SpringfieldNewsSun.com

Springfield, Ohio — Involvement in local community issues? Check. Manager and co-owner of a business with an excess of $30 million in annual sales? Check. Experience as a legislator at the state level? Check.

In other words, state Rep. Ross McGregor believes he has experience "on all levels" to retain his 72nd District seat in the Ohio House of Representatives.

"At the end of the day, you want to have someone who has had a variety of experiences in working with a multitude of different issues," McGregor said.

McGregor, 43, is facing Democratic candidate Richard Spangler in the November election.

Issues

"Certainly the economy is first and foremost on everybody's minds," McGregor said.

That is why McGregor is intent on making job creation in Ohio a priority, which he said has already begun.

McGregor pointed out his support of Gov. Ted Strickland's $1.6 billion jobs package that includes initiatives to "retain the top talent here in Ohio" through internships and co-ops and $400 million earmarked for infrastructure that will provide "very good jobs for people in the construction industry," he said.

McGregor also is a supporter of new and renewable energy and backed a measure that will "not only help provide for stable and predictable electrical service in pricing, but also has a requirement to invest in renewable energies and that (also creates) new job opportunities."

Though manufacturing jobs have been leaving Ohio in recent years, Ohio is still in the top five of manufacturing states in the nation, McGregor noted.

The state legislator said he is dedicated to "fighting tooth and nail to support our continued strength as a manufacturing state," but also recognizes the need for diversification.

"We can't be overly reliant on any one industry to provide the jobs that we need for men and women in Springfield and in Clark County," McGregor said.

Background and family

McGregor is a fifth-generation resident of Clark County. He and his wife, Dr. Catherine Crompton, live in Springfield with their dog, Mac.

McGregor holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from Urbana University. In the past 21 years, he has been part of the management of his family's Springfield-based metal stamping business, Pentaflex Inc., where he serves as a business projects manager.

McGregor was appointed in 2005 to fill the seat vacated by Merle Grace Kearns after she was named director of the Ohio Department of Aging. In 2006, he successfully campaigned to keep the seat. Since then, he has sat on several committees, including Finance Appropriation, Health Access and Affordability and the Minority Business Development Advisory Board.

He has introduced three bills that have been signed into law. One bill required that signs be put up to alert drivers that they are entering a community that uses red light cameras. Another waived fines for small businesses for first-time paperwork violations. The third revamped taxes required for veterans.

Support

Retiring U.S. Congressman Dave Hobson has endorsed McGregor's re-election bid, as well as various federal and state organizations, including the National Rifle Association and Ohio State Medical Association.

McGregor also has homegrown support from Dr. Joe Hazel, who admires McGregor's community activism and has known the legislator since McGregor was a child.

"He and his wife are very supportive of needs in the community and he's a hard, energetic worker," Hazel said. "He has been a lifetime member of this community."

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0374 or boutten@coxohio.com.