Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. Tracing its heritage back to Thomas Jefferson and James Madison's Democratic-Republican Party, the modern-day Democratic Party was founded around 1828 by supporters of Andrew Jackson, making it the world's oldest active political party; the Democrats' dominant worldview was once social conservatism and economic liberalism, while populism was its leading characteristic in the rural South. In 1912, Theodore Roosevelt ran as a third-party candidate in the Progressive Party, beginning a switch of political platforms between the Democratic and Republican Party over the coming decades, leading to Woodrow Wilson being elected as the first fiscally progressive Democrat. Since Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal coalition in the 1930s, the Democratic Party has promoted a social liberal platform, supporting social justice. Well into the 20th century, the party had conservative pro-business and Southern conservative-populist anti-business wings.
The New Deal Coalition of 1932–1964 attracted strong support from voters of recent European extraction—many of whom were Catholics based in the cities. After Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal of the 1930s, the pro-business wing withered outside the South. After the racial turmoil of the 1960s, most Southern whites and many Northern Catholics moved into the Republican Party at the presidential level; the once-powerful labor union element became less supportive after the 1970s. White Evangelicals and Southerners became Republican at the state and local level since the 1990s. People living in metropolitan areas, women and gender minorities, college graduates, racial and ethnic minorities in the United States, such as Jewish Americans, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Arab Americans and African Americans, tend to support the Democratic Party much more than they support the rival Republican Party; the Democratic Party's philosophy of modern liberalism advocates social and economic equality, along with the welfare state.
It seeks to provide government regulation in the economy. These interventions, such as the introduction of social programs, support for labor unions, affordable college tuitions, moves toward universal health care and equal opportunity, consumer protection and environmental protection form the core of the party's economic policy. Fifteen Democrats have served as President of the United States; the first was President Andrew Jackson, the seventh president and served from 1829 to 1837. The most recent was President Barack Obama, the 44th president and held office from 2009 to 2017. Following the 2018 midterm elections, the Democrats held a majority in the House of Representatives, "trifectas" in 14 states, the mayoralty of numerous major American cities, such as Boston, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Portland and Washington, D. C. Twenty-three state governors were Democrats, the Party was the minority party in the Senate and in most state legislatures; as of March 2019, four of the nine Justices of the Supreme Court had been appointed by Democratic presidents.
Democratic Party officials trace its origins to the inspiration of the Democratic-Republican Party, founded by Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and other influential opponents of the Federalists in 1792. That party inspired the Whigs and modern Republicans. Organizationally, the modern Democratic Party arose in the 1830s with the election of Andrew Jackson. Since the nomination of William Jennings Bryan in 1896, the party has positioned itself to the left of the Republican Party on economic issues, they have been more liberal on civil rights issues since 1948. On foreign policy, both parties have changed position several times; the Democratic Party evolved from the Jeffersonian Republican or Democratic-Republican Party organized by Jefferson and Madison in opposition to the Federalist Party of Alexander Hamilton and John Adams. The party favored republicanism; the Democratic-Republican Party came to power in the election of 1800. After the War of 1812, the Federalists disappeared and the only national political party left was the Democratic-Republicans.
The era of one-party rule in the United States, known as the Era of Good Feelings, lasted from 1816 until the early 1830s, when the Whig Party became a national political group to rival the Democratic-Republicans. However, the Democratic-Republican Party still had its own internal factions, they split over the choice of a successor to President James Monroe and the party faction that supported many of the old Jeffersonian principles, led by Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren, became the modern Democratic Party. As Norton explains the transformation in 1828: Jacksonians believed the people's will had prevailed. Through a lavishly financed coalition of state parties, political leaders, newspaper editors, a popular movement had elected the president; the Democrats became the nation's first well-organized national party and tight party organization became the hallmark of nineteenth-century American politics. Opposing factions led by Henry Clay helped form the Whig Party; the Democratic Party had a small yet decisive advantage over the Whigs until the 1850s, when the Whigs fell apart over the issue of slavery.
