Two Republican Ohio House Representatives have introduced legislation to require single-sex bathroom access in schools and universities.
House Bill (HB) 183 sponsored by State Representatives Beth Lear (R-Galena) and Adam Bird (R-New Richmond) aims to require students at K-12 schools and universities to use the restrooms and locker rooms that match their biological sex.
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Two Ohio House Representatives have introduced legislation prohibiting municipalities from implementing curfews with certain exceptions.
House Bill (HB) 180, sponsored by State Representatives Jeff LaRe (R-Violet Twp.) and D.J. Swearingen (R-Huron), is a direct result of a recent city curfew approved by Columbus City Council earlier this week.
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Ohioans could soon catch a break with their property taxes if the Senate agrees with recently-passed House legislation that ties those taxes to inflation.
House Bill 57 unanimously passed and heads to the State Senate, without any opposition in committee. It’s yet to be introduced in the state’s upper chamber.
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The U.S. Marshals Service has announced that a multi-jurisdictional investigation has led them to the successful recovery of 35 missing children from Northern Ohio.
The Northern District of Ohio was one of sixteen selected regions to take part in this operation due to past success in carrying out such operations. Operation We Will Find You, a national missing child operation, centered around major metropolitan areas, such as Cleveland, Toledo, Akron, Canton, Youngstown, and surrounding counties.
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Ohio Democrats have said they are adamantly against Ohio State Issue 1, which tries to change the percentage needed to amend the state Constitution by a statewide ballot initiative to a supermajority of 60 percent from the current 50 percent plus one.
However, their opposition is inconsistent, as their party constitution uses a 60 percent amendment threshold.
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Tweets by a key leftist organization pushing the Ohio abortion ballot initiative that could end parental involvement in minors’ medical decisions reveal that the goal of Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity’s (URGE) is to cut parents out of their children’s lives.
Protect Women Ohio (PWO), a self-described “coalition of concerned family and life leaders, parents, health and medical experts, and faith leaders in Ohio,” posted a thread to Twitter Tuesday showing URGE has been “working to abolish parental consent and notification laws for years.”
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A Democratic-backed group that opposes Ohio State Issue 1 which aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments and an August special election to vote on it has filed a lawsuit against the Ohio Ballot Board over the language they adopted to go before voters.
The group One Person One Vote filed the lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court in response to the Ohio Ballot Board adopting the summary language of Issue 1, the amendment to mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary, last week.
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Governor Mike DeWine announced on Thursday that Ohio is awarding $3 million in new grant funding to local law enforcement agencies to support their drug task forces’ fight against illegal drug activity and to uphold the state’s drug laws.
According to DeWine, the funding will “support local authorities” as they work to take illegal drugs out of communities across the state.
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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine included additional millions of dollars in the 2024-2025 state budget presented to the Ohio General Assembly so that even more can be done to help individuals coming out of prison to reintegrate into society.
For fiscal year 2024, DeWine requested $2.3 billion in funds to operate the Ohio Department of Corrections, a 7.9 percent increase from 2023.
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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said that he intends to vote for Ohio State Issue 1 aimed at altering the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments at the statewide special election in August.
Issue 1, if approved by voters, would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
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A group of Republicans have launched a campaign in support of State Issue 1 the proposal aimed at altering the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments.
The campaign group called Protect Our Constitution is co-chaired by State Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima) and State Representative Jim Hoops (R-Napoleon) and is backed by three major business groups in the state including the Ohio Chamber of Commerce, the Ohio Restaurant Association, and the National Federation of Independent Business.
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A law professor at Ohio Northern University (ONU) said he was recently removed from his classroom by school security officers and banned from campus—and administrators refuse to explain why.
“Armed town police followed me down the hall. My students appeared shocked and frightened. I know I was,” Scott Gerber, a faculty member at the private Methodist university since 2001, described in a May 9 op-ed for The Wall Street Journal.
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Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) removed State Representative Derek Merrin (R-Monclova) as vice-chair of the Ohio House Ways and Means Committee, which reviews legislation affecting tax policy at the state and local levels.
Majority press secretary Aaron Mulvey told The Ohio Star that Merrin received a memo from Stephens on Friday informing him that Stephens removed him as the committee’s vice-chair.
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State officials expanded their legal defense on Monday in a new filing against a lawsuit that challenges the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2, and an August special election to vote on.
