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Early voting now underway

While this year’s general election is exactly two weeks away, residents from across the region already are casting ballots or will soon be able to. Early voting in Ohio started Oct. 8, while West Virginians will have the opportunity to participate in early in-person voting beginning Wednesday. Thanks to absentee and in-person early voting in both states, registered voters who might not be able to make it to the polls on the dedicated election day or who just want to get their ballots cast have the chance to do that. In Ohio, you can cast your ballot in-person at the board of ...

POWER money will help area residents

While the majority of residents across our region take having access to reliable broadband service for granted, there are a significant number of people who do not. That’s why it was exciting to learn Wednesday that Jefferson County had received $2.5 million in grant funding that will be used to help improve connectivity for 769 households and 34 businesses in Springfield, Ross, Knox, Island Creek, Salem and Wayne townships. The money, which comes from the Partnerships for Opportunity and Workforce and Economic Revitalization initiative of the Appalachian Regional Commission, ...

SVRTA levy earns support from voters

Residents of several communities are being asked to continue supporting the Steel Valley Regional Transit Authority when they cast their ballots in the Nov. 5 election. The agency is looking for the renewal of a 1.5-mill levy with an increase of 0.5 mills for a period of 10 years, meaning the final rate to taxpayer will be 2 mills. That money will ensure the authority will be able to continue to provide transportation service to local residents. It’s important that voters say “yes” to the issue. SVRTA provides about 176,000 rides to area residents each year, a number, ...

Ohioans hope for a rosy future, as politicians hand us promise after promise to distract from reality. We know there is potential, but numbers can present a different picture, and the Ohio Department of Development’s Office of Research took a look at population projections from 2020 to 2050 to show us what the trends really suggest. Based on today’s rates of fertility, mortality and migration, by 2050 Ohio will lose 675,000 people — 5.7 percent of the population. Population in the United States, meanwhile, is expected to grow by 17.3 percent. Population stability and growth ...

SNAP adjustment a good decision

Officials with the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services have made an important change that should help the program do a better job helping those who are part of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. On Oct. 1, ODJFS Director Matt Damschroder announced a sliding scale to allow recipients to move off the program gradually. That way, recipients will feel less as though they need to turn down promotions or new job opportunities to keep food on the table. “Fear of losing food benefits can be a deterrent to taking a new job, working more hours or even accepting a ...

W.Va. makes right choice on Williams

During the recent special session of the West Virginia Legislature, lawmakers carved out time to honor someone important not only to the state, but to the country. They passed a resolution to place a statue of the late Hershel “Woody” Williams inside the U.S. Capitol. Williams, who died in 2022, was the last surviving Congressional Medal of Honor recipient from World War II. Born in Quiet Dell, W.Va., Williams was a Marine Corps veteran who was in combat in the Pacific. He received the Medal of Honor in 1945, after serving in the Battle of Iwo Jima with the 21st Marines, 3rd Marine ...