In 1854, angry with the Kansas–Nebraska Act, anti-slavery Dem
Zack Space
Zachary T. Space is an American politician and the former U. S. Representative for Ohio's 18th congressional district, serving from 2007 until 2011, he is a member of the Democratic Party. After serving in Congress, Space became a lobbyist and was a principal for Vorys Advisors LLC, a subsidiary of the law firm Vorys, Sater and Pease. In August 2017, he announced his campaign for Ohio State Auditor in 2018. Space was born on January 1961 in Dover, Ohio, his family is of Greek origin. Space graduated from Dover High School in 1979, attended Kenyon College, where he earned All-American honors in football, graduated with a B. A. in Political Science. Space earned a Juris Doctor from the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law. In 1986, Space started a law practice with Socrates, their firm, Space & Space Company, LPA, was in business for nearly 20 years and focused on consumer rights. The elder Space was active in local politics, serving a long tenure as Chairman of the Tuscarawas County Democratic Party.
Space is State of Ohio Bar Associations. In addition to his private law practice, he has worked as a public defender and served as Special Counsel to two Attorneys General of Ohio, Anthony J. Celebrezze, Jr. and Lee Fisher. After the death of Dover Law Director Thomas Watson, Space was appointed to fill the vacancy, he won re-election in 2001 with 70 percent of the vote, was unopposed in the 2003 election. As Law Director, Space served as general counsel to the Dover city government and tried misdemeanor cases in the city's municipal court. Committee on Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Commerce and Consumer Protection Subcommittee on Communications and the Internet Subcommittee on HealthSpace was a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, he is an advocate for embryonic stem cell research, a position he embraced after his son Nicholas was diagnosed with Type I diabetes at age six. Representative Space voted against the final Senate version of the Affordable Care Act after voting for the House version which included a public option.
Rep. Space voted for the Waxman-Markey "cap and trade" bill allowing it to be brought out of committee and be passed by the House. American Electric Power and the Environmental Defense Fund ran a commercial congratulating Rep. Space for his vote. On May 2, 2006, Space won the Democratic primary for the House seat held by Bob Ney, defeating Democrats Jennifer Stewart, Joe Sulzer, Ralph Applegate. Space received 39 percent of the vote, Stewart 25 percent, Sulzer 24 percent, Applegate received 11 percent. Republican Ney said much of the primary campaign was focused on attacking him, said he would attempt to bring the campaign back to the issues. "It has to get back to issues," he said. "We are going to run an aggressive campaign.... We are going to stick to the issues and show the difference between me and Zack Space." In July, a poll commissioned by the Space campaign showed Space ahead of Ney, 46 percent to 35 percent, with 19 percent undecided. On August 7, Ney withdrew from the race. In a special primary the Ohio Republican party selected State Senator Joy Padgett to replace Ney.
She was dogged by questions about a business bankruptcy that her husband had filed. She was seriously hampered by associations with Ney, as well as widespread scandals surrounding the Ohio Republican Party. On November 7, Space defeated Padgett 62 percent to 38 percent. Although much more attention was paid to Brad Ellsworth's 61 percent to 39 percent defeat of John Hostettler in Indiana's 8th district, Space's victory was the largest margin of any Democrat in a Republican-held seat nationwide in 2006. Space defeated Fred Dailey, former director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture 60-40%. Space was challenged by Constitution Party Lindsey Sutton. Gibbs won the election. During the campaign, Gibbs attacked Space for his role in the financial meltdown and his support for policies like Cap&Trade, which Gibbs argued would have been devastating for Space's district, predominantly made up of coal miners. Space formally announced his campaign for Ohio Auditor of State in August 2017 with stops in Martins Ferry, east-side Columbus, Lima.
Space has focused his campaign around using the considerable constitutional powers of the Auditor's office to restore faith and confidence in Ohio's democratic process. Space has pledged to expose pay-to-play in Ohio's state government and mitigate against the influence of money in politics. In addition, Space has campaigned for an end to partisan gerrymandering, saying that "gerrymandering's immediate and most obvious effect is to disenfranchise voters. You allow legislators to select voters as opposed to voters selecting legislators.". In November 2017, Space embarked on an "Ohio River Tour to Restore" during which he held 11 campaign events over three days in Scioto, Gallia, Athens, Monroe and Jefferson counties along the Ohio River. In January 2018, Space called on politicians who took campaign contributions from the founders of the now-shuttered Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow to donate those monies back to local public schools. In February 2018, Space's race for Ohio Auditor of State race was named a National Priority Target by the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, an anti-gerrymandering organization led by former U.
