Gongwer News Service Ohio

06/24/2024

The House's point person on ma*****na issues is not optimistic that lawmakers will reach an agreement on matters related to the legalization of the drug before breaking for summer next week.

Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord) said members of the Senate are still attempting to make changes to the voter-approved initiated statute that he believes go against the will of the electorate.

Among those are efforts to reduce the number of home-grown plants each adult in the state is entitled to from the current maximum of six.

06/03/2024

School board, city council, county council, and now Ohio House of Representatives: Rep. Veronica Sims has done it all.

Sims, the former president of Summit County Council, was seated in February to fill the position left open by former Rep. Tavia Galonski, who resigned to take the role of Summit County Clerk of Courts.

But the Akron Democrat is no stranger to public service or state politics.

Sims – one of six children of James and Elaine Brown – was born and raised in Akron.

https://bit.ly/3RbEPvr

05/14/2024

The Joint Committee on Agency Rule & Review on Monday advanced the first batch of rules related to the new adult-use ma*****na program, but a key lawmaker said additional rules as well as legislation to address ongoing concerns are still to follow.

The packages submitted by the Department of Commerce's Division of Cannabis Control largely address dual-use cannabis licenses, which will allow cultivators, processors, testing laboratories, and dispensaries to work with both medical and recreational products.

JCARR Co-Chair Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord), a longtime backer of legalizing ma*****na, called the rules advancement just "one step."

"It's a big step, but it's one step along the pathway," he told reporters. "The next step is for the office of cannabis control to actually put together the application for dual licensure."

05/13/2024

The Department of Education & Workforce is looking to do its part to ensure the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group 's report does more than collect dust on a shelf.

The agency has proposed revisions to a package of about two-dozen administrative rules related to school transportation, including several aimed at implementing recommendations crafted by the panel (Presentation).

The working group, which was convened by Gov. Mike DeWine following a 2023 crash involving a Clark County school bus that left an 11-year-old student dead, made 17 suggestions for improving safety either through rulemaking or legislative action.

04/15/2024

Gov. Mike DeWine is already moving forward on at least one new initiative debuted earlier this week in the State of the State speech.

Those counties, he said in a statement Friday, include Hamilton, Huron, Erie, Darke, Fayette, Greene, Shelby, Mahoning, Trumbull, Noble and Guernsey, where the program is expected to benefit 4,000 families this summer.

"Family Connects will allow Ohio to offer support to every new mom and family right after they come home with their new baby, to answer questions or address concerns they may have, as well as connect them to any clinical or community support they need," DeWine said in a statement.

Families need not be enrolled in Medicaid to participate.

04/09/2024

State tax revenues in all four major categories again failed to hit the mark in March after a one-time bounce back following two months of shortfalls.

According to the latest preliminary data from the Office of Budget & Management, last month's tax receipts landed $171.3 million (9.6%) below the budgeted estimate, pulling the year-to-date negative variance down to $222.4 million (1.1%) from $51 million (0.3%) the month prior. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, March 8, 2024)

Director Kimberly Murnieks, however, said in a Monday interview that the full report on Wednesday will show that General Revenue Fund spending is also coming in below estimate.

"That all balances out and the budget is still structurally sound," she said.

04/08/2024

Lawmakers will return to the Statehouse in force next week to fill the House chamber for Gov. Mike DeWine's annual State of the State Address.

While the governor's remarks may get most of the attention from denizens of Capitol Square, about two dozen committees will meet as legislative work ramps back up following the March primary election.

The House and the Senate have sessions scheduled Wednesday afternoon, but both chambers are expected to convene solely to hear DeWine's speech.

The lack of action from the former likely will disappoint Senate leaders who wanted quick concurrence from the House on a bill (HB 27) loaded up with $1.4 billion in mostly bond-backed appropriations in late February in a bid to ensure the funds were available by the summer construction season.

https://bit.ly/49mPfi0

04/02/2024

NEW PRODUCT: We're excited to unveil our new Bill Comparison Tool. The legislation comparison tool will revolutionize the way subscribers monitor legislative activities and follow legislative changes.

With the new service, subscribers can now easily compare different versions of legislation in a side-by-side setting. This allows for a clear, immediate understanding of amendments and substitutes and makes it easier to track key developments at the Statehouse.

03/22/2024

Two ad hoc members of the Ohio Power Siting Board did not mince words Thursday as the full panel approved an 800-megawatt Madison County solar farm over their objections.

The $1 billion project is expected to draw an estimated $209 million and another $3.3 million in local earnings during construction and operation respectively, with another $421 million and $8.3 million in output during those phases. Officials have estimated 3,033 construction jobs and 63 long-term jobs are also expected.

The board's order largely adhered to that recommendation, approving 46 conditions in a stipulation previously reached by developers, staff and others including the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation and the Ohio Environmental Council.

Among the conditions are:

300-foot setbacks to nonparticipating homes and 150-foot setbacks to roads and non-participating property lines.
A $33.3 million decommissioning bond for the solar farm.
A requirement developers graze at least 1,000 sheep and 2,000 crop acres after its first year of operation and within eight years must include agrivoltaics over 4,000 crop acres.
The order also approves two 230 kilovolt transmission lines and a 300 megawatt battery energy storage facility, the latter of which requires a $11.2 million decommissioning bond.

