Sen. Kevin Coughlin dismissed from position for refusal to remiss on Taxpayer Protection Pledge

WASHINGTON – Ohio State Senator Kevin Coughlin (R-Cuyahoga Falls) should be commended for his unyielding efforts to uphold Americans for Tax Reform\’s Taxpayer Protection Pledge to vote against tax increases. His endeavors to protect his state\’s taxpayers from oppressive and overbearing taxes and to control governmental spending should be a model for his peers. Instead, however, the Ohio Senate has dismissed him from the finance committee for keeping his pledge and refusing to support tax increases.

Kevin Coughlin has served on the Finance and Financial Institution Committee since he was first elected to the Ohio legislature in 1997. He has been an avid supporter for governmental accountability and has consistently voted against tax increases.

"Senator Coughlin\’s efforts in Ohio have been a model for lawmakers everywhere," commented Grover Norquist who heads Americans for Tax Reform in Washington DC. "It is shameful that a Senator so dedicated to his promises would be callously tossed aside from his position because of his commitment to the citizens of Ohio."

Ohio is one of many states facing budget shortfalls this session. Many states collected tax surpluses when the economy boomed in the late 1990s. As the economy slowed, state legislatures continued to irresponsibly spend money that did not exist. Sen. Coughlin advocated restraint of unnecessary and wasteful governmental spending to balance the state\’s budget rather than levying increasingly higher taxes.

Senator Coughlin has worked for six years in the state legislature to uphold his promises to the Ohio taxpayers. Ohioans are already taxed heavily and have opposed efforts to increase taxes to balance the state\’s voracious fiscal appetite. By signing the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, lawmakers pledge their support to their constituents to vote against any and all efforts to increase taxes.

"The people of Ohio were very fortunate to have a Senator dedicated to the taxpayer in a position of economic authority," continued Norquist. "It is a sad day for Ohio when lawmakers concerned with their constituents well-being are dismissed in exchange for heavier taxes that overburden all Ohioans."