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January 2015
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Dear Friends:
"We are the Champions, my friends," said Freddie Mercury, Urban Meyer, John Kasich, Matt Borges, John Boehner, and Mitch McConnell. "No time for losers," lamented Nick Saban, Marcus Mariota, and most of the Democratic Party leadership.
No doubt about it, 2014 was a great year for the Buckeyes and the GOP. Now comes the hard work of sorting out three outstanding quarterbacks and delivering on the promises made during the campaign.
The coming months will be busy in Columbus and Washington, DC for our clients, public officials, and the team at Hicks Partners. I am happy to share an overview of coming events and offer our perspective on opportunities ahead in 2015.
As always, please feel free to contact any of us at Hicks Partners if we can be of assistance.
Here's to another championship year!
Sincerely,
Brian K. Hicks
President & CEO
 
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From the Statehouse
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Legislative Agenda
As the 131st General Assembly kicks off, many significant items are on the agenda for Governor Kasich and members of the Ohio House of Representatives and Ohio Senate.
Leadership
The Ohio House will see important key changes this General Assembly as incoming House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger (R-Clarksville) leads the chamber. Speaker Rosenberger, among the youngest in Ohio history to hold the top job, leads a 65-34 Republican majority. The  new speaker has announced the broad outlines of "Ohio 2020", a long-term plan to establish policy goals and benchmarks in the areas of energy, education, competitiveness, and healthcare. The first details of Ohio 2020 are being unveiled in priority legislation now and in the coming weeks. Rep. Fred Strahorn (D-Dayton) leads House Democrats as the incoming Minority Leader. The Ohio House will have 25 members in its "freshman" class, including a few with previous experience in the legislature and several who are continuing family legacies of legislative service.
Senate President Keith Faber (R-Celina) begins his second and final session leading the Senate before term limits force him from office. President Faber enjoys a 23-10 Republican majority with only four new members entering the chamber this session. Minority Leader Joe Schiavoni (D-Boardman) remains in the Senate Democrats' top leadership post which he has occupied since late 2013.
Budget
Many legislative proposals will be introduced in the coming weeks as legislators outline their priorities, but the General Assembly's main focus for the first part of the year will be on the state's operating budget for fiscal years 2016-2017.
Governor Kasich will unveil his $60+ billion biennial budget proposal in early February. The House will consider the budget bill first through mid-April while the Senate is expected to complete its work in June. The Governor must sign the new budget into law by June 30, 2015.
Below are several of the key items we expect to see in the budget or in separate legislation:
Taxes, Fees, and Workforce Development
Governor Kasich is expected to propose more tax reform measures, including lowering personal income tax rates, further reducing taxes paid by small businesses, and increasing severance taxes on the oil and gas industry. House members have discussed ways to improve Ohio's competitiveness by lowering new business filing fees and leadership in both legislative chambers are examining ways to improve workforce development programs. Notably, House Bill 1 will be legislation to create the Ohio Higher Education Workforce Grant Program, which seeks to match students with in-demand jobs.
Education
Education reform will receive much needed attention from the legislature in the coming months. House and Senate members have signaled their intention to overhaul charter schools with a focus on "accountability, responsibility and transparency." Senators have additionally discussed "education deregulation" which could entail flexibility for high-performing schools. There is also growing concern about the time it takes students to complete state mandated testing. We expect this topic to be widely debated throughout the year. Finally, both Governor Kasich and Senate President Faber have expressed concerns about the rising cost of higher education. Sen. Faber has challenged the higher education community to lower costs to students by five percent by the end of the year. Look for cost of higher education to be a hot topic of debate during budget consideration.
Energy
The Ohio Energy Mandates Study Committee, established by SB 310, which froze Ohio's Renewable and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standards for two years, is charged with assessing the costs of the standards and making recommendations for future action. The study committee held a few meetings in late 2014 and is expected to hold additional hearings in the coming weeks. Modifying or outright repealing the portfolio standard was hotly debated throughout the 130th General Assembly and will continue to be so this year. The committee must issue its report and recommendations on the future of the standards by September 30th.
Healthcare Legislatively authorizing Medicaid expansion and containing costs of the shared federal-state program is among the top priorities for both chambers and the Governor. In addition, we expect to see new proposals to combat infant mortality and improve early childhood development. Legislators are also expected to continue to act on measures to battle heroin and opiate addiction. The actions of the General Assembly, particularly during the biennium budget debate, can affect all Ohioans. Being prepared to have your voice heard to impact policy in the Statehouse is vital. If you are interested in these items or other key legislative initiatives, please contact Zach Holzapfel or Tony Brigano.
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Ohio Economic Development
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JobsOhio and Ohio Third Frontier
Companies less than five years old will like what's happening with the Ohio Third Frontier program and at JobsOhio.
The 2015 Ohio Third Frontier (OTF) program plan calls for $95 million to be awarded to support new and young companies. Narrowing the scope of OTF activity is largely due to a study commissioned by JobsOhio that found all net new job growth in Ohio comes from companies which are less than five years old. OTF commissioners decided to focus funding in four programs: Commercial Acceleration Loan Fund; Technology Validation & Start-Up program; Pre-seed & Seed + Fund Capitalization Program; and the Entrepreneurial Signature Program.
