Thomas Hall
Madison Twp. resident Thomas Hall, 29, says he wants to go back to Columbus because “the job is not done in my opinion.”
At the top of his list to get done is property tax reform.
“The number one and most important reason I want to go back and fight for this district is for property tax reform,” Hall said. “This term has been about introducing legislation, getting them through committees … I still want to see that through”
Other top priorities are advocating for first responders, continuing to streamline state government, enhancing the homestead exemption, stepping up stroke care in hospitals and capping insulin costs for those under 65.
Hall said he is a first responder and is from a first responder family and will champion legislation to protect private information and work schedules for “security while they are at work.”
Also needed is simplifying training for first responders “making it easier for them to get training and enact their own initiatives. Rather than going through the state of Ohio, they can adopt their own policies,” he said.
Hall remains committed to working with colleagues of both parties to “streamline state government, save taxpayer money and make the process more effective for users of government resources or departments”
Attention must be given to seniors to cap property taxes, according to Hall.
“I want to see this get done. They can’t afford the steep increases that we are seeing. I don’t want to see them taxed out of their own home,” he said
Hall earned a bachelor’s degree from Miami University. Prior to his election to the statehouse, he served as a Madison Twp. trustee from 2016-2020.
Benjamin McCall
Liberty Twp. resident Benjamin McCall said he got involved with the inner workings of local governments and boards after the 2021 election.
“I didn’t appreciate the way the election went for local boards. The only way you change what you don’t like is to get get involved and I did,” McCall said. And during the past four years, he has attended and watched township trustee meetings, county commission meetings, Lakota school district meetings and being involved with committees.
McCall said he had people urging him to run for local office
“I am not the face of a campaign. I am a plain person,” McCall said.
He took a look at the 46th district and thought that is where he could make a make a difference.
If elected, top priorities are reform in funding for schools and townships as well as mental and physical health needs to assure a viable workforce and individual and voting rights.
“Slowly over the past 20 years the state has taken more and more funds from local cities and townships causing a strain on property owners, on business owners as well as city government to maintain infrastructure,” McCall said.
Funding reform of mental and physical health, including addressing addiction recovery and homelessness, is a must because, “you can have businesses and all the economical development, but if you don’t have a community that is whole to be able to work in those businesses all it does is further degrade,” he said.
“If you have a healthy community, then you have healthy businesses and towns,” McCall said.
He said the next legislator elected in his district needs to communicate and work with everyone in the district.
“For instance, Monroe in its economic development is very different than Middletown, Lemon Twp and Liberty Twp.,” McCall said. “So part of that is local control and them being able to make decisions that are best for the people, but another piece of it is how do we have a conversation not just within a single town council but across the board. We need more people who despite their ideologies and difference say these are my personal beliefs, but I am legislating for every single person in my district.”
McCall, 48, is married with two children, is a graduate of Indiana University and has an MBA from the University of Cincinnati. He works in human resources and workforce development as consultant for various public and private companies.
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