Latta works 1-on-1 with constituents

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

Although members of the U.S. House of Representatives are paid to create and pass legislation, Congressman Bob Latta knows that it’s often the services he provides to his constituents in the Fifth District that mean the difference between defeat and re-election every two years.

Latta was in Van Wert on Thursday for one-on-one sessions with local constituents who have problems with agencies of the federal government.

The congressman said constituent problems most often centered around Veterans Administration and Social Security issues, but also he also worked with area residents and local government officials who were encountering problems with other federal programs, such as the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

He also noted IRS problems will also likely be a prime topic for constituents as the April 15 federal income tax filing deadline approaches.

Local businesses, he noted, often have issues with federal regulations, noting that businesses spend more than a trillion dollars each year dealing with regulatory issues.

Prior to meeting with county constituents in the Van Wert County Board of Commissioners’ conference room for approximately three hours, Latta said he spent 2½ hours in Mercer County talking to constituents there.

Constituent work is something the current Fifth District congressman is familiar with, since his father, Delbert, represented the Fifth District for three decades, from 1959 to 1989.

The younger Latta has been working with constituents since he was first elected as a Wood County commissioner in 1991.

Following terms as a state representative and state senator, Latta is currently in his fifth term in Congress after winning a special election in 2007 to replace former U.S. Rep. Paul Gillmor, who died in office following a fall at his residence.