JobsOhio has also recognized the importance of young companies and has a newly active loan program for early stage, high-growth companies. This is an expansion of their original mission to attract and expand mature companies in Ohio.
We should note that Third Frontier funding is approaching the maximum cap approved by Ohio voters. Approximately $300 million was available at the end of 2014. Thus, if the program continues to approve funding awards as outlined, the OTF Project will reach its cap and expire in 2017.
For more information on OTF or JobsOhio activities please contact Emily Turner.
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EB-5 Initiative
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MidAmerican Global Ventures Update
MidAmerican Global Ventures, the EB-5 financing arm of Hicks Partners, expects a busy and productive 2015.
After receiving our official EB-5 Regional Center designation from the US Citizenship and Immigration Service and conducting more than 142 EB-5 presentations and meetings  throughout Ohio last year, MAG Ventures anticipates sponsoring several projects for EB-5 financing in 2015.
We are currently considering job-creating projects for low-cost financing in the following industries:
* Mixed use real estate developments
* Hospitals, medical offices, and laboratories
* Hotels, restaurants, and retail
* Advanced technology and energy
* Manufacturing, distribution, and logistics facilities
* Public buildings and infrastructure
For more information about MidAmerican Global Ventures, or to discuss if EB-5 financing is right for your project, contact Keith Conroy.
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Announcement
| | | VentureOhio Names New Executive Director
Emily Turner, Hicks Partners Vice President, will take on additional responsibilities as Executive Director of VentureOhio. In this role, Emily will be responsible for VentureOhio's  day-to-day operations and advancing the organization's mission of assuring abundant capital for all stages of entrepreneurial companies, strengthening resources in Ohio for building businesses, and increasing awareness of Ohio's entrepreneurial successes.
Emily has over 20 years' experience in the economic development industry and in the past six years helped Hicks Partners' clients secure over $130 million of federal, state, and local financial assistance to support innovation and job creation.
In addition to leading operations of VentureOhio, Emily will maintain her role as Vice President at Hicks Partners continuing to serve as a lead economic development and business incentives consultant assisting clients obtain public grants, loans, and tax incentives to help grow their businesses. Hicks Partners will continue to provide VentureOhio with government affairs advisory services.
VentureOhio is the unified voice for the capital sources and other organizations that finance or support high growth companies based in Ohio and seeks to make Ohio a preferred location for high potential entrepreneurial activity.
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Strategic Relations
| | | Hicks Partners -Tractus Partnership Announced
Hicks Partners has formed a strategic relationship with Tractus, an international business  consultancy that assists companies with foreign direct investment, trade, and commercialization strategies and activities in Asia.
With offices in Bangkok, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore and other locations, Tractus has helped clients secure more than $4 billion of international investment and sales in Asia. Hicks Partners, along with its EB-5 affiliate MidAmerican Global Ventures, and Tractus will collaborate on international business opportunities and provide economic development, site selection, export promotion, and foreign investment services to current and future clients.
Hicks Partners and Tractus will hold several seminars in February to highlight business opportunities and capital sourcing from Asia, provide information about import/exports, and explain how to use EB-5 financing to support company and job growth. Seminars will be held February 23-25 in the following cities: Canton, Cincinnati, Columbus, Dayton, Findlay, Lima, Newark, and Toledo. Details will be released soon. For more information, contact Stacy Schad.
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Politics
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2016 Elections - Already?
It doesn't take long to move from one election cycle to the next these days. So it's no surprise the 2016 elections are already getting attention. 
US Senator Rob Portman has decided to pass on what certainly would have been a strong presidential run and will instead seek reelection next year. Sen. Portman begins his run with a formidable arsenal of financial and political support - $5.8 million in the bank, backing of nearly every elected Republican in the state and a seasoned campaign team ready to go.
Several Ohio Democrats - most untested or previously defeated on the statewide stage - are eyeing the Senate race. Thirty-year old Cincinnati Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld has announced his candidacy, while former Governor Ted Strickland, outgoing Columbus Mayor Michael Coleman, former US Representative Betty Sutton and current US Representative Tim Ryan are said to be considering a run.
As usual, Ohio is expected to play a pivotal role in electing the next president in 2016. Hillary Clinton is the odds-on favorite to win her party's nomination. She has strong support among Ohio Democrats having won the state's 2008 Democratic primary.
The Republican list of presidential hopefuls seems to grow each week. Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush and 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney are the early leaders of the field. Several other current or former governors, including Ohio's John Kasich, Chris Christie (NJ), Mike Huckabee (AR), Mike Pence (IN), Scott Walker (WI), Bobby Jindal (LA), Rick Perry (TX), George Pataki (NY), along with several senators including Marco Rubio (FL), Ted Cruz (TX), Rand Paul (KY), former senator Rick Santorum (PA), retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson and former Hewlett-Packard chief executive Carly Fiorina, are eyeing the race. Ohioans will get a close-up look at this field when the first GOP presidential debate will be held in the Buckeye state in August.
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Hicks Partners, LLC www.hickspartners.com 800-556-0227
 
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