S. Attorney General Eric backed by President Barack Obama. In June 2018, Space announced a plan to form a unit in the Auditor's office to investigat
Ohio House of Representatives
The Ohio House of Representatives is the lower house of the Ohio General Assembly, the state legislature of the U. S. state of Ohio. The House of Representatives first met in Chillicothe on March 3, 1803, under the superseded state constitution of that year. In 1816, the capital was moved to Columbus; the 133rd General Assembly convened in January 2019. Members are limited to four consecutive two-year elected terms. Time served by appointment to fill out another representative's uncompleted term does not count against the term limit. There are 99 members in the house, elected from single-member districts; every even-numbered year, all the seats are up for re-election. Speaker of the House: Larry Householder Speaker pro tempore: Jim Butler Majority Floor Leader: Bill Seitz Assistant Majority Floor Leader: Anthony DeVitis Majority Whip: Jay Edwards Assistant Majority Whip: Laura Lanese Minority Leader: Emilia Sykes Assistant Minority Leader: Kristin Boggs Minority Whip: Kent Smith Assistant Minority Whip: Paula Hicks-Hudson ↑: Member was appointed to the seat.
The Speaker of the House of Representatives is the presiding officer of the House. The current Speaker is a Republican from Glenford, Ohio, he became Speaker on January 7, 2019. The duties of the Speaker include preserving order and decorum at all times, recognizing visitors in the galleries and providing security for the Hall, appointing members to perform the duties of the Speaker for a temporary period of time, naming committees and subcommittees and appointing their chairs and members, overseeing the performance of House employees, signing bills, acts and more; the Clerk of the House of Representatives is in charge of and regulates the distribution of records of the House. The Clerk is the custodian of legislative documents within the House; the duties of the Clerk include examining bills or resolutions before introduction, numbering bills and resolutions for filing, providing bills and documents pertaining to the bill to the chair of the corresponding committee, publishing calendars to notify the public about bills and resolutions, keeping a journal of House proceedings, superintending the presentation of bills and resolutions, attesting writs and subpoenas issued by the House of Representatives.
The Sergeant-at-arms of the House of Representatives is tasked with maintaining security and order in the House. The Sergeant-at-arms may be ordered by the Speaker to clear the aisles if this is deemed necessary by the Speaker. Other duties of the Sergeant-at-arms include controlling admission to the building, serving subpoenas and warrants issued by the House, bringing any members found to be absent without leave to the House; the Speaker of the House is in charge of naming all subcommittees. The current committees and vice chairs are: Official website Project Vote Smart – State House of Ohio Map of Ohio House Districts Ohio District Maps 2002–2012 Election results from Ohio Secretary of State
Holmes County, Ohio
Holmes County is a county located in the U. S. state of Ohio. As of the 2010 census, the population was 42,366, its county seat is Millersburg. The county was formed in 1824 from portions of Coshocton and Wayne counties and organized the following year, it was named after Andrew Holmes, an officer killed in the War of 1812. Holmes County, about 42% Amish in 2010, is home to the second largest Amish community in the world, that draws many visitors to the county. Holmes County was formed on January 20, 1824 from portions of Coshocton and Wayne counties, it was named after Andrew Holmes, an officer in the War of 1812. In 1863, during the Civil War, numerous small anti-draft riots took place in the German-speaking areas. Holmes County at the time was a Democratic stronghold, dominated by its Pennsylvania Dutch settlers, along with many recent German immigrants. With the passage of the Conscription Act in March 1863, Holmes County politicians denounced both Congress and President Lincoln as despotic, saying that forced military service was little different than slavery.