03/19/2024

Happy Election Day, Ohio. Polls open at 6:30 am and will close at 7:30 pm. Not sure where your polling location is or who is on your ballot? Head over to the Secretary of State's website.

Resources for Ohio Voters.

02/28/2024

Ex-Speaker Larry Householder is alleging the trial that landed him a 20-year federal prison sentence was rife with procedural and legal errors that warrant revisiting.

Householder and his defense team laid out those claims late Monday in his initial brief appealing the sentence handed down in June by U.S. District Court Judge Timothy Black after the two-time speaker was convicted of accepting millions of dollars in bribes from FirstEnergy Corp. (See Gongwer Ohio Report, March 9, 2023)

The long-awaited brief came nearly eight months after Householder, 64, was sentenced and remanded into custody in a Cincinnati courtroom.

02/13/2024

Gov. Mike DeWine and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted on Monday expressed disappointment after a federal judge blocked a law requiring parental consent for the use of social media for those under 16.

Chief Judge Algenon Marbley of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, Eastern Division granted a preliminary injunction sought by trade association NetChoice to halt enforcement of the so-called "Social Media Parental Notification Act."

In blocking its enforcement, Marbley called the law "a breathtakingly blunt instrument for reducing social media's harm to children."

02/12/2024

A pair of former high-ranking FirstEnergy Corp. officials has been indicted for allegedly facilitating what prosecutors and the company have labeled intended bribes.

Attorney General Dave Yost and local officials from Summit County on Monday announced the indictment of former company CEO Chuck Jones and former Senior Vice President of External Affairs Michael Dowling.

02/02/2024

Building capacity at the local level and expanding access to quality treatment are among the actions the DeWine Administration prioritized in a new plan to reduce the state's su***de rate.

Gov. Mike DeWine's RecoveryOhio office partnered with the Ohio Su***de Prevention Foundation to produce the recently released Su***de Prevention Plan for Ohio 2024-2026.

"The heartbreak of losing a family member to su***de is a pain that cuts deep, leaving behind a void that words can't fully capture," DeWine said in a statement. "This plan will bring about a system-wide commitment to reduce su***des and encourage communities to work collectively to foster understanding and destigmatize mental health challenges."

https://bit.ly/3SJffPE

02/01/2024

Much of the discussion around the release of the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group 's highly anticipated report Wednesday centered on what was not in the panel's recommendations.

The group declined to suggest that state policymakers mandate seat belts for passengers on school buses amid an ongoing debate over the issue in the K-12 transportation field.

Director Andy Wilson of the Department of Public Safety, who led the group, said seatbelts "were at the center of many discussions" among members.

01/30/2024

A state panel has given its OK to tax breaks for 15 development projects expected to help spur $2.6 billion in investment across the state.

The Tax Credit Authority approved a total of $100M in tax credits against development costs for projects taking part in the Transformational Mixed-Use Development Program. (Project List)

The third round of the incentive program will aid the construction or redevelopment of more than 13.3 million square feet of housing, retail, dining, office, lodging and entertainment space statewide, according to the Department of Development. The supported projects are expected to create more than $401 million in new payroll.

01/29/2024

Officials may have backed off a controversial broadband-related budget provision, but stakeholders are still working to influence how the state vets the cost of deployment.

Comments submitted by dozens of interest groups, obtained by a public records request, illustrate continued dialogue in recent months over the state's future outlay of an infusion of federal funding through the Broadband Equity, Access and Deployment Program.

The program aims for universal broadband coverage for Ohio and other states, with the former expected to land $800 million for awards through its Residential Broadband Expansion Program.

01/19/2024

The governor on Wednesday said he was powerless to address the rising issue of intoxicating h**p sales and instead urged lawmakers to regulate the product through statute.

Lawmakers, meanwhile, appear to be amenable to his request.

Gov. Mike DeWine made his pitch at a news conference regarding the substance that's also known as Delta 8 "It's harmful to kids and we know it's readily available. Local police can't do anything without action by the state legislature," he said.

"My lawyers say there's nothing I can do administratively," he added. "If I could have, I would have."

https://bit.ly/3vEewG9

01/16/2024

Cleveland City officials and other Northeast Ohio advocates asked state lawmakers this week for both new programs and more latitude and funding for existing ones to stabilize the housing market.

Doing so would have far-reaching effects, including on health and education, they said.

"To revitalize our communities, we need tools to attract investment, and we need different tools to support existing residents," Cleveland Council President Blaine Griffin told the Senate Select Committee on Housing .

Added Emily Collins, on behalf of Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb, "We need the state's help" in developing approaches to the issues.

01/03/2024

Opposition from the Ohio Telecom Association and other industry stakeholders proved insufficient to keep federal regulators from recently expanding data breach notification requirements.

The recent 3-2 vote by the Federal Communications Commission broadens notification requirements for data breaches and tees up the next phase in an ongoing policy showdown between the agency and Republican policymakers in Congress.

