The Bank of Ohio

The proposed Bank of Ohio will be a publicly-owned state bank modeled after the Bank of North Dakota which began in 1919 and has served its citizens well for over a century. Ohio has an economy the size that rivals many small industrialized nations but the major difference is that those countries have a public banking system that complements the private banking system. My Blueprint For Ohio has at its centerpiece, the Bank of Ohio, which can finance most of the components contained in the Blueprint.

The Bank of Ohio will be able to help finance agricultural initiatives, business development, educational opportunities, environmental upgrades, housing expansion, infrastructure improvements, including internet and even mass transit construction. The Bank of Ohio would be capitalized with $500 Million from Ohio's Rainy Day Fund which has an approximate balance of $3 Billion. With that capitalization, the Bank of Ohio could lend up to $5 Billion in loans to small and regional banks throughout Ohio.

In addition to lending out funds, the Bank of Ohio is the sole depositor of all federal monies, state taxes, fees, fines and any other forms of revenue the state is authorized to retain. It is run by banking professionals with the State Treasurer in charge. There are no shareholders as Ohio Taxpayers are the owners. As a public institution, it would be fully transparent unlike the secretive and unauditable JobsOhio.org.

It is far past overdue for Ohio to create its own state publicly-owned bank to create new and exciting opportunities to help all Ohioans realize their full potential, while at the same time helping Ohio secure its financial future.