Thursday, September 17th, 2015
Buchy to retire at end of term
By William Kincaid
State Rep. Jim Buchy, R-Greenville, announced Wednesday that he intends to retire from the Ohio House of Representatives effective January 2017 and end his career as a public servant, opting to spend more time with his family.
After finishing his current term in the House, Buchy will have put in 30 years of public service.
"This is a family decision," Buchy, 75, told the newspaper.
Buchy said he wants to spend more time with his eight grandchildren, some of whom are in high school and involved in activities.
"I don't have the opportunity to watch them in action," he said.
Buchy said the timing of his announcement is intended to give potential candidates for the 84th District seat plenty of time to file and mount a campaign. The 84th District comprises Mercer and portions of Auglaize, Darke and Shelby counties.
In the meantime, Buchy said he plans to continue to fight to lower the cost of doing business in Ohio. He said his work is constantly geared toward reducing waste, fraud and abuse and providing opportunities for small businesses to succeed.
Buchy, the former president and CEO of Buchy Food Service in Greenville, first served as state representative from 1983 to 2000 before leaving because of term limits. He was allowed to return to the House after a four-year hiatus.
In 2011, Buchy was appointed to the Ohio House of Representatives to fill the seat of former Rep. Jim Zehringer, who became director of the Ohio Department of Agriculture and then the director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Buchy said he was interested in pursuing another term in the House because he had long known Gov. John Kasich and wanted to help invigorate the economy.
He was voted into the House leadership in 2013 and was elected in 2015 by his colleagues to serve as the assistant majority leader.
"The trust placed in me by the fine families of western Ohio as their voice in Columbus is humbling," Buchy said. "At this time it is important that I am able to enjoy retirement with my family and attend the activities of my eight grandchildren."
