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About Us - Accomplishments |
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Over the years Roundtable and Freedom Forum have joined in a myriad of public policy initiatives. Here is a brief summary that highlights some of these activities. |
| 1980 | The Ohio Roundtable is founded. The original mission statement remains largely unchanged today: The Roundtable is dedicated to restoring traditional Judeo-Christian principles to American public policy. | |
| 1982 | The first Roundtable voter information publication is distributed to 2500 churches, businesses, and community leaders. | |
| 1986 | Voter information publications reach over 250,000 Ohio households | |
| 1987 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum help write and pass legislation strengthening child protection laws. | |
| 1988 | First legislative defeat of casino gambling in Ohio. | |
| 1989 | The Public Square radio program is launched on a single station. | |
| 1990 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum help defeat casino gambling in Ohio. Voters reject casinos by a margin of 62% to 38%. | |
| 1991 | Roundtable proposes and Governor George V. Voinovich initiates the Ohio Adoption Task Force. | |
| 1992 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum lead the term limits coalition, which gathers over 650,000 signatures in support of three constitutional amendments to limit politician’s terms. For the first time in history three citizen-initiated amendments succeed on the Ohio ballot and are passed into law. Voters support all three amendments by more than 60% margins. | |
| 1993 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum join in the battle against Outcome-Based Education. Citizen outcry is overwhelming and results in the deletion of a 252-page OBE amendment from Ohio law. | |
| 1994 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum mobilize a 14-state coalition opposed to the Clinton Health Security Act. | |
| 1994 | Roundtable enters the education reform debate on the side of parental choice in education. | |
| 1995 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum launch a citizen initiative for major reform of campaign finance laws in Ohio. More that 150,000 signatures are gathered to place a reform bill before the Ohio General Assembly, which passes a reform measure including key elements from the citizen initiative. | |
| 1995 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum support the Ohio Scholarship Plan, the nation’s first school choice plan permitting urban parents to send their children to public, private, or parochial schools with tax-supported scholarship. | |
| 1996 | Casino backers launch a $10million ad campaign in support of a ballot amendment to legalize casino gambling in Ohio. Ohio Governor George V. Voinovich and Attorney General Betty Montgomery join Roundtable in founding Citizens for a Stronger Ohio. This grassroots effort is outspent 10-1 by casino backers. Ohio voters reject casino proposal by a margin of 62% to 38% defeating casinos in all 88 Ohio counties. | |
| 1996 | Roundtable voter information publications reach over 400,000 Ohio households. | |
| 1997 | The Ohio Roundtable publishes “Dissenting”, a major policy treatise against judicial activism and the Ohio Supreme Court’s DeRolph school-funding decision. | |
| 1997 | Freedom Forum helps defeat a sales tax increase linked to school funding in the Ohio General Assembly. | |
| 1998 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum lead the legal and ballot challenge against a one billion dollar state sales tax increase. Tax backers outspend the Roundtable coalition by a margin of 10 –1 but Ohio voters reject the sales tax measure by a margin of 80% to 20%. | |
| 1998 | Roundtable launches Decision 98 a complete on-line voter information service. In just the final ten days of the election cycle over 100,000 Ohio voters visit Decision 98. | |
| 1998 | Roundtable launches The School Choice Committee, uniting school choice leaders with grassroots supporters across the state. | |
| 1999 | The Public Square radio broadcast celebrates its tenth anniversary on the air. This daily news and commentary program is heard on over 25 stations and satellite translators reaching millions across Ohio and much of the Midwest. | |
| 1999 | Roundtable squares off against the ACLU launching the “Keep the Motto” campaign in full support of the legal defense of the Ohio state motto “With God all things are possible.” | |
| 2000 | Roundtable launches Decision 2000 a dynamically enhanced, interactive voter information service. Over 500 churches and hundreds of business, libraries, and community organizations participate in Decision 2000. Candidate response to the on-line service reaches all-time high, including direct participation by every judicial candidate for the Ohio Supreme Court. | |
| 2001 | Roundtable opens offices at the State Capitol in Columbus and moves corporate headquarters to 6000 sq. ft. media production facility in Strongsville, Ohio. | |
| 2001 | Roundtable and Freedom Forum successfully launch major media campaign to defeat gambling expansion and racetrack casinos in Ohio General Assembly. | |
| 2001 | The School Choice Committee helps initiate legislation increasing support for the Cleveland Scholarship Plan and mobilizes grassroots efforts to support school choice program at the United States Supreme Court. | |
| 2001 | Recognizing the efforts of the School Choice Committee, The White House invites ten members of the Committee to an education roundtable discussion with President George W. Bush. | |
| 2002 | The Ohio Roundtable founds The Common Defense.org, an alliance designed to encourage the responsible stewardship of constitutional liberty and the national defense. In response to the tragic lessons and sorrows that followed September 11, 2001. Soon after the debut of www.thecommondefense.org there were nearly 20,000 requests for bumper stickers, pins & information. | |
| 2002 | The Ohio Roundtable files suit against the Governor and Ohio Lottery Commission to stop Powerball expansion of the lottery and announced intentions to wage a campaign to eradicate state-sponsored gambling in Ohio. | |
| 2002 | The School Choice Committee travels to Washington DC with parents in Ohio's School Choice Program, participates in local mock trial events and attends Oral Arguments before the United States Supreme Court. | |
| 2002 | New online voter information service is launched. USAVoter.info serves thousands of voting households, churches, libraries, and civic organizations in Ohio and Pennsylvania. Site receives just under 1,000,000 hits in week prior to election. | |
| 2002 | The United States Supreme Court declares the Ohio School Choice Plan constitutional. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor cites evidence presented by Roundtable in this landmark decision. | |
| 2002 | Franklin County Court agrees with plaintiffs in Roundtable v. Taft and strikes down major provision in MegaMillions lottery provision, forcing General Assembly to return lottery proceeds to education funding. | |
| 2002 | Roundtable supports major debate to change state education standards permitting the discussion of intelligent design in classrooms. State school board passes standard changes by unanimous vote. | |
| 2003 | The Public Square® radio broadcast is launched throughout the state of Florida. | |
| 2003 | Ohio Appellate Court upholds lower court ruling in Roundtable v. Taft restoring lottery proceeds to education as 1987 Constitutional Amendment requires. | |
| 2003 | Roundtable, Freedom Forum and Pennsylvania Family Institute battle racetrack casino measures in Ohio and Pennsylvania, launching "Children at Risk" media campaign. | |
| 2003 | U.S. Supreme Court Justice is awarded Roundtable Leadership in Government Award. | |
| 2003 | Roundtable joins forces with Alliance Defense Fund in defending legal definition of traditional marriage at state and federal level. | |
| 2003 | Ohio General Assembly expands Cleveland School Voucher program to high school. | |
| 2004 |
Ohio becomes the 38th state to pass a
Defense of Marriage Act supported by Roundtable and Freedom Forum.
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| 2004 |
Roundtable launches media support for
traditional marriage in Massachusetts and moves in support of the
Federal Marriage Amendment.
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| 2004 |
First Making a Difference Event is held in
Florida.
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