Nuns protest GOP tax and budget cuts
A group of Catholic nuns is stopping in Cleveland today to protest proposed tax cuts for wealthy Americans and corresponding budget cuts in social services.

The women are on a nine-state tour called “Nuns on the Bus.” They’re highlighting their work with poor people, and calling the GOP budget proposed by House Speaker John Boehner and Rep. Paul Ryan “immoral.”

The tour began in Iowas, and stopped at St. Augustine’s Church and Hunger Center on Cleveland’s near west side this morning. It will finish up in Washington on Monday.

Mild winter is helping farmers deal with drought
Crops everywhere in Ohio need rain, but the state’s two largest crops -- soy beans and corn -- are faring better than others. That’s because of the mild winter.

Harold Watters studies corn and soybeans for the Ohio State University Extension Office. He notes that they’re naturally more resilient than other crops because of their deep roots. And this year, farmers planted them – as well as wheat -- in late winter, long before the drought took hold.

“We’re having some short-term impacts now that will affect final yield, but we can overcome those, given a chance. I am always optimistic about our crop production so I am confident that we will have an average crop coming into the season.” 

Still, Watters says 3 to 4 percent of corn and soy bean crops are lost for every day of hot, dry temperatures like the ones coming up this week.

NE Ohio home sales are recovering
The latest report on the sale of homes in Northeast Ohio shows prices climbed here and nationally in April.

Prices went up 2.3 percent from March to April in the Cleveland-Elyria-Mentor area, according to the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index. That easily outstripped a national increase of 1.3 percent from March to April. 

The index tracks 20 metropolitan areas, and today’s report shows prices fell March to April in just one – Detroit.

Still, prices overall and in the Cleveland area remain nearly 2 percent below a year ago.

Gas prices are dropping to nearly $3 
Gas prices have dropped to their lowest level in five months nationally, and are running below $3.20 a gallon in parts of Northeast Ohio.  

The national average fell below $3.40 today, and has been falling steadily from a high of $4 a gallon in April. The price drop has been linked to a strong supply of summer-grade gas, and to consumers filling up less often.

In northeast Ohio, gas prices in parts of Stark County hit a low of $3.19 today.

ODOT privitization plans draw protests
So far, the Ohio Department of Transportation’s plan to turn dozens of highway rest stops over to private business is running into big protests.

The state is holding public hearings on the plan this week. It hopes to use money from privatizing the rest stops to fight off a projected $1.6 billion deficit. But according to the Columbus Dispatch, early turnout has include people concerned primarily that the change will damage nearby businesses that rely on the highway traffic.

ODOT is asking for proposals for five of the 59 rest stops to start; all are in southern Ohio.