Conscription had been common in their former German homelands, it was one of the reasons they had moved to America. Violent protests broke out in June, they continued until the Union Army marched into the county and declared martial law. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 424 square miles, of which 423 square miles is land and 1.4 square miles is water. Wayne County Stark County Tuscarawas County Coshocton County Knox County Ashland County As of the census of 2000, there were 38,943 people, 11,337 households, 9,194 families residing in the county; the population density was 92 people per square mile. There were 12,280 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile; the racial makeup of the county was 99.03% White, 0.33% Black or African American, 0.06% Native American, 0.06% Asian, 0.01% Pacific Islander, 0.13% from other races, 0.40% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.75% of the population. 56.1% spoke English, 20.1% Pennsylvania German, 15.8% German and 7.1% "Dutch, i.e. Pennsylvania Dutch."
As their first language. There were 11,337 households out of which 44.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 71.50% were married couples living together, 6.50% had a female householder with no husband present, 18.90% were non-families. 16.10% of all households were made up of individuals and 6.90% had someone living alone, 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.35 and the average family size was 3.82. Religious breakdown for those who gave a religion was 89.79% Evangelical Protestant, 8.04% Mainline Protestant and 2.16% Catholic. There were 140 Amish congregations with 17,654 adherents. There were Mennonite congregations. There was one Catholic congregation. In the county, the population was spread out with 35.60% under the age of 18, 10.40% from 18 to 24, 25.70% from 25 to 44, 17.80% from 45 to 64, 10.50% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 28 years. For every 100 females there were 99.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.50 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $36,944, the median income for a family was $40,230. Males had a median income of $28,490 versus $20,602 for females; the per capita income for the county was $14,197. About 10.50% of families and 12.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.40% of those under age 18 and 13.30% of those age 65 or over. Holmes County has a high number of residents who do not speak English at home. According to the 2000 census 36% of the population speak either Pennsylvania German or German at home, a further 7% speak "Dutch", i.e. Pennsylvania Dutch. 42.92% of the total population and 50.28% of the children in 5-17 age range uses German/Pennsylvania German or "Dutch" at home. As of the 2010 United States Census, there were 42,366 people, 12,554 households, 10,035 families residing in the county; the population density was 100.3 inhabitants per square mile. There were 13,666 housing units at an average density of 32.3 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 98.7% white, 0.3% black or African American, 0.1% Asian, 0.1% American Indian, 0.2% from other races, 0.5% from two or more races.
Those of Hispanic or Latino origin made up 0.8% of the population. In terms of ancestry, 37.8% were German, 10.8% were American, 6.6% were Irish, 6.3% were English. Of the 12,554 households, 42.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 69.7% were married couples living together, 6.9% had a female householder with no husband present, 20.1% were non-families, 17.2% of all households were made up of individuals. The average household size was 3.31 and the average family size was 3.80. The median age was 29.7 years. The median income for a household in the county was $43,533 and the median income for a family was $49,133. Males had a median income of $36,644 versus $24,317 for females; the per capita income for the county was $17,009. About 10.5% of families and 13.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.9% of those under age 18 and 6.9% of those age 65 or over. The Amish community in Holmes County established in 1808, had a 17,654 adherents in 2010, or 41.7% of the county's population.
Prior to 1944, Holmes County was Democratic Party stronghold in presidential elections, with every Democratic presidential candidate from 1872 to 1940 aside from Al Smith in 1928 managing to win the county. The county has since become a
Republican Study Committee
The Republican Study Committee is a caucus of 123 conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. Although the primary functions of the RSC vary from year to year, it has always pushed for significant cuts in non-defense spending, spearheaded efforts to pass free trade agreements, advocated conservative legislation, supported the right to keep and bear arms, it has proposed an alternative budget every year since 1995. In 2007, in conjunction with the unveiling of its "Taxpayer Bill of Rights," it presented an alternative budget resolution that would balance the budget within five years without increasing income taxes, its alternative budget proposals are praised by the editors of National Review, a leading conservative journal of opinion. After over ten years at RSC's helm, Executive Director Paul Teller was fired in December 2013 for divulging member conversations. Entering the 116th United States Congress, the RSC is the largest ideological caucus in Congress of either party.
