How San Antonio prioritizes helping low-income residents with their water bills
What else can be done in Ohio and beyond to help?
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When Cleveland works for women, it works for everyone
If Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb is successful in modernizing city hall, the women on his leadership team will deserve much of the credit.
Relief for Northeast Ohio sewer bills is here for renters, but will they access it?
Most eligible low-income residents aren’t tapping into the affordability program; meanwhile, Cleveland water discounts still only apply to property owners.
Muddy waters: Issue 24 raises heated debate about police accountability
Issue 24’s supporters, many of whom have lost loved ones to police violence, have spent years advocating for civilian oversight of the Cleveland Division of Police. The amendment’s opponents say it grants too much power to appointed officials to solve issues the Consent Decree is already addressing.
The pace of passage: How quickly city council makes laws and what that means for Clevelanders
Cleveland City Council’s habit of invoking legal technicalities that alter the normal process for passing ordinances may seem mundane or bureaucratic, but it raises questions about why the rules exist if they are almost universally disregarded and how these practices bear on government accessibility and civic engagement.
Council members balk at $20M ‘blank check’ for citywide broadband pilot
A proposal to allocate $20 million to help bridge the digital divide in Cleveland by creating citywide broadband met with some opposition at Monday’s city council meeting, with some members asking why there wasn’t more community involvement or a concrete plan in place.
Keep it to yourself: Public comment is a city council tradition in many places, but Clevelanders hear “Shhhh”
At gatherings of Cleveland City Council, members of the public are not allowed to address the council. A group called Citizens for Public Comment is trying to change that in the run-up to the 2021 elections, hoping to foster public participation in decision making at a time when the mayoral race, and all 17 council seats, are up for grabs.
Local advocacy groups band together to keep residents’ light, water on
Utilities for All, Sunrise Movement Cleveland and InterReligious Task Force on Central America (IRTF) have joined forces to push for more affordable utility rates and a moratorium on shutoffs from Cleveland Public Power and Cleveland’s Division of Water.
