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Former Ohio Governor Dick Celeste endorsed P.G. Sittenfeld over Ted Strickland despite considering Strickland “a friend.”
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P.G. Sittenfeld’s super PAC released a new TV ad focused on Strickland’s gun record flip-flop.
- The Washington Free Beacon reports that as Governor, “Ted Strickland flagged the official at the heart of the current water contamination crisis in Sebring…but allowed him to continue working at the agency despite serious misdeeds.”
More here:
Strickland’s EPA Dealt Weak Punishment to Official at Heart of Ohio Water Crisis
The Washington Free Beacon | Morgan Chalfant
The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency under former governor Ted Strickland flagged the official at the heart of the current water contamination crisis in Sebring for negligence and false reporting back in 2009 but allowed him to continue working at the agency despite serious misdeeds.
Strickland, now a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate in the Ohio, presided over the state agency when it faulted James Bates, the Sebring water superintendent, for submitting false reports and endangering public health, according to an official document obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
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As operator of record for the Sebring and Malvern water systems, Bates installed unapproved water systems, maintained faulty records, and deliberately collected water samples that did not accurately represent the condition of the public water systems, in addition to other violations, according to the EPA’s findings.
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Strickland’s EPA ordered Bates to immediately withdraw his application for a Class IV water supply certification. Bates already possessed a Class III certificate, which allowed him to continue to perform his duties in Sebring until last month, when the EPA revoked his license after tap water at seven homes in Sebring was found to have elevated levels of lead and copper.
The EPA has also opened a criminal investigation into Bates, accusing him of not performing his job correctly and possibly falsifying reports.
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The Sebring crisis, which forced the local government to shut down schools and advise children and pregnant women against drinking the town’s lead-contaminated water, has sparked national outcry along with the crisis in Flint, Michigan. Strickland expressed outrage at the government’s failure to protect Sebring’s water from contamination.
“What happened in Sebring, Ohio, should not be happening in America. No one in any community should ever fear that when they turn on their faucet, mix formula for their baby, or take a shower that the water coming out of the spigot is not safe,” Strickland wrote in a Medium post last week.
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