The lawsuit filed by a Democratic-backed group, One Person One Vote, asserts that an August special election is illegal since statewide special elections were banned by the Ohio General Assembly in December due to their high costs and poor voter turnout.
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Ohio Republican and Democratic lawmakers submitted written arguments for and against Issue 1 on Monday, which aims to alter how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments to Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose.
Issue 1, if approved by voters, would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
Issue 1 if approved by voters would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
On Monday, U.S. Senator JD Vance announced his endorsement for Republican businessman Bernie Moreno in his run for U.S. Senate against Ohio Democratic U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in 2024.
Moreno previously filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to run for Senate in 2024 and to challenge Democratic incumbent Brown. He officially announced his campaign last month, saying that it’s time for a new generation of political outsiders to come in and get the job done to put America First.
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The Ohio Senate has passed legislation that aims to increase transparency and modernize and clarify data in Ohio’s elections.
Senate Bill (SB) 71 known as the Data Analysis Transparency Archive (DATA) Act, sponsored by state Senator Theresa Gavarone (R-Bowling Green) in collaboration with Secretary of State Frank LaRose passed in the Ohio Senate along party lines 24-7.
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The Ohio Ballot Board has adopted ballot language on a question that aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments for a special election this August.
In a 3-2 vote the ballot board has voted to adopt the summary language of Issue 1, the amendment to mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
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Two Ohio House Representatives have re-introduced Bipartisan legislation to require employers to provide their employees access to their pay statements.
House Bill (HB) 106, known as the Pay Stub Protection Act, sponsored by State Representatives Scott Lipps (R-Franklin) and Dontavious Jarrells (D-Youngstown) aims to make Ohio an access state requiring employers to provide either a written, printed, or electronic pay stub (or access to the electronic pay stub) to their employees.
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A proposal in the Ohio Senate would allow Ohioans to register to vote on Election Day and force potential voters to register again if they have not voted in four consecutive years.
State Sen. Paula Hicks-Hudson, D-Toledo, introduced the resolution she says expands voting rights and is an effort to lessen the effects of voting legislation passed by the General Assembly last year.
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Two Republican Ohio House Representatives have introduced legislation to create new social studies standards through a task force of appointed state officials.
House Bill (HB) 103, sponsored by State Representatives Don Jones (R-Freeport) and Tracy Richardson (R-Marysville), tries to create the Ohio State Social Studies Task Force to craft social studies standards to replace the existing standards in Ohio.
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Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw has announced that Norfolk Southern Railroad will set up a fund to compensate East Palestine homeowners for losses in property value due to the catastrophic February 3rd train derailment that spilled hazardous chemicals into the community.
In a letter to U.S. Senators JD Vance (R-OH), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Ted Cruz (R-TX), and Maria Cantwell (D-WA) Shaw said he would immediately launch the fund instead of waiting for litigation to end.
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The City of Columbus filed a lawsuit against Ohio, claiming that the state has exceeded its power by passing legislation making it difficult for municipalities to establish specific gun control measures.
The lawsuit, filed in the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, follows an Ohio judge ruling which denied the city of Columbus’ request to allow them to enforce their new gun control laws, while the lawsuit filed by The Buckeye Institute to protect the rights of Ohioans to keep and bear arms is being heard.
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U.S. Senator JD Vance (R-OH) has joined legislation that aims to prevent the end of AM radios in new vehicles.
The Bipartisan and Bicameral AM for Every Vehicle Act sponsored in the Senate by U.S Senators Edward Markey (D-MA) and Ted Cruz (R-TX), along with U.S. Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), and Vance would order the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to issue a rule requiring automakers to keep AM broadcast radio in their automobiles without a separate or extra payment, tax, or penalty.
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A national group has filed a lawsuit challenging Olentangy Local School Districts’ anti-harassment policies claiming that these policies violate students’ First and parents’ Fourteenth Amendment rights.
Parents Defending Education, a national nonprofit membership association that empowers concerned citizens to become more engaged in America’s education system, filed the lawsuit against the school district in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lt. Governor Jon Husted, and Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik have announced that the state of Ohio is awarding more than $23 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding to support arts organizations statewide.
One hundred thirty-nine organizations based in 35 counties will receive grant funding totaling $23,252,605.78 as part of the first round of the Ohio Arts Economic Relief Grant Program. The grant program was created in partnership with the Ohio General Assembly as part of a bill sponsored by State Senator George Lang (R-West Chester), which was later merged into House Bill (HB) 45. Over 400 groups applied for grants.
