Ohio Grants Nearly $90 Million to Focus on Women and Minority-Owned Tech Businesses

Woman Business

Ohio is handing out $86 million in federal taxpayer money to private investment funds to be passed on to early-stage tech companies that are women- or minority-owned or in underserved areas by venture capital.

The money comes from the federally-funded State Small Business Credit Initiative Venture Capital program, and Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik says the money helps level the playing field.

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Ohio Senate Gets Bill to Increase Penalties for Drug, Human Trafficking

Cindy Abrams

Stronger fentanyl-related drug trafficking penalties and a requirement to teach high school students the dangers of fentanyl now wait on the Ohio Senate to move closer to becoming law.

House Bill 322, which passed the House with an 80-13 vote but has yet to be introduced in the Senate, is a direct response to both drug and human trafficking, according to sponsor Rep. Cindy Abrams, R-Harrison.

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Auditor Puts Ohio Community College on Notice over Bloated Staff, Underused Buildings

Lakeland Community College

A Cleveland area community college is overstaffed and struggling with debt related to underused buildings all while enrollment continues to fall.

Those issues became more serious following a recent review of the Lakeland Community College’s operations by State Auditor Keith Faber, who raised concerns about whether the school can remain open.

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Push Begins to Guarantee Free Speech on Ohio College Campuses

An Ohio lawmaker believes the state’s current political climate creates a negative environment for some speech on college campuses and wants to make sure staff and students are protected.

Rep. Adam Holmes, R-Nashport, said legislation prohibiting colleges and universities from requiring support of specific ideas or political movements is becoming increasingly necessary.

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Ohio Secretary of State’s Office Launches Initiative to Prepare Election Officials for the November Election

Frank LaRose

Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose announced a new statewide initiative his office will facilitate to ensure election officials are “trained and prepared” for the November general election.

The Ready for November initiative will “offer a series of collaborative training opportunities between Ohio’s 88 county boards of elections and the Secretary of State’s elections, public integrity and communications staff,” according to LaRose’s office.

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Ohio Affordable Housing Market Target of New Legislation

Construction on Home

A bipartisan group of Ohio lawmakers wants to give taxpayer money to local communities that adopt pro-housing policies they say will create a healthier housing market.

Sponsors say the new bill introduced Tuesday would stabilize both home prices and rents and “revolutionize” how local governments approach housing supply by using state policy and resources to encourage innovation and access.

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Lawmakers React After Norfolk Southern Agrees to $600 Million Settlement to Resolve Lawsuits from East Palestine Train Derailment

East Palestine

Norfolk Southern Corporation announced Tuesday that it reached a $600 million settlement in a class action lawsuit in response to the train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, last year.

The railroad company said in a press release that if the court approves the settlement, all class action lawsuits within a 20-mile radius of the derailment and all personal injury claims within a 10-mile radius of the derailment will be resolved.

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Bill Would Ensure Patriotic Groups Can Appear in Ohio Schools

Ohio state Representative Roy Klopfenstein with a Boy Scout

Two Ohio lawmakers want to make sure state schools follow federal law and allow groups like the Boy Scouts and Girls Scouts to be present during the school year.

Proposed legislation in the House of Representatives requires schools to allow U.S. Title 36, which permits patriotic organizations to provide information to students. Those organizations could be the Boy Scouts, Girls Scouts, 4-H, Future Farmers of America, Civil Air Patrol, Boys & Girls Clubs of America and many other groups.

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Ohio Auditor Takes over School District Facing $11 Million Deficit

Keith Faber

State Auditor Keith Faber placed a southwest Ohio school district in fiscal emergency Friday after it projected an operating fund deficit of nearly $11 million.

A fiscal analysis by the Auditor of State’s Local Government Services Section certified a projected operating deficit of $10.8 million for the Mt. Health City School District in Hamilton County, near Cincinnati. The figure represents 26% of the district’s general revenue funds for the fiscal year that ends June 30.

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Cybersecurity, Voter Eligibility Focus of New Ohio Legislation

Bernard Willis

A plan to more stringently scrutinize voter registration data and citizenship verification during Ohio’s elections sits before the Ohio House of Representatives.

The proposed legislation, which has yet to be assigned to a committee, also focuses on security of individual voting machines and would require the state’s board of voting system examiners to contain a person with cybersecurity expertise and credentials.

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Yost Agrees Six-Week Abortion Ban Unconstitutional, Other Provisions Not

Attorney General Dave Yost

A Hamilton County judge now must decide on parts of Ohio’s heartbeat law after Attorney General Dave Yost agreed the law banning nearly all abortions is unconstitutional.

In court filings, Yost said Ohio’s 2019 law that banned most abortions in the state was unconstitutional after voters guaranteed the right to an abortion in the state’s constitution in November.

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Ohio’s Tornado-Ravaged Counties Await Federal Disaster Declaration

Ohio Gov Mike DeWine surveys tornado damage

State and federal officials are awaiting President Joe Biden’s disaster declaration to help recovery from tornadoes and severe storms that impacted 11 counties in mid-March.

Gov. Mike DeWine, along with Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Republican Sen. J.D. Vance, wrote asking for a FEMA presidential disaster declaration to open federal aid for those impacted not already reimbursed by other government programs or private insurance.

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Report: Ohio Taxpayer Return of Investment One of Nation’s Best

Ohio Capitol Money

Despite the likely feeling most Ohioans have about taxes, they could feel better knowing they have one of the nation’s highest returns on their tax dollars, according to a new report.

The personal finance website WalletHub ranked the Buckeye State fifth in the country in terms of taxpayer return on investment after analyzing state and local tax collections with the quality of services residents receive in each state using 29 different metrics.

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