Equality Ohio, Human Rights Campaign, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Form Coalition

Equality Ohio, Human Rights Campaign, National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Form Coalition

Coalition will bring unprecedented effort for equality

Today, Equality Ohio joined with the Human Rights Campaign and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force to announce the start of a new statewide coalition. Ohioans share some pretty basic values. We believe everyone should be free to live without fear of discrimination at home, at work and in their community. We believe all students should be free to go to school without the threat of harassment or violence. And we believe all loving couples, including same-sex couples, should have the freedom to marry the person they love, including loving, living and marrying right here in the Buckeye State.

That’s why our organizations have come together to form an historic statewide effort to stand up for these values here in the Buckeye State. By bringing together our resources and expertise, we will join with our state and national allies to launch an unprecedented effort to achieve equality in Ohio. Building on what we learned from last year’s campaigns in Maine, Maryland, Minnesota, and Washington, we will activate our combined memberships of over 75,000 Ohioans to fight for passage of the Equal Housing and Employment Act, statewide anti-bullying legislation and ultimately, marriage equality.

Most of all, we are committed to strategic work that has victory as its ultimate goal. Our work in other successful coalitions around the country has taught us important lessons. In order for this effort to succeed, we must work in transparent partnership, we must have integrity in our leadership and we must have the resources necessary to win. We must be thoughtful, assemble a large coalition, and undertake the research and polling necessary to craft a winning message.

We understand that there will be and are other efforts to do similar work in Ohio, including repealing Ohio’s constitutional amendment banning marriage equality. While we believe that many hands make light work, we also know that acting prematurely or without the expertise of other like-minded groups can create dramatic set-backs. Our coalition’s broad focus and our understanding of the current Ohio and national landscapes have led us collectively to the conclusion that our path is the right one at this moment in time. We encourage others who may be interested in achieving similar results in a collaborative manner to lend their resources and expertise to this effort as the coalition grows over the coming months. To join us as an individual, visit our equality petition and sign-on!

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Outlook - Equality Ohio, HRC, NGLTF Start Their Own Campaign

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Two LGBT civil-rights groups that oppose efforts to put a marriage-equality measure on the Ohio ballot this fall said today that they’re joining together to fight instead for anti-discrimination and anti-bullying legislation.

Equality Ohio and two national groups — the Washington-based Human Rights Campaign and National Gay and Lesbian Task Force — announced a statewide coalition this morning that they called “an unprecedented effort to achieve equality in Ohio.”

They said their goals include “ultimately, marriage equality,” but they didn’t say when they might push to undo a 2004 state constitutional amendment that bars gay and lesbian couples from getting married.

“Ohioans share some pretty basic values. We believe everyone should be free to live without fear of discrimination at home, at work and in their community. We believe all students should be free to go to school without the threat of harassment or violence. And we believe all loving couples, including same-sex couples, should have the freedom to marry the person they love, including loving, living and marrying right here in the Buckeye State,” the groups said in a news release issued by Equality Ohio.

Together the three organizations claim 75,000 members in Ohio.

Alluding to efforts by a campaign called Freedom Ohio to collect the 385,000-plus signatures needed to place a proposed marriage-equality amendment on the statewide ballot, Equality Ohio and its partners said: “Our work in other successful coalitions around the country has taught us important lessons. In order for this effort to succeed, we must work in transparent partnership, we must have integrity in our leadership and we must have the resources necessary to win. We must be thoughtful, assemble a large coalition, and undertake the research and polling necessary to craft a winning message.”

Equality Ohio officials have criticized Freedom Ohio on those very points. They say founder Ian James has raised little money so far for the effort but stands to collect a hefty paycheck if his political consulting firm is hired eventually to run the campaign. Others have criticized James for his work against the 2004 amendment that banned gay and lesbian couples from getting married in Ohio. He left the campaign days before the election after questions about how donations and expenses were reported.