The RSC's key legislative initiatives are detailed in the American Taxpayer Bill of Rights, unveiled in March 2007. Taxpayers have a right to have a federal government that does not grow beyond their ability to pay for it. Taxpayers have a right to receive back each dollar that they entrust to the government for their retirement. Taxpayers have a right to expect the government to balance the budget without having their taxes raised. Taxpayers have a right to a fair tax code that they can understand; the RSC was founded in 1973 by Paul Weyrich and other conservative activists to keep a watch on the House Republican leadership, which they saw at the time as too moderate. Their formation mirrored the rise of the Democratic Study Group, a liberal force in the Democratic Caucus founded in 1959; the group's first chairman was Phil Crane of Illinois. The group dissolved in 1995 after the Republicans won control of the House for the first time in 40 years when Newt Gingrich abolished it and other similar groups.
However, it was immediately refounded as the Conservative Action Team by Dan Burton of Indiana, Sam Johnson of Texas, John Doolittle of California and Ernest Istook of Oklahoma. The four founders alternated as chairmen throughout the next two Congresses until David McIntosh of Indiana became chairman in 1998; when he resigned from the chairmanship in 2000 to focus on his run for governor of Indiana, Johnson reassumed the chairmanship. John Shadegg of Arizona became chairman in 2001. Shadegg increased the group's membership from 40 members in 2001 to 70 members in 2003. Sue Myrick of North Carolina was the first woman to serve as chair from 2003 to 2005. Mike Pence Vice President but an Indiana congressman, served as chairman from 2005 to 2007 and Jeb Hensarling of Texas served as chairman from 2007 to 2009. Tom Price of Georgia succeeded Hensarling in 2009. After the Republicans regained control of Congress in the 2010 elections, Jim Jordan of Ohio was elected chairman of the RSC. After the 2012 elections, Steve Scalise of Louisiana served as chairman until his election as House Majority Whip in July 2014.
He was replaced by Rob Woodall of Georgia. In November 2014, Bill Flores of Texas was elected chairman of the group for the 114th Congress. Several members of the RSC have held high positions in the House leadership. At one point, seven of the nine top Republican leaders—Majority Leader Eric Cantor, Chief Deputy Whip Peter Roskam, Conference Chairman Jeb Hensarling, Conference Vice-Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Conference Secretary John Carter, Policy Committee chairman Tom Price, National Republican Congressional Committee chairman Pete Sessions—were members of the RSC. Only two members of Republican leadership were not members of the RSC: then-Speaker of the House John Boehner and then-Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy. Paul Teller spent over 10 years as Executive Director of RSC, he was fired in December 2013 by Chairman Steve Scalise for divulging member conversations. Teller had been working with two outside groups in opposition to a budget deal forged by Paul Ryan and Patty Murray. 1973–????: Rep. Phil Crane 1989–1995: Rep. Dan Burton 1995–1999: Rep. Dan Burton, Rep. John Doolittle, Rep. Ernest Istook, Rep. Sam Johnson 1999–2000: Rep. David M. McIntosh 2000–2001: Rep. Sam Johnson 2001–2003: Rep. John Shadegg 2003–2005: Rep. Sue Myrick 2005–2007: Rep. Mike Pence 2007–2009: Rep. Jeb Hensarling 2009–2011: Rep. Tom Price 2011–2013: Rep. Jim Jordan 2013–2014: Rep. Steve Scalise 2014–2015: Rep. Rob Woodall 2015–2017: Rep. Bill Flores 2017–2019: Rep. Mark Walker 2019–present: Rep. Mike Johnson The organization has had ties to outside groups allied with conservative elements of the Republican Party, such as the National Rifle Association, the Heritage Foundation, Focus on the Family, Concerned Women for America, the conservative magazine National Review, the libertarian Cato Institute.
