League of Women Voters of the Cincinnati Area Education Fund
Hamilton County, OH November 6, 2007 Election
	Cecil Thomas Answers Questions Candidate for Council Member; City of Cincinnati

The questions were prepared by the League of Women Voters of the Cincinnati Area and asked of all candidates for this office.
Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).

Questions & Answers

1. What are your qualifications for office? (50 word limit)

As the current Chairman of Council's Law and Public Safety Committee, a retired Cincinnati Police Officer and the former Executive Director of the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission, I am well qualified to continue representing the citizens on issues of Crime, Community/Police Relations, Neighborhood Development, Housing and the Environment.

2. What plans do you have to address your top three priorities? (100 word limit)

CRIME-Presently, I am focused on repairing the strained relationship between Citizens and Police and past City Councils and the police. I'm also working to restore citizen confidence in city government. I will continue expanding the comprehensive crime strategy I started in 2006. The Cincinnati Initiative to Reduce Violence (CIRV). I will continue to support our local law enforcement and the Comprehensive Safety Plan to reduce recividism.

I will continue supporting residential tax abatements to encourage citizen investment in new and existing housing.

I will continue supporting the Office of Environmental Quality as we clean up our city.

I will continue supporting Neighborhood Tax Increment Financing (TIF) Districts to spur large and small business development, creating jobs and expanding the tax base.

3. State three actions that you recommend to promote regional cooperation, and explain how you would implement each action? (150 word limit)

Three actions in order to promote regional cooperation are:
1. Encourage greatercollaboration for existing regional economic development organizations.
2. Lobby the region for stronger support for Regional Transit System.
3. Development a Regional Environmental Quality Management System. Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana (OKI) is a prime market area for economic development based on its location in the country. Therefore, I would encourage increased involvement by local government officials in the Cincinnati USA Partnership to establish a unified vision for developing the entire region.

Developing a regional transit system helps address poverty in the region. I would continue urging greater collaboration for a transit system that serves the entire region.

Environmental Quality issues are regional issues. I will continue to support the Office of Environmental Quality Management and urge Council support for a regional task force to develop an environment strategy that impacts the entire region.

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Responses to questions asked of each candidate are reproduced as submitted to the League.  Candidates' statements are presented as submitted. Word limits apply for each question. Direct references to opponents are not permitted.

Read the answers from all candidates (who have responded).

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Created from information supplied by the candidate: October 1, 2007 17:18
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