(A story in the March issue of Outlook, which will be available on newsstands later this week, will explore the division within the LGBT community about a marriage-equality campaign in 2013.)

Freedom Ohio has yet to react to the new Equality Ohio/HRC coalition, but James has criticized them in the past for being too cautious on the issue of marriage equality in Ohio. He has told Outlook that the LGBT community stands a better chance with Ohio voters than it does with an extremely conservative legislature.

In its announcement this morning, Equality Ohio and its partners called on Freedom Ohio’s supporters to join their efforts:

“We understand that there will be and are other efforts to do similar work in Ohio, including repealing Ohio’s constitutional amendment banning marriage equality. While we believe that many hands make light work, we also know that acting prematurely or without the expertise of other like-minded groups can create dramatic setbacks. Our coalition’s broad focus and our understanding of the current Ohio and national landscapes have led us collectively to the conclusion that our path is the right one at this moment in time. We encourage others who may be interested in achieving similar results in a collaborative manner to lend their resources and expertise to this effort as the coalition grows over the coming months.”

To sign up for the Equality Ohio campaign, click here.

January Central Ohio Home Sales Highest Since 2007

Central Ohio Housing Report - Jan. 2013

Posted: 2/21/2013

Columbus Board of REALTORS®

January home sales highest since 2007

Central Ohio home sales during the first month of 2013 were the highest for January since 2007 just before the housing market began to feel the effects of the economic recession. The 1,374 closings exceeds the previous year by 20.4 percent (1,141) according to the Columbus Board of REALTORS®.

“Housing activity was up abnormally high during the traditionally slower months at the end of the year,” said Chris Pedon, President of the Columbus Board of REALTORS®. “So we’re not surprised to see such a jump in closings last month.”

Home prices hit their lowest in several years during the recession but are well on their way back. The average sale price of a home sold in central Ohio in 2012 was $167,459, which is 7.2 percent higher than in 2011.The average sales price ($149,477) jumped 5.1 percent from January of 2011 and the median sales price ($129,000) was up 5.3 percent.

New listings as added to the market in January totaled 2,578, which is down 6.0 percent from last year. The number of homes for sale in central Ohio is down to 8,935 – the lowest since summer of 2002.

“We’ve watched inventory dwindle steadily over the last year as demand continued to grow,” added Pedon. “Homeowners that have been waiting to move up, or tried to sell their home a few years ago, should seriously consider listing their home. It’s a whole new game out there today.”

According to the latest Housing Market Confidence Index (by the Ohio Association of REALTORS®), 96 percent of central Ohio REALTORS® describe the current housing market as moderate to strong and 100 percent expect the housing market to be moderate to strong over the next six months. As for home prices, 91 percent expect home prices to remain the same or rise in the next year.

View the current Central Ohio Local Market Update.
View the current Housing market report by area.

The Columbus Board of REALTORS® Multiple Listing Service (MLS) serves all of Franklin, Delaware, Fayette, Licking, Madison, Morrow, Pickaway and Union Counties and parts of Athens, Champaign, Clark, Clinton, Fairfield, Hocking, Knox, Logan, Marion, Muskingum, Perry and Ross Counties.

The monthly housing reports can be found at www.ColumbusRealtors.com/stats. The reports include breakouts for 18 central Ohio counties and 52 local municipalities and school districts.

For more information about the central Ohio housing market, visit www.ColumbusRealtors.com/stats. 
To view commercial properties for sale or lease in central Ohio, visit www.COCIE.org.
To view residential properties for sale, visit www.terrypenrod.com

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What’s the Best Day of Week and Month to List Your Home For Sale?

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Friday is the best day of the week to sell a home. Homes listed on Friday sell for 99.1 percent of their original asking price, a higher percentage than homes listed on any other day of the week, according to a study by real estate broker Redfin, which analyzed more than 500,000 home listings and sales records.

The best month to sell? April, according to the analysis. Homes sold in April tended to sell closer to their asking price. In April, homes were found to sell for a 99.2 percent sale price-to-list ratio, compared to a 97.3 percent ratio of homes listed in December.

