SHE NEEDS HER CRUTCH--Theressa Taul, of Cincinnati, holds a crutch as she takes part in a demonstration concerning food stamp reform, at the Ohio Statehouse, in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 1997.

SCHOOL FUNDING--Ohio House Finance Committee Chairman Tom Johnson, R-New Concord, is all smiles as he confers with co-chair Ron Amstutz, R-Wooster, during a meeting of the committee in which Johnson unveiled the latest school funding plan, at the Ohio Statehouse, in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 1997.

IT WAS A VERY GOOD YEAR--State Treasurer J. Kenneth Blackwell gestures during a news conference concerning the 1997 accomplishments of his department, at the Rhodes Tower, in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 1997. Blackwell is expected to challenge front-runner Bob Taft for the GOP gubenatorial nomination in 1998.

IT'S THE LOBBYING SEASON--Members of the Coalition for Choice in Electricity sing a song called Pass A Bill (to the tune of Jingle Bells) prior to the start of the House Finance Committee meeting, at the Ohio Statehouse, in Columbus, Ohio, on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 1997. The group is in favor of the deregulation of electric utilities.