Lynn Walsh

A story written for Texas Watchdog:

HISD budget up for vote Thursday; follow @texaswatchdog for updates on Twitter
Wed Jun 23 21:24:00 2010 CST
By Lynn Walsh

HISD’s proposed $1.6 billion budget for the 2011 fiscal year is up for approval by trustees Thursday.
Before the vote, the public is welcome to voice their opinions in a public hearing, beginning at 5 p.m. at the Hattie Mae Center, 4400 West 18th St., Houston.

As promised, the proposed budget can be viewed online, here.

With the vote occurring immediately after the public hearing, Texas Watchdog earlier this month questioned whether it would it make a difference to speak out at the hearing. In any case, now is your chance to view the budget and come prepared to rant, rave, question or comment on it.

Texas Watchdog will be live tweeting from the meeting and hearing Thursday. Follow us on Twitter, @TexasWatchdog for immediate updates. You can also search for #HISD to comment, raise questions and join in the conversation.

The trustees will be all yours Thursday, but if something in the proposed budget catches your eye beforehand you can contact them here.

Feel free to contact me as well, 713-228-2850 or lynn@texaswatchdog.org. On Twitter: @lwalsh.

A story produced for Texas Watchdog:

Blog Chat links: Frank Wilson’s out, e-mails to inmates are in (and off-topic, knitting as public art)
Mon May 10 16:49:00 2010 CST
By Lynn Walsh

From the prison yard to the school yard, blogs across the state of Texas are buzzing about some initiatives Texas lawmakers are pursuing. Add Houston Metro to the mix, and you have a busy Monday in the blogosphere.

Don’t have time to search through your Google Reader, let alone think about logging onto Twitter? Don’t worry, Texas Watchdog did the reading for you. Our latest Blog Chat webcast is below along with links to the blogs.

blogHouston: Frank Wilson has left the building

KHOU: Metro’s CEO quits; lawsuits and investigations move forward

Statesman: Inmates get e-mail? Lawmakers want details

The Dallas Morning News: Texas lawmakers discuss easing public school class size limit to cut costs

Grits for Breakfast: Keller could be removed from office if criminal charges are brought

Burnt Orange Report: Sharon Keller could be suspended from office if misdemeanor criminal charges are filed against her

Fort Worth Star-Telegram: Keller ignores due diligence

The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas YouTube channel: 60 Seconds To: Requesting an Attorney General’s Opinion

Mashable: 5 ways government works better with social media

Our Jennifer Peebles’ new blog: Not From Texas

Grits for Breakfast: Knitta, please cover those ugly blue signs on Lamar underpass

Austin Eavesdropper: Knitta please! Lamar Street Knit Bomb

We mentioned in Blog Chat that the artist behind the “Knit Bomb” could come down to Houston. A viewer tells us such art installments have already been here: Houston Press: Knitta, Please!

A story written for Texas Watchdog:

Blog Chat with Texas Watchdog, 1 p.m. CST. Join us at www.texaswatchdog.org.
Mon Apr 19 11:47:48 2010 CST
By Lynn Walsh

What’s buzzworthy in the blogosphere this morning? Need something to tweet about? Join Texas Watchdog’s Lynn Walsh and Jennifer Peebles Monday afternoon for a new episode of Blog Chat, 1 p.m. at www.texaswatchdog.org.

Have you seen a news item, video or opinion column we should highlight? E-mail lynn@texaswatchdog.org or message her on Twitter (@lwalsh).

A story written for Ohio Watchdog:

Big Brother is Watching
Posted by Lynn Walsh on November 1, 2009

A surveillance camera program on Main Street in Columbus, Ohio is keeping tabs on everything and everyone it can see. The program is managed by the Columbus Compact Corporation, a nonprofit organization that works to improve life for neighborhoods in Columbus.

The six-camera program was initially funded by a government grant; now funding for the organization is a combination of public dollars and private contributions. The cameras are operated by community volunteers who can log-on through password protected access from the comfort of their homes. Once logged-in the operators can zoom-in, record, and search throughout the Main Street area.

The program not only offers a live video feed, it also posts videos to their YouTube page. The goal of the program is to rid the area of criminal behavior by embarrassing and exposing criminals to the general public virtually with the help of tax-payer dollars.

A story written for Ohio Watchdog:

Main Street Bridge Project
Posted by Lynn Walsh on October 20, 2009

That Main Street Bridge is one project the City of Columbus went over budget on. Their reason for overspending: bringing art and a aesthetically-pleasing structure to the City.

A story written for Ohio Watchdog:

Taxed but Not Serviced
Posted by Lynn Walsh on October 30, 2009
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Taxation without services. It is the reality for the residents at Sawmill Reserve in central Ohio. The land their homes occupy was annexed from Perry Township by the City of Columbus. Now, the residents pay taxes to both Perry Township and Columbus even though Columbus is the only municipality they receive services from; Perry Township collects their taxes without giving anything back in return.

