A plan to change Ohio law to stop qualified immunity for local government workers hit a snag when a summary of the proposal was rejected by Attorney General Dave Yost.
Yost rejected the summary from a citizens group that wants a new constitutional amendment that would remove qualified immunity for employees of political subdivisions for injury, death or loss of person or property caused by an act or omission from a government employee during their job.
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Two Republican lawmakers from Ohio filed a lawsuit against the Federal Election Commission (FEC), alleging it violates candidates First amendment rights by limiting their ability to coordinate with political parties, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The lawsuit, filed on Nov. 4 by Senator-elect JD Vance and Representative Steve Chabot, as well as the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) and the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) in an Ohio district court, claims that FEC guidelines which “limits… coordinated party expenditures” violates the First Amendment “by strictly limiting how much of [a party committee’s] own money they can spend to influence federal elections in cooperation- or ‘coordination’- with their candidates.”
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U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) retires at the end of the year, but before he does, he hopes to have a hand in reenergizing openness toward global trade, a policy perspective that hasn’t been ascendant in the Biden administration or the preceding Trump administration.
In a guest column for the D.C.-based Hill newspaper, Portman and his Democratic Delaware colleague Chris Coons called on Congress to pass a legislative package facilitating foreign trade agreements. The lawmakers particularly urged enactment of their Trading System Preservation Act. The act would enable the president to iron out industry-specific trade deals with other nations that are part of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and would allow negotiation of comprehensive agreements with Ecuador, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and Kenya.
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A new study ranks Ohio as one of the worst states in the nation for job seekers to find employment.
WalletHub, a personal finance website, say in the new report the state’s tax burden and low job satisfaction ranking have put it in the bottom 10 states for those continuing to try to find a job.
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The Committee of Government Oversight amended a resolution Thursday to require all proposed ballot issues to receive 60 percent of the vote in order to amend the state constitution, not just citizen-led amendments.
State Representative Brian Stewart (R-Ashville), requested the committee to adopt an amendment to his resolution, House Joint Resolution (HJR) 6, to include legislative ballot initiatives to also require 60 percent of the vote on election day in order to be enacted.
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Ohio Republican lawmakers proposed an amendment to House Bill (HB) 509 Wednesday in the Senate Workforce and Higher Education Committee, allowing individuals with related degrees other than social work to become licensed social workers.
In its original version, HB 509 sponsored by State Representatives Marilyn John (R-Shelby) and Sarah Fowler Arthur (R-Ashtabula) allows, among other things, some leeway for some professional licensing during the pandemic in addition to other rationale and streamlines the state’s occupational regulations. Now, a substitute amendment to that bill is including social work.
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Republicans in the Ohio House passed a bill Thursday, on a 55 to 22 vote, that will prevent state and local governments from closing gun stores, stopping processing background checks, or confiscating firearms without cause during declared states of emergency.
Senate Bill (SB) 185, sponsored by State Senator Tim Schaffer (R-Lancaster), aims to prevent state and local governments and elected or appointed officials from infringing on Second Amendments rights during declared emergencies. This would include required gun registrations, seizing weapons, banning the sale of ammunition, limiting the operating hours at shooting ranges, or prohibiting otherwise lawful hunting.
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State Republican lawmakers are moving a bill forwards that aims to reduce the amount of required training it would take to get a cosmetology and barber license.
House Bill (HB) 542 sponsored by state Representatives Bill Roemer (R-Richfield) and Lisa Sobecki (D-Toledo) began as a piece of legislation aimed to create a unified barbering/cosmetology school license, to eliminate duplicative applications for facilities that teach both cosmetology and barbering and to lower the age of applicants for barber school to 16 years old.
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The Ohio House passed a bill Wednesday, with bipartisan support, that would decriminalize Fentanyl testing strips, pushing forward with a proposal that supporters claim will help prevent fatal overdoses and save lives.
In the state of Ohio Fentanyl drug testing strips are considered drug paraphernalia and it’s illegal for someone to be in possession of them.
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An Ohio lawmaker introduced legislation on Tuesday to the General Assembly to expand schooling options for Ohio children.
