Issue 24: Over $300,000 raised to defeat affordable housing campaign

Zurie Pope, Cincinnati Enquirer
Updated ·5 min read
Cincinnati resident Ella Adams holds a sign during a rally addressing affordable housing at Cincinnati City Hall on Aug. 2. Nearly 12,000 residents signed Cincinnati Action for Housing Now’s petition to put an issue on November’s ballot to amend the city charter to increase the earned income tax from 1.8% to 2.1% to support affordable housing efforts.

This story has been updated to include a new statement from Western & Southern and to clarify the role of John Barrett.

Opponents of Issue 24, the Cincinnati ballot measure that would raise the earned income tax to fund affordable housing, have outraised supporters 5-1, with money flowing in from several Downtown-based companies and pro-business groups.

Among the biggest contributors: Western & Southern Life Insurance, led by Chairman and CEO John Barrett, and American Financial Group, controlled by Carl and Craig Lindner. American Financial Group referred questions to the Cincinnati Business Committee.

"The City of Cincinnati, Hamilton County and corporate partners have made significant efforts in recent years to support collaborative strategies that address challenges related to housing affordability in the region," wrote Gary Lindgren, head of the Cincinnati Business Committee. "Issue 24 is a poorly designed initiative that’s riddled with loopholes and will raise costs for Cincinnati residents."

A closer look at the money

According to campaign filings from September to October, Cincinnatians Opposed to New Taxes, the political action committee opposing Issue 24, raised $302,020 as of October 26, with no in-kind contributions. That far exceeds the $90,000 raised two years ago to defeat Issue 3, a ballot measure asking the city to dedicate $50 million a year for low-income housing.

Supporting Issue 24, Cincinnati Action for Housing Now raised $23,410 as of Oct. 26, and received $33,394 in in-kind contributions from the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition, with that money going toward payroll, office supplies and a time tracking app. These filings are from July to October. The group brought in $38,700 for affordable housing ballot measure Issue 3 in 2021.

Although Cincinnati Action for Housing Now gathered more than 6,000 signatures to put Issue 24 on the ballot, it has received extensive opposition, including from all 10 candidates for Cincinnati City Council.

Who is funding the opposition?

Multiple organizations in Cincinnati oppose Issue 24, including the Cincinnati Democratic and Republican parties, the Realtor Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, and the Fraternal Order of Police Local 69.

"Issue 24 is opposed by a broad, diverse group of individuals and organizations," said Jay Kincaid, a Cincinnati political consultant who runs the anti-Issue 24 team. "This coalition, which is made up of elected officials, unions and civic groups, has come out against Issue 24 because they know that it is bad policy that will dramatically increase our income tax making it harder for Cincinnatians to make ends meet."

Despite the diversity of opposing voices, most campaign donations came from Cincinnati's business community, excluding $2,000 from Cincinnati Firefighters Local #48. Altogether, Cincinnatians Opposed to New Taxes received eight donations, including:

  • $100,000 from Western & Southern Life Insurance, a Cincinnati-based life insurance company that also owns a real estate investment firm. "Western & Southern has a history of collaborating across the community to advance redevelopment and affordable housing efforts in order to make Cincinnati a destination for individuals, families and companies," David Nevers, vice president of communications at Western& Southern, wrote in a statement. " Exploring these types of partnerships has been a successful way to fund affordable housing without raising taxes.”

  • $70,000 from the American Financial Group Inc., the Cincinnati-based financial services company with a division that handles real estate and property insurance.

  • $50,000 from the Realtor Alliance of Greater Cincinnati, a trade association representing real estate developers.

  • $50,000 from the Cincinnati Regional Business Committee, a coalition of Cincinnati area business leaders.

  • $25,000 from the Cincinnati Business Committee, a collection of Cincinnati business leaders.

  • $5,000 from HBA Buildings PAC, the political action committee for the Homebuilders Association of Greater Cincinnati, a trade association that represents developers.

Jens Sutmoller, the head of both Build Cincinnati's Future and Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval's re-election campaign, also donated $20.

Who is funding the supporters?

The Cincinnati Federation of Teachers, ACLU Ohio and the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition have all expressed support for Issue 24.

"The advocates are always outspent by the opposition, who are largely corporate-funded," said Robin Wright-Pierce, a spokesperson for Cincinnati Action for Housing Now. "We are local, everyday folks, who are advocating for what we believe is needed in our community."

The committee's largest support came from the Greater Cincinnati Homeless Coalition in the form of in-kind contributions. The committee also received $10,000 from Center for Community Change, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that supports affordable housing projects throughout the country. Other large contributions included:

The committee also attracted numerous small-dollar donations, ranging from $24 to $500 from individual donors.

What have they spent?

Of its $23,410, Cincinnati Action for Housing Now spent $19,653, and has only $3,891 remaining.

Comparatively, the anti-Issue 24 group spent $162,641, and has $139,378 remaining, without any in-kind contributions.

Most of Cincinnati Action for Housing Now's expenditures went to payroll and legal fees for Columbus law firm McTigue & Colombo.

Meanwhile, Cincinnatians Opposed to New Taxes paid $132,434 to SKDK, a public relations firm with offices in New York and Washington, D.C., known for its ties to the Democratic Party. The committee also paid $25,000 to Majority Strategies, a Texas marketing firm that traditionally works with Republicans. Cincinnatians Opposed to New Taxes also paid $5,206 to Patriot Signage for yard signs.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Cincinnati Issue 24: Who's paying for the campaign on both sides?