIVILITY AND COMMON GROUND

The initiative rejects the idea that effective government requires everyone to think alike.

Instead:

DISAGREE WITH DIGNITY.

SERVE WITH PURPOSE.

BUILD TOGETHER.

Participants would be encouraged to:

Government services should never be conditioned on support for a candidate, party, or political organization.

XXVIII. COMMUNITY SERVICE AS CIVIC INFRASTRUCTURE

Encourage structured volunteerism involving:

Where service is connected to workforce development, the program must distinguish genuine community service from unpaid labor benefiting a private commercial enterprise.

XXIX. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT: INVEST FOR RESULTS

Economic development should not be measured simply by:

Instead measure:

XXX. RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT INCENTIVES

When Ohio provides incentives to businesses or developers, establish appropriate reporting standards.

Potential reporting:

Public incentives should have a clearly articulated public purpose.

XXXI. INFRASTRUCTURE FIRST

Before encouraging major development, examine:

Growth should not create an unfunded maintenance burden that future taxpayers inherit.

XXXII. STATE-LOCAL FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY

When the General Assembly considers legislation affecting local governments, require serious attention to:

The 2026 Local Impact Statement framework provides an existing foundation for analyzing local effects of enacted legislation.

The initiative would strengthen the principle:

If Columbus requires a significant new responsibility from local government, Columbus should transparently identify who pays for it.

XXXIII. PUBLIC-SCHOOL FINANCIAL STABILITY

Property-tax reform and school funding must be treated as connected issues.

Ohio's current system includes the 20-mill floor, state foundation funding, school-district income taxes, voter-approved levies, and state-funded property-tax relief.

Therefore, the initiative would require any major school/property-tax reform proposal to include:

XXXIV. THE DISTRICT 5 REGIONAL ADVANCEMENT MODEL

Because Senate District 5 contains urban, suburban, rural, agricultural, and industrial communities, one policy cannot be expected to fit every location.

Create regional policy tracks:

MIAMI COUNTY

Workforce, manufacturing, housing, agriculture, transportation, education.

PREBLE COUNTY

Rural infrastructure, agriculture, manufacturing, workforce, transportation, housing.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY PORTION

Workforce, housing, transportation, infrastructure, education, economic mobility.

DARKe COUNTY PORTION

Agriculture, rural infrastructure, workforce, manufacturing, public safety.

BUTLER COUNTY PORTION

Workforce, manufacturing, housing, transportation, economic development.

The exact communities and precincts represented should be verified against the official district map before distributing geographically specific material.

XXXV. THE DISTRICT 5 COMMUNITY SCORECARD

Every major initiative should eventually be measured through a public scorecard.

ECONOMY

HOUSING

EDUCATION

WORKFORCE

INFRASTRUCTURE

PUBLIC SAFETY

HEALTH

TAXPAYER IMPACT

XXXVI. THE FISCAL SAFETY SYSTEM

No major initiative should rely on optimistic economic-growth assumptions to make the initial fiscal calculation work.

Fiscal estimates should distinguish:

BASELINE COST

What the program costs under current assumptions.

DIRECT REVENUE EFFECT

How much state revenue changes.

DIRECT EXPENDITURE EFFECT

How much state spending changes.

LOCAL IMPACT

Effects on cities, counties, townships, schools, libraries, and other subdivisions.

ECONOMIC EFFECT

Potential secondary effects such as employment, investment, and consumer activity.

UNCERTAINTY

What is known, estimated, and unknown.

XXXVII. RESERVE PROTECTION

Major recurring tax reductions should not automatically be enacted solely because a current-year revenue forecast looks strong.

The initiative would support fiscal triggers requiring policymakers to evaluate:

Principle:

Do not finance permanent promises with temporary money.

XXXVIII. THE 90-DAY GOVERNMENT ACTION MODEL

For major district problems:

DAYS 1–30

Listen and document.

DAYS 31–60

Research legal authority, funding, existing programs, and fiscal effects.

DAYS 61–90

Produce a legislative or administrative action plan.

Then:

6 MONTHS

Report progress.

12 MONTHS

Measure outcomes.

24 MONTHS

Determine whether the policy should continue, change, expand, or end.

XXXIX. THE JEFFREY HARRIS STANDARD

Before supporting major legislation, ask:

PEOPLE

Who benefits?

COST

Who pays?

AUTHORITY

Does state government actually have the authority?

LOCAL EFFECT

What happens to municipalities, counties, townships, schools, and libraries?

EQUITY

Are similarly situated Ohioans treated consistently?

OUTCOME

What measurable result should occur?

ACCOUNTABILITY

Who reports whether it worked?

SUSTAINABILITY

Can Ohio afford it over time?

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES

What could go wrong?

EXIT

What happens if the policy fails?