Senate Bill (SB) 368, sponsored by State Senator Sandra O’Brien (R-Ashtabula), known as the Parental Education Freedom Act, would make each student in the state eligible for an Educational Choice (EdChoice) Scholarship to be used at a private school of their choice, or an increased tax credit for expenses related to homeschooling.
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In the view of an Ohio conservative think tank, the Buckeye State should enact a bill the House passed, and the Senate is now considering to pare back licensure burdens for many professionals.
Greg R. Lawson, a research fellow at the Columbus-based Buckeye Institute, testified this week before the Ohio Senate Workforce and Higher Education Committee in favor of the bill. He added he believes the state should pursue further reform even after the legislation passes the Senate and receives Governor Mike DeWine’s signature.
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The Ohio Senate voted 27-2 on Wednesday in favor of a criminal justice reform bill that aims to change how quickly inmates can earn time off of their prison sentences, expand immunity from prosecution for minor drug possession offenses, and strengthens penalties for domestic violence offenders.
Senate Bill (SB) 288 sponsored by Senator Nathan Manning (R-North Ridgeville) aims to provide alternative services to people in lieu of jail or prison or to divert people from an already overburdened prison system.
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The University of Toledo walked back a potential policy which would have required faculty and students use an individual’s “chosen name” after the First-Amendment watchdog group Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) accused it of violating free speech rights.
The proposed policy, introduced in February, attempted to mandate the use of a name an individual “choose[s] to be called in day-to-day life” in all verbal communication and on all documents where a legal name is not required such as on course rosters, university identification and directories. FIRE, however, accused the policy of being in violation of the First Amendment for policing speech.
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Parents of middle school students in the Upper Arlington Schools in Ohio reported to Libs of TikTok that a “non-binary” youth librarian’s presentation to sixth-grade students involved asking them whether they might be of a different gender and whether they feel safe discussing these thoughts at home.
According to the report by Libs of TikTok, on October 13, the Grade 6 English Language Arts (ELA) teachers of Hastings Middle School partnered with the Upper Arlington Public Library (UAPL) to ask youth librarian Alexx Burris to make recommendations to students for books on the topic of “Coming of Age.”
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Hamilton County Republican Party Chairman, Alex Triantafilou, officially announced his candidacy for Chairman of the Ohio Republican Party following the announcement that current Chairman, Bob Paduchik will not be seeking another term.
“Our party faces a huge challenge in 2024. Defeating Sherrod Brown and Joe Biden will require a unified and organized state party. I look forward to traveling throughout Ohio to share my vision for our party with Republican leaders in every corner of Ohio,” Triantafilou said on social media.
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Same-sex marriage is on track to becoming codified in federal statute and retiring U.S. Senator Rob Portman (R-OH) is celebrating his role as a key driver of the change.
In 2013, Portman became the first Republican senator to support redefining marriage as something other than the matrimonial union between one man and one woman. He attributed his reversal of his prior opposition to gay marriage to his son having come out two years earlier.
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Ohio legislation that would ban providing minors puberty-blocking drugs and cross-sex hormones for “gender transitioning” is being postponed until next year, according to the bill’s Republican sponsors.
House Bill (HB) 454, known as the Save Adolescents from Experimentation (SAFE) Act, introduced by State Representatives Gary Click (R-Vickery) and Diane Grendell (R-Chesterland) aims to prohibit certain procedures from altering a minor child’s sex.
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Ohio State University (OSU) President Kristina M. Johnson PhD, announced Monday night that she will transition out of her role as president in May 2023 at the end of the current academic year.
According to reports by The Columbus Dispatch, the university’s board of trustees asked Johnson to resign after an investigation was conducted by an outside firm into concerns about her which were raised by staff. What those concerns consisted of and the details of the investigation are not clear. Johnson allegedly had a contentious relationship with several members of the board and reportedly is being held personally responsible for the departure of at least two high-ranking university officials.
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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced on Tuesday that rape crisis centers and sexual assault survivor programs in Ohio will receive $4.8 million in grant funding.
Twenty-five rape crisis centers and survivor service providers from 24 Ohio counties received grant funding.
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A package of Republican-backed bills designed to crack down on municipalities that employ photo-monitoring devices to enforce traffic, received its first hearing before state lawmakers Tuesday at the Ohio House Transportation and Public Safety Committee.