A subgroup of the committee, the Values Action Team, coordinates legislation with religious organizations, including the Christian right. It has been headed by Joe Pitts of Pennsylvania since its formation in 1997; the RSC membership list is available at the group's website. It counts current Vice President Mike Pence, former Vice Presidents Dan Quayle and Dick Cheney and former House Majority Leader Tom DeLay among its former members. In addition, at least four sitting senators—Pat Toomey, Richard Burr, John Boozman, Roger Wicker —were members of the RSC while serving in the House. At least three former governor
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the Great Lakes region of the United States. Of the fifty states, it is the 34th largest by area, the seventh most populous, the tenth most densely populated; the state's capital and largest city is Columbus. The state takes its name from the Ohio River, whose name in turn originated from the Seneca word ohiːyo', meaning "good river", "great river" or "large creek". Partitioned from the Northwest Territory, Ohio was the 17th state admitted to the Union on March 1, 1803, the first under the Northwest Ordinance. Ohio is known as the "Buckeye State" after its Ohio buckeye trees, Ohioans are known as "Buckeyes". Ohio rose from the wilderness of Ohio Country west of Appalachia in colonial times through the Northwest Indian Wars as part of the Northwest Territory in the early frontier, to become the first non-colonial free state admitted to the union, to an industrial powerhouse in the 20th century before transmogrifying to a more information and service based economy in the 21st.
The government of Ohio is composed of the executive branch, led by the Governor. Ohio occupies 16 seats in the United States House of Representatives. Ohio is known for its status as both a bellwether in national elections. Six Presidents of the United States have been elected. Ohio is an industrial state, ranking 8th out of 50 states in GDP, is the second largest producer of automobiles behind Michigan. Ohio's geographic location has proven to be an asset for economic expansion; because Ohio links the Northeast to the Midwest, much cargo and business traffic passes through its borders along its well-developed highways. Ohio has the nation's 10th largest highway network and is within a one-day drive of 50% of North America's population and 70% of North America's manufacturing capacity. To the north, Lake Erie gives Ohio 312 miles of coastline. Ohio's southern border is defined by the Ohio River, much of the northern border is defined by Lake Erie. Ohio's neighbors are Pennsylvania to the east, Michigan to the northwest, Lake Erie to the north, Indiana to the west, Kentucky on the south, West Virginia on the southeast.
Ohio's borders were defined by metes and bounds in the Enabling Act of 1802 as follows: Bounded on the east by the Pennsylvania line, on the south by the Ohio River, to the mouth of the Great Miami River, on the west by the line drawn due north from the mouth of the Great Miami aforesaid, on the north by an east and west line drawn through the southerly extreme of Lake Michigan, running east after intersecting the due north line aforesaid, from the mouth of the Great Miami until it shall intersect Lake Erie or the territorial line, thence with the same through Lake Erie to the Pennsylvania line aforesaid. Ohio is bounded by the Ohio River, but nearly all of the river itself belongs to Kentucky and West Virginia. In 1980, the U. S. Supreme Court held that, based on the wording of the cessation of territory by Virginia, the boundary between Ohio and Kentucky is the northern low-water mark of the river as it existed in 1792. Ohio has only that portion of the river between the river's 1792 low-water mark and the present high-water mark.
The border with Michigan has changed, as a result of the Toledo War, to angle northeast to the north shore of the mouth of the Maumee River. Much of Ohio features glaciated till plains, with an exceptionally flat area in the northwest being known as the Great Black Swamp; this glaciated region in the northwest and central state is bordered to the east and southeast first by a belt known as the glaciated Allegheny Plateau, by another belt known as the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau. Most of Ohio is of low relief, but the unglaciated Allegheny Plateau features rugged hills and forests; the rugged southeastern quadrant of Ohio, stretching in an outward bow-like arc along the Ohio River from the West Virginia Panhandle to the outskirts of Cincinnati, forms a distinct socio-economic unit. Geologically similar to parts of West Virginia and southwestern Pennsylvania, this area's coal mining legacy, dependence on small pockets of old manufacturing establishments, distinctive regional dialect set this section off from the rest of the state.
In 1965 the United States Congress passed the Appalachian Regional Development Act, an attempt to "address the persistent poverty and growing economic despair of the Appalachian Region." This act defines 29 Ohio counties as part of Appalachia. While 1/3 of Ohio's land mass is part of the federally defined Appalachian region, only 12.8% of Ohioans live there Significant rivers within the state include the Cuyahoga River, Great Miami River, Maumee River, Muskingum River, Scioto River. The rivers in the northern part of the state drain into the northern Atlantic Ocean via Lake Erie and the St. Lawrence River, the rivers in the southern part of the state drain into the Gulf of Mexico via the Ohio River and the Mississippi; the worst weather disaster in Ohio history occurred along the Great Miami River in 1913. Known as the Great Dayton Flood, the entire Miami River watershed flooded, including the downtown business district of Dayton; as a result, the Miami Conservancy District was created as the first major flood plain engineering project in Ohio and the United States.