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An Ohio judge denied the City of Columbus’ request to allow them to enforce its new gun control laws while the lawsuit filed by The Buckeye Institute to protect the rights of Ohioans to keep and bear arms is being heard.
The Buckeye Institute filed the lawsuit following the adoption of Ordinance 3176-2022 by the Columbus City Council, which forbade the use of certain firearm magazines in violation of Ohio law and the U.S. and Ohio constitutions.
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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed an executive order to expand upon Ohio’s ambitions to be a national leader in skills-based hiring practices.
According to DeWine, the push toward skill-based hiring places more emphasis on specific coursework, skills, experience, and training while de-emphasizing earlier qualification standards expressed in academic degrees.
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A pro-woman parental rights coalition has launched a new digital advertisement highlighting the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and President Joe Biden’s attack on parental rights.
The ad, entitled “All Our Kids,” is the third 60-second digital advertisement released in a series by Protect Women Ohio, aimed at defeating Ohio’s pro-abortion, anti-parent amendment, championed by the leftist organization the ACLU.
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Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose, through the Attorney General’s office, has asked the Ohio Supreme Court to throw out a lawsuit challenging the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2, and an August special election to vote on it.
A Democratic-backed group One Person One Vote, and a coalition of three Ohio residents Jeniece Brock, Brent Edwards, and Christopher Tavenor, filed the lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court in response to the passage of a resolution, the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, aimed at altering the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments on May 10th on the grounds that the resolution is unconstitutional and illegal.
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Donald Trump’s former ambassador to Morocco, David Fischer, announced his endorsement for Republican businessman Bernie Moreno in his run for U.S. Senate against Ohio Democratic U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in 2024.
Moreno previously filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to run for Senate in 2024 and to challenge Democratic incumbent Brown. He officially announced his campaign last month, saying that it’s time for a new generation of political outsiders to come in and get the job done to put America First.
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A Democratic-backed group that opposes the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2, and an August special election to vote on it has filed a lawsuit on the grounds that the resolution is unconstitutional and illegal.
The group One Person One Vote, and a coalition of three Ohio residents Jeniece Brock, Brent Edwards, and Christopher Tavenor, filed the lawsuit with the Ohio Supreme Court in response to the passage of a resolution, the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, aimed at altering the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments on May 10th.
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The Ohio House Higher Education Committee has passed the “Save Women’s Sports Act” that ensures that biological males cannot compete in female-only sports statewide propelling the legislation forward towards a full House vote.
The Ohio House Higher Education Committee passed the legislation by an 8-6 vote with all five Democrats on the committee and State Representative Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville) voting against the bill.
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State Republican lawmakers have re-introduced legislation to modernize the statutes authorizing the Ohio Cosmetology and Barber Board.
House Bill (HB) 158, sponsored by state Representatives Melanie Miller (R- City of Ashland) and Bill Roemer (R-Richfield), aims to update the statutes to harmonize the regulations and processes of the board and better serve licenses.
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A Republican Ohio House Representative has introduced legislation aimed at protecting healthcare workers and patients from harmful surgical smoke exposure.
House Bill (HB) 104 sponsored by state Representative Monica Robb Blasdel (R-Columbiana County) aims to require Ohio’s hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers to adopt and implement a policy designed to prevent human exposure to surgical smoke.
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The National Republican Congressional Committee has begun a digital advertising campaign to target House Democrats like U.S. House Representatives Marcy Kaptur (D-OH-09), Greg Landsman (D-OH-01), and Emilia Sykes (D-OH-13) for their contribution towards reckless spending that is putting America on the brink of debt default.
This follows Reps. Kaptur, Landsman, and Sykes recently voting against the GOP debt ceiling bill which aims to address the debt ceiling and implement common sense spending reforms to limit wasteful spending, save taxpayer dollars, and grow the economy.
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Ohio House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) swore in two new members to the Ohio House to fill the vacant seats left due to the passing of State Representative Kris Jordan (R-Ostrander) and the resignation of State Representative Brian Baldridge (R- Winchester) to take a job as state agriculture director.
After the untimely passing of Jordan, Delaware County Republican Brian Lorenz (R-Powell) has been chosen to fill the remaining term for the 60th House District seat.
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Four Ohio business organizations have come out in support of the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2, which aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments.
