AKRON, Ohio, Oct. 19/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Akron Mayor Don Plusquellic today announced his support for State Issue 3, citing job creation and local tax revenues for Akron and Summit County, and for local communities and schools throughout Northeast Ohio.

In a statement, Plusquellic said:

"I support Issue 3 for Ohio. Simply put, Issue 3 is about the economy and jobs.

"Gaming taxes will generate millions of dollars for Akron, Summit County and our school districts. This, and the thousands of construction and casino jobs from Issue 3, would be a tremendous benefit for Akron and Northeast Ohio."

Plusquellic joins Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson, Toledo Mayor Carty Finkbeiner and Cincinnati Mayor Mark Mallory, plus many suburban mayors throughout the state, in endorsing Issue 3. Passage of Issue 3 will create 34,000 new Ohio jobs, bring a minimum of $1 billion in new private investment to the state's four largest cities, and generate $651 million in new tax revenues, the vast majority of tax revenue going to Ohio's 88 counties, its eight largest cities and every school district in the state.

Issue 3 would authorize casinos in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and Toledo, and would keep $1 billion in Ohio dollars in Ohio every year - money that is now spent by Ohioans traveling to casinos in neighboring states.

Earlier this week, the NAACP chapters in Columbus and Cleveland joined the Cincinnati NAACP chapter in announcing their support. Also announcing support this week was the Ohio Hispanic Chambers of Commerce, representing 5,000 Hispanic-owned businesses throughout the state.

Issue 3 has also been endorsed by (partial list):

    --  Cleveland City Council    --  Cuyahoga County Commissioners Peter Lawson Jones and Tim Hagan;    --  The Hamilton, Butler and Clermont County Commissioners    --  Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber of Commerce    --  The Greater Cleveland Partnership;    --  Positively Cleveland!;    --  The Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association;    --  The Toledo Police Patrolmen's Association    --  The Ohio Patrolmen's Benevolent Association;    --  The Fraternal Order of Police of Ohio;    --  Ohio AFL-CIO;    --  United Auto Workers (UAW) of Ohio    --  Ohio State Building and Construction Trades Council;    --  The Cleveland and Toledo convention and visitors' bureaus    --  The Firefighters' local unions in Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati and        Toledo    --  The Ohio Legislative Black Caucus    --  The NAACP branches in Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati.

A complete list of supporters of State Issue 3 can be found at: http://www.yesonissue3.com/Backers/

The Ohio Jobs and Growth Plan is a proposed amendment to the Ohio Constitution that authorizes one first-class casino in each of the state's four largest cities (Cleveland, Cincinnati, Columbus and Toledo). The plan will generate $11 billion in economic impact during construction and the first five years of casino operations. It will create 34,000 new jobs for Ohioans, and will provide an estimated $651 million in tax revenues each year, with the vast majority of the money designated for all of the state's counties, its major cities and every public school district in the state. Annual tax revenues are projected to increase to $772 million by 2017.

Primary backers of the proposal are:

    --  Penn National Gaming, Inc., a prominent operator of gaming facilities        and horse racing tracks, including Raceway Park in Toledo; and    --  Dan Gilbert, through his Rock Ventures partnership. Gilbert is majority        owner of the NBA Cleveland Cavaliers and operator of Quicken Loans Arena        in downtown Cleveland, Cleveland Clinic Courts, the Lake Erie Monsters,        Veritix and Fathead, as well as Chairman and Founder of Quicken Loans,        which operates a 350-person Internet web center in downtown Cleveland.        Gilbert, who began investing in Ohio in 2005, employs more than 2,500        people throughout the state.

Pd. for by Ohio Jobs and Growth Committee, Bill Curlis, Treasurer, 865 Macon Alley, Columbus OH 43206

SOURCE Ohio Jobs and Growth Plan