Grand Lake St. Marys in the west-central part of the state was constructed as a supply of water for ca
Clean Water Act
The Clean Water Act is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical and biological integrity of the nation's waters, it is one of the United States' most influential modern environmental laws. As with many other major U. S. federal environmental statutes, it is administered by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, in coordination with state governments, its implementing regulations are codified at 40 C. F. R. Subchapters D, N, O. Technically, the name of the law is the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; the first FWPCA was enacted in 1948, but took on its modern form when rewritten in 1972 in an act entitled the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972. Major changes have subsequently been introduced via amendatory legislation including the Clean Water Act of 1977 and the Water Quality Act of 1987; the Clean Water Act does not directly address groundwater contamination. Groundwater protection provisions are included in the Safe Drinking Water Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, the Superfund act.
Contamination of drinking water supplies can not only occur in the source water but in the distribution system. Sources of water contamination include occurring chemicals and minerals, local land use practices, manufacturing processes, sewer overflows or wastewater releases; some examples of health implications of water contamination are gastrointestinal illness, reproductive problems, neurological disorders. Infants, young children, pregnant women, the elderly, people whose immune systems are compromised because of AIDS, chemotherapy, or transplant medications, may be susceptible to illness from some contaminants. Gastrointestinal disorders include such conditions as constipation, irritable bowel syndrome, anal fissures, perianal abscesses, anal fistulas, perianal infections, diverticular diseases, colon polyps and cancer. In general and the elderly are at highest risk for gastrointestinal disease. In a study investigating the association between drinking water quality and gastrointestinal illness in the elderly of Philadelphia, scientists found water quality 9 to 11 days before the visit was negatively associated with hospital admissions for gastrointestinal illness, with an interquartile range increase in turbidity being associated with a 9% increase).
The association was stronger in those over 75 than in the population aged 65–74. This example is a small reflection of residents of the United States remain at risk of waterborne gastrointestinal illness under current water treatment practices. Reproductive problems refer to any illness of the reproductive system. New research by Brunel University and the University of Exeter strengthens the relationship between water pollution and rising male fertility problems. Study identified a group of chemicals that act as anti-androgens in polluted water, which inhibits the function of the male hormone, reducing male fertility. Neurological disorders are diseases of the brain and the nerves that connect them; the new study of more than 700 people in California’s Central Valley found that those who consumed contaminated private well water had a higher rate of Parkinson’s. The risk was 90 percent higher for those who had private wells near fields sprayed with used insecticides. Unlike water supplies in large cities, private wells are unregulated and are not monitored for contaminants.
Many of them exist at shallow depths of less than 20 yards, some of the crop chemicals used to kill pests and weeds can flow into ground water. Therefore, private wells are to contain pesticides, which can attack developing brains, leading to neurological diseases in life. A study led by UCLA epidemiology professor Beate Ritz suggests that "people with Parkinson’s were more to have consumed private well water, had consumed it on average 4.3 years longer than those who did not have the disease." All waters with a "significant nexus" to "navigable waters" are covered under the CWA. The 1972 statute uses the term "navigable waters" but defines the term as "waters of the United States, including the territorial seas." Some regulations interpreting the 1972 law have included water features such as intermittent streams, playa lakes, prairie potholes and wetlands as "waters of the United States." In 2006, in Rapanos v. United States, a plurality of the US Supreme Court held that the term "waters of the United States" "includes only those permanent, standing or continuously flowing bodies of water'forming geographic features' that are described in ordinary parlance as'streams... oceans, lakes.'"
The CWA introduced the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, a permit system for regulating point sources of pollution. Point sources include: industrial facilities. Municipal governments and other government facilities, some agricultural facilities, such as animal feedlots. Point sources may not discharge pollutants to surface waters without an NPDES permit. The