State Representative Tom Patton (R-Strongsville) is a long time critic of traffic cameras. He says that traffic cameras are a scheme that funnels cash to camera-friendly towns and does little to protect Ohio’s roadways.
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The Ohio Senate Local Government and Elections Committee held its third hearing on Tuesday regarding legislation to end the state’s late-summer special elections, drawing supportive testimony from Buckeye Institute Research Fellow Greg R. Lawson.
Lawson’s Columbus-based center-right policy outfit backs the effort to eliminate these elections which feature nominating contests for state legislative offices, state-party committee votes and many ballot initiatives. The bill, sponsored by state Representative Thomas Hall (R-Madison Township), passed the state House of Representatives 68-22 last December and must pass the Senate and receive Governor Mike DeWine’s (R) signature in December to become law. All House members who opposed the measure last year were Democrats.
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In a display of support of passenger rail service in Ohio, a bi-partisan alliance of Ohio mayors in partnership with several of Ohio’s regional planning agencies, have formally requested the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) to include a list of Ohio rail lines in its Corridor Identification Program (CAP).
According to FRA, the CAP, established earlier this year, institutes a pipeline of projects ready for funding, allowing them to be implemented faster and with greater coordination. The Corridor ID Program is anticipated to help expand intercity passenger rail service beyond the Northeast Corridor.
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Ohio lawmakers will consider this far adding consumer protections to “clean energy” lending programs in a response to concerns that they can burden vulnerable homeowners.
Last year, a statewide clean-energy lending program stalled prior to making any loans. Republican lawmakers aim to add protections for consumers in the instance the program resurfaces.
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Ohio lawmakers are working to pass a law that would help protect domestic violence survivors and make strangulation a felony in the state.
Senate Bill 90 introduced by co-sponsors State Senators Stephanie Kunze (R-Hilliard) and Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood), aims to prohibit impeding breathing or circulation of family members.
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U.S. Representative Shontel Brown (D-OH-11) is leading a charge among members of Congress in favor of a measure to expand the federal government’s role in healthcare, particularly regarding mental-health-related comorbidities.
The Cleveland-area Democrat is cosponsoring her Mental and Physical Health Care Comorbidities Act with House colleague Brendan Boyle (D-PA-2). Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO) has introduced a version of the legislation in his chamber.
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Governor Mike DeWine announced that 24 local law enforcement agencies will receive a total of $11.7 million to help prevent and investigate incidents of violent crime including domestic violence, gun violence, and human trafficking.
The grants represent the 10th round of the Ohio Violent Crime Reduction Grant Program. Since the initiation of the program last year, Governor DeWine has awarded close to $70 million to 146 Ohio law enforcement agencies. Approximately $100 million will be awarded to local law enforcement agencies as part of the grant program in total.
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In order to ensure Ohioans with dementia receive proper treatment lawmakers are working to pass a bill requiring police officers and first responders to be educated in effective communication tactics.
House Bill (HB) 23 sponsored by State Representatives Phil Plummer (R-Dayton) and Thomas West (D-Canton) aims to develop education and require specialized training for first responders addressing difficult situations for individuals with dementia.
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State Representative Derek Merrin (R-Monclova Township) has been elected as the new Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives for the 135th General Assembly as reported by a release from the Ohio House.
The GOP Caucus selected Merrin, a 36-year-old Realtor, and real estate investor as the House Republicans’ pick for speaker over two rivals. State Representative Bill Dean (R-Xenia) organized and led the leadership election. The caucus’ newly elected and returning members participated in the vote.
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In the next few weeks, Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Jaiza Page (D) is poised to decide whether a lawsuit against Ohio’s private-school choice program will go forward.
Litigation against private school choice in the Buckeye State has been in the works since last year when dozens of school districts under the aegis of Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding posited that the state’s EdChoice program harms the state’s ability to properly fund its public schools. The districts suing the state, which now number more than 130, filed their action in January.
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A bill in support of the use of alternative COVID-19 treatments received its first hearing in Lame-duck session at the Ohio Statehouse.
House Bill (HB) 631 sponsored by State Representative Kris Jordan (R-Ostrander), named the COVID-19 Health Care Professional-Patient Relationship Protection Act, aims to protect the use of doctor-patient relationships in Ohio by codifying the authority for healthcare professionals to administer alternative drug therapies for patients diagnosed with COVID-19 or one of its variants.
