J.D. Vance Wants Investigation After DEI Company Founder Pens ‘Decentering Whiteness’ Article

The state of Ohio’s consultant for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion is facing a state investigation after publishing a Forbes column on “decentering whiteness.”

Ohio Republican Sen. J.D. Vance announced he would pursue an investigation into BWG Business Solutions, which was founded and headed by Janice Gassam Asare, who wrote the Forbes article.

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Boot Camps Put Ohio Teachers in Real-World Businesses

Ohio plans to spend $500,000 in taxpayer funds to reimburse colleges and universities across the state for K-12 teacher continuing education programs called “Teacher Bootcamps.”

The program puts teachers in local businesses to expose them to in-demand career skills specific communities need. According to Gov. Mike DeWine, that will help teachers better prepare students for a career after graduation.

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Ohio Lawmakers Push Free Speech in K-12 Schools

A plan Ohio lawmakers say would guarantee free speech for students and staff at the state’s public K-12 schools is now in the hands of the Senate.

Specifically, the legislation requires school districts, community schools and STEM schools to have a policy against using statements of commitment to or soliciting or requiring specified individuals to affirmatively ascribe to specific beliefs, affiliations, ideals or principles concerning political movements or ideology.

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Emerson Poll: Trump Up in Ohio, Democrat Senator Sherrod Brown Leads All GOP Challengers

Emerson College Polling and WJW-TV Fox 8 Cleveland published results of a poll on Thursday revealing how likely voters in Ohio would vote in the 2024 presidential and Senate race.

In the 2024 presidential election, the poll shows former President Donald Trump with a 12-point lead (50 percent-38 percent) over incumbent President Joe Biden in a hypothetical head-to-head matchup in the Buckeye State while 12 percent of voters remain undecided.

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Ohioans Could Be Allowed to Carry Weapons in Buildings with Courts

Local governments in Ohio could soon expand concealed carry laws and allow citizens to carry guns in courtrooms.

House Bill 272, which recently had its fourth hearing before the House Government Oversight Committee but has yet to be voted on, would allow local governments to create an exception to carry a deadline weapon into a building that contains a courtroom when court is not in session.

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Bill May Force Ohio Contractors to Verify Immigration Status

Contractors and larger employers in Ohio could soon be required to verify the immigration status of employers based on a proposed new law.

Reps. Scott Wiggam, R-Wayne County, and D.J. Swearingen, R-Huron, recently introduced legislation that would make contractors and subcontractors verify the immigration status of employees to work on public works construction projects.

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First Proposal Made for Ohio Marijuana Tax Revenue

An Ohio lawmaker already has plans for an expected boost to state revenues following voter approval of recreational marijuana.

State Rep. Cindy Abrams, R-Harrison, plans a Tuesday news conference to outline her proposed legislation that would use $80 million of marijuana tax money over the next two years as a permanent funding source for training the state’s law enforcement officers.

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Senators JD Vance and Marco Rubio Send Letter to U.S. Census Bureau About Its Plan of Adding Gender, Sexuality Questions for Those Ages 15 and Up

The U.S. Census Bureau is under fire for embracing progressive ideology around gender and sexuality and pushing for taxpayer dollars to fund it.

U.S. Sens. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., and JD Vance, R-Ohio, sent a letter to the U.S. Census Bureau Director Robert Santos calling on him to rescind its plan to incorporate a gender identity and sexuality questions to the American Community Survey, which goes to more than 3.5 million Americans each year.

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Ohio Voters Pass Statewide Issues 1 and 2

Ohio voters passed both statewide issues on the ballot Tuesday, according to unofficial election results published by the Ohio Secretary of State’s office.

With the passage of Statewide Issue 1, a constitutional amendment, Ohio will now allow for late-term abortion through all nine months of pregnancy, nullifying the state’s current law, which permits abortions up until 22 weeks of pregnancy for any reason.