Those supportive of the changes framed it as a much-needed update to outdated rulemaking as telecommunications companies remain vulnerable to cyberattacks in a changing technological landscape.

12/29/2023

Ending weeks of speculation over his position regarding the controversial issues, Gov. Mike DeWine on Friday struck down legislation that would have banned minors from receiving gender-affirming care and transgender girls from playing on women's sports teams.

His decision followed extensive research and meetings with advocates on both sides of the issue, he said at a Columbus news conference. He was swayed after hearing from parents and people who transitioned that they would not be alive without the gender-affirming care, saying he viewed his decision as "protecting life."

More details on this development and Gongwer's 2023 year in review in today's Ohio Report.

12/27/2023

The Senate Select Committee on Housing's fact-finding mission is drawing to a close, with legislative action slated for April, according to its chair.

The committee, led by Sen. Michele Reynolds (R-Canal Wi******er), has been meeting since late August to learn what additional steps the state needs to take to encourage home ownership – a major point of discussion during budget (HB 33) proceedings.

The committee held several meetings in Columbus before beginning a statewide tour to both rural and urban communities, most recently in Lima.

Reynolds said that while the housing issue is complex and varied throughout the state, a few themes have emerged.

Key among them: a lack of supply.

https://bit.ly/3NGIBuY

12/22/2023

GOP voters in southern Ohio's expansive 2nd Congressional District will have no shortage of candidates to choose as their pick to succeed U.S. Rep. Brad Wenstrup.

The Cincinnati Republican's November retirement announcement led to a rush of hopefuls filing for a shot to replace the six-term lawmaker in the halls of Congress.

By Wednesday evening's deadline, a dozen had submitted petitions to run for the GOP nomination in the largest congressional primary field in the state.

https://bit.ly/3TvHVML

12/21/2023

Gov. Mike DeWine on Wednesday announced a milestone in a program he created to ease the pardon process for deserving Ohioans.

The number currently stands at 108, DeWine announced during an event at the Moritz College of Law on the campus of Ohio State University, one of several universities partnering on the project.

"They have turned their lives around, are working hard, giving back to the community and abiding by the law," he said.

12/15/2023

The results are in! We asked Ohio lawmakers if employer contribution rates should be raised for members of Ohio Police and Fire Pension Fund, Public Employees Retirement System, and School Employees Retirement System. https://bit.ly/41mSELe

12/12/2023

As legislative leaders continue negotiating the future of recreational ma*****na, other pressing policy questions are already emerging in the post-Issue 2 landscape.

Now Rep. Sean Brennan (D-Parma) said he is fashioning language that would dip into the General Revenue Fund to shoulder the brunt of the cost for agencies to purchase new dogs used to identify illegal narcotics.

"The dog can't bark once for ma*****na, twice for co***ne, three times for he**in," Brennan said in an interview. "So, yeah, it's a real problem."

https://bit.ly/3ThMIB9

12/08/2023

Less than 12 hours after the legalized use of recreational ma*****na took effect, members of a House panel fielded calls to change the program approved by voters last month.

The plan (HB 354) has been described by sponsoring Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord) as more respectful of the will of voters than a Senate proposal (HB 86) that cleared the chamber a day prior.

Nonetheless, members of the House Finance Committee were called upon to make a myriad of alterations to the bill – ranging from workplace protections to support for poison control programs – with some of the testimony echoing that delivered before a Senate committee earlier in the week.

https://bit.ly/3uHSy4A

12/07/2023

The Senate acted to put its stamp on the state's coming recreational ma*****na industry Wednesday.

But the House declined to respond in kind ahead of the Thursday effective date of the citizen-initiated statute known as Issue 2, despite Gov. Mike DeWine's urging.

The upper chamber voted 28-2, with Sen. Niraj Antani (R-Miamisburg) and Sen. Catherine Ingram (D-Cincinnati opposed, to approve its plan (HB 86) for adult-use ma*****na after the legislation received unanimous approval from the Senate General Government Committee earlier in the day.

https://bit.ly/3RbKhxB

12/06/2023

Department of Youth Services Director Amy Ast blamed crippling staffing shortages for the degree of gang violence at youth correctional facilities.

Ast's delivered that assessment to the Correctional Institution Inspection Committee in response to a Gannett investigation that tallied youth violence at the department's facilities and those across the state.

"Quite literally, my staff is doing more with less," Ast said. "What I know for sure is if we were fully staffed, we would increase safety for staff. We'd increase safety for youth…. Violence would go down in our facilities just by getting back to some normal staffing ratios."

12/04/2023

A panel convened to issue school transportation safety recommendations will not complete its work by year's end as initially anticipated.

Department of Public Safety Director Andy Wilson, who has served as the Ohio School Bus Safety Working Group 's chair since its inception, told fellow members Friday that the new targeted deadline for the panel's report is the second or third week of January.

Wilson said the decision to delay the release of the document was made because the current estimated completion date coincides with a time of year when many – especially school administrators and transportation workers –will already be on winter break.

"We don't want it to get lost in the Christmas, New Year, holiday shuffle," he said.

https://bit.ly/3T4YGy9