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Two Ohio teacher’s unions who are keeping tabs on the Ohio legislature’s handling of education say they hope the General Assembly focuses on funding and attracting new teachers, rather than bills that regulate curriculum and “divisive” issues.
Controversy has erupted in public education decisions over the past year on how to teach about race and how schools should approach students who identify as gay or transgender. In the mid-term election, The liberal teacher’s unions, the Ohio Federation of Teachers (OFT) and the Ohio Education Association (OEA), contributed tens of thousands of dollars to help the campaigns of their Democratic candidates to secure support for their left-leaning agenda.
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An Ohio school district faces a lawsuit from Muslim and Christian parents after permitting students to use bathrooms according to their stated gender identity rather than their biological sex.
America First Legal filed a federal lawsuit Tuesday on behalf of the parents against Bethel Local School District, located in Tipp City north of Dayton. The lawsuit accuses the district of violating Title IX protections for students and violating parental rights.
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Thirty-three higher-education institutions across the Buckeye State will get $5 million in total for safety related enhancements, Governor Mike DeWine (R-OH) announced this week.
The allocations from the state’s 2022 Campus Safety Program will largely fund equipment such as metal detectors, alarms, loudspeakers, security cameras and lock technology. Schools getting the largest amounts include the University of Akron ($422,630), Kent State University ($387,567), Terra State Community College ($338,598), Bowling Green State University ($278.075.63) and Washington State Community College ($226,345.90).
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With the holiday season, fast approaching members of local law enforcement are cautioning Ohioans about increased holiday theft and how to keep themselves and their property safe while shopping in stores or online.
Ohio law enforcement agencies state that they see an uptick in theft reports towards the end of the year.
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LGBTQ rights activists have scheduled a Holi-drag Storytime, a faction of Drag Queen Story Hour, geared towards small children as young as two years old for next weekend in Central Ohio.
The event is scheduled to be held at the First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus on December 3rd and is being marketed as an annual LGBTQ+ holiday tradition for the entire family.
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Ohio’s two U.S. senators this week proposed a Senate bill making full-time students eligible for the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program.
U.S. Representatives Brad Wenstrup (R-OH-2) and Danny Davis (D-IL-7) introduced a House version of the measure earlier this week. The proposed change to the program would make LIHTC, which provides tax relief to developers who build or rehabilitate low-cost rental units, allow full-time students to live on sites that were funded by the credit. The current prohibition on such students living in those buildings was intended to prevent LIHTC from aiding the construction of dormitories.
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With Thanksgiving now over and winter rapidly approaching, Ohio is full of vibrant holiday villages, Christmas tree lighting ceremonies, and activities for the whole family to participate in.
Whether enveloped in snow, aglow with hundreds of lights, or deliciously decorated Ohio is a wonderland of magical holiday traditions no matter what area of the state you are visiting. Outside of classic Christmas tree lighting’s, sleigh rides, and gingerbread houses Ohio is full of unique activities to make the season memorable.
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Columbus City Council members Shayla Favor, Emmanuel Remy, and Council President Shannon Hardin hosted a public hearing Tuesday to discuss the proposed “common-sense” gun reform legislation to reduce gun violence.
Democratic leaders Columbus Mayor Andrew J. Ginther and City Attorney Zach Klein, and Assistant Police Chief Greg Bodker also participated in the hearing which came after Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Steven McIntosh sided with the city of Columbus in a ruling that deals in part with Ohio’s “preemption” laws, which forbid cities and other political subdivisions from regulating firearms.
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The Ohio Supreme Court ruled Tuesday morning that revenue earned by NASCAR from selling the rights to broadcast stock car races and merchandise to Ohio fans is not subject to state business taxes.
In a unanimous decision, the Supreme Court rejected the Ohio Tax Commissioner, Jeffrey McClain’s, order that NASCAR owes the state almost $550,000 for money earned from broadcasting races, online marketing, and sponsorship fees.
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U.S. Representatives Brad Wenstrup (R-OH-2) and Danny Davis (D-IL-7) this week introduced a measure to assist homeless veterans, foster youth and others in obtaining affordable housing as they seek college degrees.