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Ohio State University Doubled DEI Staff in Five Years, Payroll Costs Almost Tripled

Ohio State University has more than doubled its diversity staff in just five years, hiring more than 100 new DEI-related employees between 2018 and 2023, swelling the headcount from 88 to 189, a College Fix analysis found.

In 2018, Ohio State employed 88 diversity-related staffers at a cost of $7.3 million annually, according to research conducted at the time.

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Biden Admin Collaborates with Left-Wing Donors Bankrolling Censorship in AI ‘Safety’ Initiative

President Joe Biden’s administration is enlisting left-leaning philanthropies that have supported efforts to suppress content online as part of an initiative to advance the administration’s priorities in the field of artificial intelligence (AI).

Ten largely liberal organizations, featuring George Soros’ Open Society Foundations and Pierre Omidyar’s Omidyar Network and Democracy Fund, are allocating $200 million collectively to help promote the administration’s AI agenda, according to the White House fact sheet detailing the project. However, these same organizations have funded groups who have worked to censor and demonetize conservative content online.

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PUCO Rules New York Energy Company Cannot Do Business in Ohio

A New York-based green energy company plans to appeal a Public Utilities Commission of Ohio ruling that ended its ability to do business in the state.

A PUCO investigation said RPA Energy, also know as Green Choice Energy, forged Ohio customer signatures and altered recorded sales calls. The commission ruled Wednesday the company can no longer do business in the state and faces a $1.44 million fine for 159 violations.

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Poll: Ohioans Show Strong Support for Abortion Rights and Recreational Marijuana

Less than three weeks before Election Day a new poll shows Ohio voters favor constitutional amendments on enshrining abortion rights and legalizing recreational marijuana.

The Baldwin Wallace University poll of 850 registered voters, with 750 identified as likely voters, showed 58% favor Issue 1, which says every individual has a right to make and carry out their reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on contraception, fertility, treatment, continuing one’s pregnancy, miscarriage care and abortion.

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Lawmakers: Ohio Fentanyl Bust Shows Need for New Law

Ohio lawmakers pushing to increase penalties for fentanyl trafficking point to a recent drug seizure as proof new laws are needed.

House Bill 230, which has had three committee meetings since being introduced earlier this month, would increase trafficking charges for cocaine, fentanyl-related compounds, heroin and methamphetamine. It would also raise the charges for human trafficking to a first-degree felony and expand the definition of human trafficking.

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Ohio Business Group Energized by Planned Hydrogen Hub

A nearly $1 billion federal investment of taxpayer dollars in the Appalachian region has business leaders in Ohio excited about the potential for clean energy.

The Appalachian Hydrogen Hub, part of a larger $7 billion announcement late last week from the Biden administration, plans Ohio nodes in Ashtabula, Canton and Hopedale, all linked to nodes in West Virginia, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

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Ohio House Passes Bill Focused on Providing Property Tax Relief

The Ohio House of Representatives passed a bill this week focused on providing property tax relief to Ohioans.

If enacted, the Ohio Homeowners Relief Act would modify the procedures used by the tax commissioner to conduct property tax sales assessment ratio studies. Specifically, the bill would require the commissioner to work alongside local elected officials and weigh the past three years of a county’s property values in order to determine property taxes instead of just one.

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U.S. Senator JD Vance Renews Calls for Passage of the Railway Safety Act

Senator JD Vance (R-OH) renewed calls for the passage of his Railway Safety Act on Thursday after a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous materials derailed in East Palestine on February 3.

“Two hundred and fifty days have passed since the disastrous train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio. Yet Congress has still not passed commonsense railway safety legislation to prevent something like this from happening again,” Vance said in a statement. “Enough is enough – it’s time for the Senate to pass the Railway Safety Act.”

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Ohio Bill Would Require Porn Companies to Get Age Verification

Disregarding age restrictions for pornography and creating sexual “deepfakes” may soon trigger criminal charges in Ohio.

A proposal offered in the state legislature makes distributing sexually explicit material without verifying a customer’s age a third-degree felony. Likewise, minors caught lying about their identity to access porn would face a fourth-degree misdemeanor.

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