The Ohio State Grange is urging its members to support passage of House Bill 170, which would make property owned by qualifying fraternal orders and used primarily for administrative or meeting purposes exempt from property tax. Those qualifying fraternal orders are the Ohio State Grange, Knights of Columbus, Odd Fellows, Masons, and Prince Hall Masons. All of these organizations have been chartered by the State of Ohio for at least 100 years and qualify for exemption from taxation under section 501c5, 501c8 and 501c10 of the IRS code. The timely adoption of the Tax Relief Bill 170 would help ensure the presence of these organizations and their community services activities, which far out ways the taxes paid on their properties.

The Washington State Grange backed a $27 in ’07 campaign and they made a difference! As a result of this campaign, the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) announced rates for the 2007-2009 period of $27.33 per megawatt-hour, very near the goal set by the coalition many months ago.

The Northwest Coalition for Affordable Power, the group behind the $27 in ’07 campaign, was formed in response to BPA’s announcement of an adjustable rate averaging $30 per megawatt-hour. The coalition believed that a rate of $27 was feasible and worked very closely with the BPA and other interested parties to prove that point. The goal of the $27 in ’07 campaign was to work with the BPA, not against them, to find cost-effective ways to maintain production, provide funds for fish and loan repayments, and still drop the power rates.

“Affordable power is critical to the economy of the state of Washington,” said Washington State Grange President Terry Hunt. “This adds up to a very significant – nearly 3 percent – drop n rates originally announced by the BPA just a few months ago.”