A story written for the Buckeye Institute:

Center of the Lawn and “Tea’d Off!”
Monday, April 20th, 2009 By Lynn Walsh

We may not be in Boston but that didn’t stop more than 7,000 people from crowding the Statehouse steps April 15, 2009 for a “Columbus Tea Party.” Tea Party protests popped up all over the country on tax day and the one here in Columbus was not that different. What was different here though was the reasoning behind the protest. Traditionally Tea Party protests on tax day are used to protest just that, taxes. Here in Columbus people were less concerned about taxes and more concerned about government spending. The crowd was angry, scared, and most of all passionate. Most expressed their anger over the various stimulus bills passed by both President Bush and President Obama. Others were angry about other issues including the bailout and an Obama Presidency.

No matter which side you are on, the left, the right, or in the middle, seeing a crowd that size is democracy at its best. See the Columbus Tea Party for yourself by clicking on the link above.

A story written for The Buckeye Institute:

More Money, More Problems
Monday, July 20th, 2009 By Lynn Walsh

The City of Columbus seems to have found itself in a tough spot; an $80 million budget hole on one side and citizens needs on another. The solution, according to city leaders, is to raise the income tax.

According to the Economic Research Service the median household income in Ohio is $46,645. In Columbus it is even less than that, $37,897. The per capita income in the city is less still, $20,450.

City of Columbus employees are a little better off it seems. The median income for the almost 10,000 people employed by the City is $53,059.34. That includes overtime pay but does not include pension, retirement, or benefits.

Total overtime pay for City of Columbus employees in 2008 totals more than $28 million. More than 150 employees made more than $25,000 in overtime last year. Those same employees represent 65% of the total overtime paid by the City of Columbus in 2008.

In the spirit of transparency, the Buckeye Institute requested a salary database from the City for all City of Columbus employees. The City Auditor’s Office answered our request with .pdf documents detailing salary information including total overtime and “other” pay.

To make it easier to navigate through, the Buckeye Institute has converted the file into a Microsoft Excel document that can be downloaded and searched.

http://www.buckeyeinstitute.org/docs/XPP0947_YTD_2008.xls

The Buckeye Institute will be posting a series of stories related to the information found above in the hope of informing all Ohioans.

A story written for the Buckeye Institute:

Behind the Scenes: Fischer Homes Story
Tuesday, May 5th, 2009 By Lynn Walsh

Immigration may not be the hottest topic right now; but, that doesn’t mean it has taken a back seat. For three years Henry Fischer and his company Fischer Homes found themselves caught right in the middle of a highly publicized federal immigration case. The Federal Government was accusing Fischer Homes of knowingly hiring subcontractors that employee illegal immigrants. From the beginning Henry Fischer stood by his company and his employees who faced years behind bars. Mr. Fischer even took it upon himself to let a renowned journalist follow the cases every move. Award-winning journalist Jon Entine tells the story of Henry Fischer and Fischer Homes in his book, No Crime But Prejudice: Fischer Homes, the Immigration Fiasco, and the Extra-judicial Prosecution. Here is a behind the scenes look at how the investigation process unfolded for Entine.

Learn more about this compelling story and meet Henry Fischer: Click here

A story written for Ohio Watchdog:

Stimulus Jobs Cost More in Democratic Congressional Districts in Ohio
Posted by Lynn Walsh on November 17, 2009
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The average cost to create or retain a job in Ohio with stimulus money is $294,885.07. This is according to the most recent state/territory summary at www.recovery.gov. The site show 28 congressional districts in Ohio that have received stimulus dollars; 10 of those districts do not exist.

Of the 18 congressional districts that do exist in Ohio; 10 are served by Democratic representatives and seven are served by Republican representatives. 83% of the amount of money awarded to Ohio went to Democrat represented districts; 17% went to Republican represented districts.

Total Republican Democrat Districts

According to the last re-districting of Ohio in the year 2000, each of the 18 congressional districts represents a population of 630,730 people. The average cost of the awarded stimulus money per person in a district represented by a Democrat is $366.92; $188.21 for a district represented by a Republican. The average cost per job in a district represented by a Republican is $940,745.24; $1,018,849.92 for a district represented by a Democrat.

Republican Democrat Stiumulus Costs

The 1st and 15th congressional districts were highly-contested races in 2008; the 15th congressional district race was not finalized until December 7, 2008. So far, both of these districts have received the most stimulus money; district 15 has received over $1.3 billion dollars and the 1st district has received close to $1.1 billion. Both of these districts also have the highest average stimulus cost per person in the state; more than $2,000 in district 15 and more than $1,600 in the 1st district.

The 1st district also has the highest average cost per job in the entire state, over $3 million; 50% higher than any other congressional district in Ohio. The 15th congressional district is represented by Democrat Mary Jo Kilroy; Union and Madison Counties are entirely within the district’s boundaries as well as about half of Franklin County. The 1st congressional district of Ohio is represented by Democrat Steve Driehaus; the City of Cincinnati is within the districts boundaries.