Report. Reflect. Respond.
Monday, July 13th, 2026
Welcome to Monday’s edition of The Pennant. To listen to this newsletter, click the “Listen Online” link in the top right corner of this email.
On this day in 1985, Live Aid, the transatlantic charity concert at London's Wembley Stadium and Philadelphia's JFK Stadium, drew more than a billion viewers and raised millions for African famine relief.
The Teamsters Union recently endorsed Former Sen. Sherrod Brown. Find out why in the Top of The Fold.
Also, as school levies keep failing across the state, school districts are having to change tactics. See what their new strategies are in our Education section.
Top of The Fold
Teamsters Endorse Sherrod Brown In Ohio Senate Race
CINCINNATI — Former Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat challenging Republican Sen. Jon Husted, picked up the endorsement of the Ohio Conference of Teamsters on Friday.
Brown said he was proud to earn the backing of one of North America's largest labor unions, which represents workers in logistics, transportation, health care, and other industries.
The endorsement lands as recent polling shows a tight, back-and-forth race ahead of the Nov. 3 election.
Diarrhea-Causing Parasite Cases In Ohio Double
COLUMBUS — The Ohio Department of Health reported 364 cases of Cyclospora cayetanensis as of July 9, placing Ohio second in the nation for cases of the diarrhea-causing parasite.
Cases have spread to 51 counties, up from 43 the previous week, when the state counted 177. Most are concentrated in Lucas County.
The parasite is treatable, though symptoms can drag on for weeks without care and tend to relapse. Doctors typically prescribe an antibiotic to clear the infection.
Images Released Depicting The House 16 'Feral' Kids Were Rescued From
HAMDEN — The New York Post exclusively obtained images of the Ohio home where authorities rescued 16 severely abused children, revealing the conditions inside.
Every surface of the house appears buried under mounds of trash, with a framed tiger painting and a chest freezer among the only visible decor.
Those who have visited the home say it reeks of garbage and cat urine, a smell that allegedly clung to the home's occupants as well. See photos here.
Page One
National
WASHINGTON — Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the influential Trump ally and foreign policy hawk who served more than two decades in the U.S. Senate, died Saturday at age 71 after what his office called a "brief and sudden illness."
REDMOND, Wash. — Microsoft is facing online backlash after cutting 4,800 jobs, including 1,600 in its Xbox division, in the same year it was approved to hire 2,273 foreign workers under the H-1B visa program.
CORAL GABLES, Fla. — Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, chairman of United Against Nuclear Iran, praised the Trump administration for crippling Iran's regional capabilities but warned that press reports indicate Cuba now holds about 300 Iranian-made Shahed attack drones.
WASHINGTON - The Argentine Football Association is under investigation by the FBI for possible fraud and money laundering stemming from hundreds of millions of dollars in bank transactions linked to the United States.
Statewide
CINCINNATI — An Ohio judge granted a preliminary injunction to 24 college basketball players suing the NCAA over age-of-eligibility rules that could deny them a fifth year of competition.
COLUMBUS — Republican Gov. Mike DeWine signed a bill making it illegal to remain within a 15-foot zone around officers if doing so interferes with police proceedings or if an officer orders the individual to leave.
NORTH RANDALL — Amazon plans to launch its Prime Air drone delivery service in North Randall later this year, offering drone delivery to customers within 7.5 miles of its fulfillment center for a small fee.
TAYLOR, Mich. — Police shot Cizquindrie T.L. Smith, 38, of Canton, outside a Sheetz gas station after he allegedly tried to flee and pointed a gun at officers. Officers had flagged Smith's stolen U-Haul in connection with a recent armed robbery at a Dollar Tree in the Cleveland area. Smith now faces felony charges.
COLUMBUS — Wade Christofferson, 73, brother of an apostle in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, pleaded guilty Thursday in Ohio federal court to coercing and enticing two children under 10 in Ohio and Utah and sexually assaulting both about 20 times.
Education
A Tale Of Two Levies, And An Aug. 5 Deadline
By The Pennant Staff
COLUMBUS — School levies keep failing in Ohio. Voters rejected 42 of the 66 on ballots in May, the Ohio School Boards Association reported, and districts are splitting into two camps about what to do next. They have until Aug. 5 to decide — the deadline to certify a levy for the Nov. 3 ballot.
Some are changing the ask. Fairfield tried a 1.25% earned income tax, which taxes wages but not homes. It failed by nearly 54%, and the district is cutting $4.5 million, with $15 million more possible if a November try falls short. The trade-off of that route: a worker earning $80,000 pays about $1,000 a year, while retirees living on Social Security or a pension pay nothing. Homeowners aren't touched.
Others are leaning on property owners, sometimes twice. Upper Arlington has a 4.9-mill operating levy and a 2.25-mill bond in the mix. Look at what that means for a typical UA home. Census figures put the median Upper Arlington house at about $600,000, and at the city's median effective rate of 2.03%, the tax bill on it already runs around $12,200 a year.
Start with the reappraisal. Franklin County's 2026 update raised UA values about 12%, so that house is now worth around $672,000. A state law, HB 920, stops existing levies from collecting much more as values rise, so the reappraisal by itself adds only a little.
The new millage is the real cost, and it's charged against the higher value. The 4.9-mill operating levy runs about $1,152 a year. The 2.25-mill bond adds about $529. Together, roughly $1,682 — stacked on a bill that's already around $12,200, pushing it toward $13,900 a year, landing on the same homeowners the wage-tax districts chose to spare.
It's a lot to follow: a wage tax in one town, an operating levy, and a bond in the next. Which one reaches your ballot won't be clear until Aug. 5.
The Back Page
Has your school district recently tried to pass a levy?
Previous Poll Results
Do you prefer soft serve or hand-scooped ice cream?
- Soft serve - 57%
- Hand-scooped - 43%
- I don't like ice cream - 0%
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