XL. THE INITIATIVE'S GOVERNING PRINCIPLES

1. PEOPLE BEFORE POLITICS

2. FACTS BEFORE ASSUMPTIONS

3. SERVICE BEFORE SELF-INTEREST

4. RESULTS BEFORE RIBBON CUTTINGS

5. OPPORTUNITY WITH ACCOUNTABILITY

6. LOCAL KNOWLEDGE WITH STATE PARTNERSHIP

7. GROWTH WITH RESPONSIBILITY

8. TAX RELIEF WITH FISCAL DISCIPLINE

9. EDUCATION WITH PURPOSE

10. HEALTHCARE WITH ACCESS AND AFFORDABILITY

11. HOUSING WITH ATTAINABILITY AND RESPONSIBLE DEVELOPMENT

12. PUBLIC SAFETY WITH PREPARATION

13. DISAGREEMENT WITHOUT DEHUMANIZATION

14. PRIVACY WITH RESPONSIBLE DATA USE

15. MEASURE WHAT MATTERS

XLI. WHAT MAKES THIS DIFFERENT

This initiative is not built around the promise that one state senator can personally solve every problem.

A state senator cannot:

But a senator can:

This initiative is designed around those actual powers.

XLII. THE PROMISE

The promise of this initiative is therefore not:

"I will fix everything."

It is:

"I will build a system of representation in which the problems people bring to me become problems I am responsible for researching, advancing, measuring, and reporting back on."

That means the relationship between the senator and the district does not end after Election Day.

JEFFREY HARRIS

OHIO 5TH SENATE DISTRICT

COMPREHENSIVE COMMUNITY ADVANCEMENT INITIATIVE

CONNECT • EDUCATE • EMPOWER • BUILD • ADVANCE

Updated Policy Framework — September 21, 2026

I. THE PURPOSE

The initiative is built around one principle:

This initiative does not assume that state government can directly solve every local problem.

Instead, it establishes a framework for using the legitimate powers of a state senator and the Ohio General Assembly:

Legislation.

State appropriations.

Oversight.

Committee work.

State-agency coordination.

Local-government partnerships.

Workforce partnerships.

Education partnerships.

Economic-development policy.

Tax policy.

Infrastructure policy.

Performance measurement.

The objective is to make state government a more effective partner to communities.

II. THE FIVE-PILLAR MODEL

CONNECT

Connect Ohioans to government, education, workforce, healthcare, housing, transportation, and economic resources.

EDUCATE

Provide practical education that helps people understand their options and prepare for employment, financial independence, citizenship, and leadership.

EMPOWER

Give individuals the tools, skills, information, and partnerships necessary to advance themselves rather than creating permanent dependence on government.

BUILD

Invest in the physical, economic, educational, technological, and human infrastructure required for sustainable community growth.

ADVANCE

Measure whether policies actually improve outcomes and change programs when they do not.

III. TAXPAYER STABILITY AND RESPONSIBLE TAX REFORM

The problem

Ohio's tax structure is interconnected.

State income taxes, municipal income taxes, property taxes, school-district revenues, state foundation aid, local-government revenues, and state-funded property-tax relief all affect one another.

That means a tax cut that looks attractive in isolation can create pressure somewhere else.

The initiative therefore rejects a simplistic approach of:

"Cut one tax and hope everything works out."

Instead:

Reduce taxpayer pressure without simply transferring the bill to another taxpayer, school district, municipality, or county.

Proposed Ohio Taxpayer Stability Framework

1. Working Ohio Tax Credit

Develop a targeted state tax credit for qualifying low- and moderate-income working households.

Potential design:

Refundable or partially refundable.

Income-based.

Phased out gradually.

Structured to avoid creating a sharp benefit cliff.

Subject to annual fiscal review.

Designed around household tax burden rather than political slogans.

2. Targeted Property-Tax Relief

Create targeted relief for qualifying owner-occupied households rather than promising the immediate elimination of Ohio's entire property-tax system.

Priority could be given to:

Lower- and moderate-income homeowners.

Seniors meeting defined income criteria.

Disabled homeowners meeting defined criteria.

Long-term owner-occupants facing significant tax increases.

Other legislatively defined hardship categories.

3. School Funding Protection

Any major property-tax reform should contain a statutory school-funding hold-harmless mechanism.

The goal:

Taxpayer relief should not automatically become a classroom funding crisis.

The state would need to identify the fiscal replacement before reducing a revenue source relied upon by schools.

4. Local Government Protection

A tax reform proposal should include an analysis of effects on:

Cities.

Villages.

Townships.

Counties.

Libraries.

Fire districts.

Other taxing authorities.

State government should not reduce one taxpayer's burden by quietly shifting the same cost to local government.

5. Municipal Income-Tax Review

Rather than promising to abolish municipal income taxes, examine targeted state mechanisms that could reduce burdens on qualifying households while protecting municipal fiscal stability.

IV. A NEW FISCAL RULE

Every major tax proposal introduced under this initiative should answer five questions:

1. How much does the taxpayer save?