Wenstrup and Davis hope to change the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC), which lightens the tax burden on developers constructing or rehabilitating low-cost rental units. Currently, LIHTC does not permit full-time students to avail themselves of LIHTC-funded housing sites. This restriction was written to prevent the tax credit from funding dormitory buildings.
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The Ohio Supreme Court unanimously dismissed a case on if Governor Mike DeWine had the authority to cut off an extra $300 per week in federal unemployment benefits.
Justices dismissed the case as “moot.” Without a court order requiring the federal government to keep these additional unemployment benefits, it was unclear if the money still existed.
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State lawmakers are proposing stiffer penalties in cases where an individual disrupts a religious service. The measure passed the Ohio House in April and is now progressing through the Senate.
In a hearing of the Judiciary Committee last week. Mike Rodgers, director of policy and legislation from the Attorney General’s office put forward the concept behind the “Sacred Spaces Act.”
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Ohio State Senator Matt Dolan (R-Chagrin Falls) has taken a step back from his initial plan to establish a red flag law in Ohio. He instead proposed, during legislative committee, a restriction on future gun purchases after a judge deems a person is a threat to themselves or others despite opposition from gun rights activists.
Senate Bill (SB) 357 originally aimed to add extreme risk laws, commonly known as red flag laws, to supposedly “protect the public and the gun owner” by temporarily removing a firearm from someone deemed by a judge to be suffering from a severe mental health condition.
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Senate President Matt Huffman (R-Lima) said after feedback from medical professionals, Republicans in the Ohio Senate are working to clarify language on the six-week limits on abortion.
According to Huffman, they are working to clarify definitions regarding the health and life of the mother. The new limit known as the “heartbeat bill,” prohibits most abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, which is at about six weeks of pregnancy.
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Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost (R) will host his Fourth Annual Human Trafficking Summit next January 26 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center.
Seventeen workshops will take place at the event, including examination of the trauma inflicted on trafficking survivors, best practices for serving those who have endured such crimes, discussion of why individuals solicit sex and review of state policies to reduce the demand for labor trafficking.
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The Ohio House has approved legislation that will close a loophole in disciplinary investigation procedures for teachers and school employees.
House Bill (HB) 403 sponsored by Representatives Sarah Fowler Arthur (R-Ashtabula) and Adam C. Miller (D-Columbus) aims to close a loophole enabling a teacher or school employee who retires under threat of disciplinary investigation or termination to avoid further investigation. Under this bill school districts would report these teachers to the Ohio Department of Education (ODE) even if they retire.
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Governor Mike DeWine (R-OH) this weekend welcomed an announcement by Air Force Maj. Gen. John C. Harris Jr. that the Air Force is formally designating the 179th Airlift Wing in Mansfield as the first wing of its cybersecurity mission.
The Air Force and the National Guard Bureau made the designation after analyzing the possibility for the past year. In August 2021, the Air Force publicized its assessment that the north-central Ohio wing was the frontrunner to become the initial cyberspace-mission site. The new mission will be oriented toward protecting aircraft and weaponry software systems from attacks and other risks. It will bring in 175 new high-technology staff positions which DeWine touted as an important step in making the Buckeye State a more high-profile venue for the science, mathematical, engineering and cybertechnology fields.
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The Ohio House passed an amended version of a distracted driving bill Wednesday afternoon that makes texting and driving a primary offense.
The measure fell short of its original intent requiring hands-free use only of a cellphone by drivers.
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The Ohio House of Representatives wants to spend $3 million the next two fiscal years to help rural lawyers pay off their student loans.
The Rural Practice Incentive Program, passed by the House, would reduce the student loan debt on prosecutors and public defenders in most rural Ohio communities. The $3 million, according to the Ohio Legislative Commission, would be set aside for the first two years, and the overall cost would be determined by the number of participants in the program.
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Ohio Republicans introduced a new resolution on Thursday that would require citizen-led constitutional amendments to gain a 60 percent supermajority at the ballot for passage.
Secretary of State Frank LaRose and State Representative Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) initiated the “Ohio Constitution Protection Amendment,” which they say is designed to help protect the Ohio Constitution from continued misuse by special interest and out-of-state activists.
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