On Wednesday, the Ohio House of Representatives approved the amendment that would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary sending it to Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose for approval and to make preparations for an August special election to vote on it.
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A Republican-backed bill in the Ohio Senate that aims to stop diversity and equity training for faculty and students at state colleges and universities has been revised.
Senate Bill (SB) 83 known as the Ohio Higher Education Enhancement Act introduced by state Senator Jerry Cirino, (R-Kirtland) would eliminate the need for professor, staff, or student participation in diversity, equity, or inclusion training or courses. It would also create transparency for all tasks, as well as compulsory and suggested reading.
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A group of Hilliard City Schools’ parents is concerned about the content of certain books within the school’s libraries.
Sarah Kamento, a mom of a five-year-old, and Cyndie Sheets, mother of a Hilliard City Schools’ graduate told The Ohio Star that they have researched the books in the districts’ libraries and have found 49 books in total to date that they say are “inappropriate.”
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The Ohio State Bar Association has awarded Republican Ohio Supreme Court Justice Patrick Fischer with its highest honor the Ohio Bar Medal.
The Ohio State Bar Association states that the Ohio Bar Medal is awarded to individuals who have selflessly donated their time and talents by assuming important leadership positions on the bench and in the organized bar, as well as to people who have silently strived to win the community’s utmost respect and affection.
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On Wednesday, the Ohio House of Representatives approved an amendment that aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments as well as legislation to allow for a statewide special election in August to vote on it.
The Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2 would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
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According to a press release from Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation identified some confiscated drugs as “rainbow fentanyl” for the first time in the state.
The attorney general’s office said that the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office discovered the 1,025 candy-like, brightly colored tablets while conducting a narcotics trafficking investigation in the Columbus region.
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A former Republican lawmaker is pushing for Ohio to strengthen the state’s current laws to secure the primary election system and stop party raiding.
According to former Ohio Congressman Jim Renacci, the current Ohio election law, which allows challenges to party raiders in primary elections, is not being enforced.
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A Democratic-backed group that opposes the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment released an advertisement praising House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) for the lack of a House floor vote on the resolution.
The group One Person One Vote praises Stephens in its advertisement for the lack of a House floor vote on the resolution and the August special election for voters to decide on it.
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U.S. Senator JD Vance’s (R-OH) bipartisan rail safety legislation gained significant momentum with an endorsement from former President Donald Trump.
The Railway Safety Act sponsored by Vance and Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), would require that trains carrying hazardous materials be scanned by wayside defect detectors, or “hotbox detectors,” every 10 miles to prevent future derailments caused by faulty wheel bearings. It stipulates that railroad companies must provide advance notification to state emergency response commissions when transporting hazardous materials. It requires railroads to operate with at least two-person crews. It also increases the maximum fine for rail safety violations.
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Eighteen state attorney generals have signed onto a brief filed by Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost trying to overturn a lower court’s preliminary injunction on the state’s Heartbeat Act which blocks the majority of abortions once a fetal heartbeat is found.
Yost filed the 20-page brief on Monday at the Ohio Supreme Court saying that the high court should dismiss the preliminary injunction on enforcing the state’s Heartbeat Act because the plaintiffs are clinics and not patients.
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The Ohio Republican State Central Committee has unanimously voted to support a resolution and implore lawmakers to pass the Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment which aims to alter the process of how initiative petitions can propose constitutional amendments and to allow for a special August election to vote on the amendment.
The Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment, Senate Joint Resolution (SJR) 2 would mandate a 60 percent approval percentage for any future constitutional amendments, call for signatures from all 88 counties, and do away with the opportunity to “cure” petitions by collecting additional signatures if necessary.
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An activist-led petition for marijuana legalization in Ohio could be on the November ballot now that state lawmakers have declined to evaluate the change.
The 34-page bill proposed by The Coalition to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol aimed to impose a 10 percent tax on the sale of all cannabis products and legalize the possession, purchase, and sale of marijuana by Ohio residents aged 21 and older.
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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and his Department of Safety Director Andy Wilson have announced that the state of Ohio is awarding nearly $500,000 in funding to law enforcement agencies throughout the state to help aid in the recruitment of new officers.
31 law enforcement agencies in 21 counties will receive the grant funding totaling $445,449 as part of the second round of funding offered as part of the new Ohio Law Enforcement Recruitment Grant Program. The program was created by Gov. DeWine in 2020 to enable police departments throughout Ohio to focus on recruiting efforts.
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