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Democratic Gubernatorial Challenger Requesting Expanded Ethics Review Of JobsOhio

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UPDATE 12:41 p.m. Ohio's leading ethics regulator says Gov. John Kasich made a clean break from a corporation whose subsidiaries received $619,000 in tax breaks.

Ohio Ethics Commission Chairman Merom Brachman said Thursday the panel's only role in policing the relationship between Kasich and Worthington Industries is to assure his payments from the company were accurately reported.

Brachman says Ohio law made clear that the commission has nothing else to do with JobsOhio, the privatized job-creation whose board Kasich appoints.

His remarks followed an Associated Press report detailing Kasich's longstanding financial and political ties to the firm, including board salary and deferred compensation payouts into 2011.

Kasich's top lawyer wrote to the commission with new details of the payments, Brachman said everything appeared in order.


Ohio Gov. John Kasich's Democratic rival has expanded an ethics complaint involving practices of the state's new privatized job-creation office.

In a letter Thursday, Cuyahoga County Executive Ed FitzGerald cited an Associated Press report detailing Kasich's financial and political ties to a Fortune 500 steel processor whose subsidiaries are cleared to get $619,000 in state tax incentives recommended by JobsOhio.

Kasich appoints JobsOhio's board, and his appointees dominate the panel that approved its recommended tax breaks.

FitzGerald requested the commission add review of Kasich's relationship to Worthington Industries to a complaint he'd already filed seeking panel input on potential conflicts of interest on JobsOhio's board.

The Dayton Daily News has reported six directors had financial ties to entities that received state economic development help.

The commission meets Thursday.