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Cincinnati leaders: end partial gov't shutdown

Some of Cincinnati's elected leaders are calling on national lawmakers to end the partial shutdown of the federal government. 

Mayor Mark Mallory said leaders need to end the conflict.  He said there are many examples of how the impasse is hurting the state's economy. 

Mallory said 7,500 people visit national parks in Ohio every day.

“So we’re in day 10 of this shutdown, 75,000 people have been turned away so far from national parks in the state of Ohio,” Mallory said.  “Resulting in a loss to our state economy of more than $2 million.”

The shutdown has furloughed two Centers for Disease Control employees who work at the city's health department.  The department said the Women, Infants and Children program could run out of funding within a few weeks if the federal shutdown continues. 

Meanwhile, the people who run the snack shop in city hall also manage the restaurant in the downtown federal building.  The company has been forced to send employees home with no pay.

Mallory said the closure has also shaken consumer confidence and that could make the nation's current economic recovery more difficult.

Jay Hanselman brings more than 10 years experience as a news anchor and reporter to 91.7 WVXU. He came to WVXU from WNKU, where he hosted the local broadcast of All Things Considered. Hanselman has been recognized for his reporting by the Kentucky AP Broadcasters Association, the Ohio Society of Professional Journalists, and the Ohio AP Broadcasters.