Springtime is still a good time to sell for a higher price and also in the fastest time too, according to the study. Homes tended to sell within 90 days of being listed during March through June, according to the study. 

Redfin also found that pricing the home competitively from its debut is critical because that’s when it’ll receive the most traffic. During the first week a listing debuts on the market, it receives nearly four times more visits on real estate Web sites than it will a month later.

Source: Redfin

HRC - Pentagon Vows to Extend Benefits to Gay Service Members, Families

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 5, 2013
Charles Joughin

Pentagon Vows to Extend Benefits to Gay Service Members, Families

HRC calls on Panetta to include “every benefit possible under the law”

WASHINGTON – In response to news that the Pentagon would be extending certain benefits to the spouses of gay and lesbian military personnel, Human Rights Campaign (HRC) President Chad Griffin issued the following statement:

“We welcome the news that benefits will be extended to the same-sex spouses and partners of gay and lesbian service members, and urge Secretary Panetta to make sure every benefit possible under the law is included.  This is the logical next step in ensuring all our military families are treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.”

Since the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 2010, HRC has called on the Pentagon to change its policies that currently deny many benefits from gay and lesbian service members and their families.  As part of ongoing effort to achieve full equality in the military, HRC has called on Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to issue military IDs to same-sex spouses and extend every possible benefit not specifically barred by the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). The revisions would ensure same-sex spouses in the military receive the same benefits afforded all other service members.

Some of the regulatory changes Panetta could make with the stroke a pen include:

• Housing – Same-sex spouses and partners in the military are currently ineligible for the economic benefits that come with on-base housing, such as rent-free living quarters.
• Military ID cards – Same-sex spouses and partners are currently ineligible for the identification card that is essential for accessing bases, morale and recreation programs, and a number of other on-base amenities and services.
• Access to Commissaries and Exhanges – Same-sex spouses and partners can’t access the discounted stores where most military families typically save an average of 30 percent on grocery bills.
• Personnel assignments – Military regulations currently do not include same-sex spouses or partners when considering assignments. However, opposite-sex, dual-career military couples may be assigned to the same geographic reason.
• Legal Services – Opposite-sex military service members and their families have access to free legal services on a variety of items, including the drafting of wills and serving as advocate and counsel. Same-sex spouses and partners do not have access to these free legal services.
• Spousal Privilege to Refuse to Testify – The Rules of Evidence in the Manual for Courts-Martial grants opposites-sex spouses the privilege to refuse to testify against one another in criminal cases – a benefit not extended to same-sex spouses or partners.

Such actions have already been taken, for example, by the State Department to extend benefits to the partners and spouses of Foreign Service officers and by OPM to extend sick leave, long-term care insurance, travel and relocation assistance, and other benefits to civilian federal employees.    

“The military leadership have dragged their feet long enough,” Griffin added.  “Two years after ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ was relegated to the dustbin of history, it’s time for our heroes in arms to finally receive the justice they deserve.”

The Human Rights Campaign is the largest national lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender political organization with members throughout the country. It effectively lobbies Congress, provides campaign support and educates the public to ensure that LGBT Americans can be open, honest and safe at home, at work and in the community.

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HRC Monday Ad Calls for End to Discriminatory Boy Scout Ban on Gays

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: February 3, 2013
Charles Joughin | 

HRC Monday Ad Calls for End to Discriminatory Boy Scout Ban on Gays 

Proposed Policy Change Not Good Enough

WASHINGTON – Two days before an expected vote, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) – the nation’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender civil rights organization – will run a full-page ad in the Dallas Morning News on Monday calling on the leadership at Boy Scouts of America (BSA) to end its discriminatory policy prohibiting gay people from Scouting and adopt a national non-discrimination standard. Last week, BSA representatives indicated the organization would consider changing the policy to instead allow local sponsoring organizations to make their own decisions and potentially discriminate at the local level.

