In just six years as a House member, Larry Householder has fashioned himself into perhaps the most dominating politician on Capitol Square, filling the power vacuum created by a governor who has been reluctant to lead. The speaker of the Ohio House won't run for governor in 2006, but he plans to be ready in 2010 if a Republican isn't occupying the office, or in 2014, when, at age 54, he'll still be relatively young.

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The Ohio General Assembly's struggle to cover a gap between state spending and tax revenue is nearing an end for this fiscal year. The issue worked to delay HB12 slightly in the House earlier this year, and it looks to be having a similar effect in the Senate. No meetings are scheduled on HB12 this week, as Senators and staffs are largely focused on finalizing a budget bill.

UPDATE! The Senate passed its version of the budget in a floor vote on Thursday, June 5th. The bill will now head for a conference committee. This progress on the state budget will likely free up Senators and their staff to once again finish the work on HB12. Our sources are still indicating that a vote can be expected within a couple of weeks, as was indicated in a recent Gongwer News Story.

Even the budget battle has been exploited by anti-self-defense extremists in recent weeks and months. But ironically, the results of their efforts, if they were successful, would all be to decrease safety.

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