Bricker & Eckler creates Local Government Task Force, Online resource center

Columbus, Ohio — Bricker & Eckler LLP has established an online Local Government Reform resource center to assist Ohio’s counties, municipalities, townships, school districts, libraries and other public entities in navigating their options in the face of proposed local government reforms.

In the past several months, various statewide groups, including Ohio Smart Schools and the Ohio Commission on Local Government Reform and Collaboration, have called for changes to Ohio’s political subdivisions to make Ohio more competitive in attracting economic development. Proposed changes range from collaboration to consolidation and regionalization, changes aimed at simplifying tax structure at the local level and decreasing bureaucracy.

“These are challenging times for local governments and public entities throughout the state of Ohio,” said Rebecca Princehorn, a partner at Bricker & Eckler and chair of the firm’s Public Sector Practice Group. “At Bricker, we believe it’s important to help our public-sector clients respond to these challenges by identifying the many legal options available to them under Ohio’s existing laws and by analyzing new ones.”

The firm has formed a Local Government Reform task force to provide practical legal advice and maximize opportunities for collaboration and innovation. The task force is chaired by Princehorn (who specializes in K-12 education, libraries and townships) and Price Finley (economic development and Columbus), and includes Kimberly Brown (annexation), Kimball Carey (K-12 education and educational service centers), William Conard (state finance, higher education), Mark Engel (state and local tax and Cincinnati), Raymond Headen (structured finance and Cleveland), Kenneth Johnson (bankruptcy), Gregory Lestini (government relations and southeast Ohio), Frank Merrill (environment), Jack Rosati (construction), Thomas Siwo (law clerk), Matt Stout (municipalities), Betsy Swift (employment) and Managing Partner Kurtis Tunnell.

“Bricker’s new task force is in keeping with the firm’s long-standing tradition of working with and supporting Ohio’s local governments, including keeping them informed during periods of state and federal reform initiatives,” said Price Finley, Bricker partner and chair of the firm’s Public Finance Practice Group. “This has been a key role of the firm since its founding, and our support continues through today’s tough budgetary times.”

Bricker’s online resource center is available at www.bricker.com.

Bricker & Eckler is one of Ohio’s leading law firms. Located in Columbus, Cleveland and Cincinnati-Dayton, the firm represents a wide variety of clients, including businesses and corporations, nonprofit organizations, governmental agencies, health care entities, school districts, municipalities, banks and insurers. For more information, visit www.bricker.com.