“While the proposed change is a step in the right direction, we can’t pretend that passing the buck to the local level will eliminate anti-gay discrimination because it won't," said HRC communications vice president Fred Sainz. “Generations of gay Americans have been told they’re not good enough to join the Scouts, simply because of who they are.  BSA has an opportunity to change that this week by adopting a non-discrimination policy. Scouting, which has played an important role in American society, will be strengthened by that action."

The ad, which will appear in the print edition of the newspaper Monday morning, encourages readers to call on the BSA board to enact a nationwide anti-discrimination policy.  Currently the organization’s official policy is to "not grant membership to individuals who are open or avowed homosexuals" as Scouts or adult Scout Leaders.

On Friday, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation announced more stringent criterion for its Corporate Equality Index. To receive a perfect score in the future, companies would have to prohibit philanthropic giving to non-religious organizations that have a written policy of anti-gay discrimination, or permit its chapters, affiliates, or troops to do so.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.

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Business First: Ohio State set to create east-side version of Campus Partners to boost hospital neighborhood

Ohio State set to create east-side version of Campus Partners to boost hospital neighborhood

Ohio State University trustees Friday will be asked to approve the creation of an affiliated nonprofit that would make good on the university’s 2010 promise to spend $10 million on neighborhood improvements in Columbus' near east side region surrounding University Hospital East.

The entity, to be called PACT for Partners Achieving Community Transformation, would be similar to Campus Partners for Community Urban Redevelopment, the university’s affiliate that developed and manages the South Campus Gateway and is spurring housing revitalization in the Weinland Park neighborhood near the main campus. The city and the Columbus Metropolitan Housing Authority are partners in PACT and provide money toward the administrative budget.

More of the story can be found here

HRC to Boy Scouts of America: Adopt National Non-Discrimination Standards, Policy Proposal Not Good Enough

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 31, 2013

HRC to Boy Scouts of America: Adopt National Non-Discrimination Standards, Policy Proposal Not Good Enough

HRC announces more stringent criterion to earn 100 percent on Corporate Equality Index – companies giving to BSA will not be eligible for perfect score

  

Washington – In the face of mounting national opposition to institutional discrimination, the leadership of the Boy Scouts of America is debating a policy which would end its nationwide ban on gay Scouts and Scout leaders. However, this policy would replace the ban with a system in which sponsoring organizations can decide to institute their own bans on gay Scouts and troop leaders.

HRC President Chad Griffin made the following statement:

“The policy proposed will not result in the full inclusion of gay Scouts or gay Scout leaders across the country. While it is good news that the onerous national ban will come to an end, it’s not acceptable to abdicate nondiscrimination standards to local units. It’s akin to a national restaurant chain saying that it will not discriminate at its corporate headquarters, but allow local restaurants to discriminate at will.

Make no mistake, this policy creates a separate but equal system where some troops welcome all members and others still turn gay Scouts away. This problem will only be solved when BSA proactively institutes a national nondiscrimination policy that prohibits anti-gay discrimination so that no young American or family is excluded from the proud tradition of Scouting.”

The Human Rights Campaign Foundation today announced more stringent criterion for the Corporate Equality Index (CEI).  To receive a perfect score, companies would have to prohibit philanthropic giving to non-religious organizations that have a written policy of anti-gay discrimination, or permit its chapters, affiliates, or troops to do so.

HRC’s recent survey of LGBT youth reinforces the need to remove obstacles to full participation in extracurricular activities: 64% of LGBT teens (compared to just 47% of non-LGBT teens) report that they never participate in afterschool or other recreational activities.  Exclusion from Scouting negatively impacts the overall well-being and sense of community connection among LGBT youth.

The Human Rights Campaign is America’s largest civil rights organization working to achieve lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality. By inspiring and engaging all Americans, HRC strives to end discrimination against LGBT citizens and realize a nation that achieves fundamental fairness and equality for all.

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