dontavius jarrells
Revived measure to require 60% for Ohio constitutional amendments gets first hearing
More than a dozen people milled around in crypt-like hallways of the Statehouse basement Wednesday morning. They’d shown up almost an hour early for the first hearing of Ohio House Joint Resolution 1, a proposal which would require 60% of the vote to pass constitutional amendments. Rep. Brian Stewart, R-Ashville, brought forward a similar proposal […]
DeWine hints at possible veto after tobacco measure picks up local preemption language
Among the flurry of legislation in the Ohio General Assembly’s marathon final session was a measure restricting local governments’ ability to regulate tobacco. The move comes days after Columbus approved an ordinance banning flavored tobacco. Gov. Mike DeWine has signaled he has reservations with the bill. The initial bill, offered by Reps. Jon Cross, R-Kenton, […]
Paying the disabled like everyone else would reduce poverty, economists say
Paying the disabled like everyone else would reduce poverty, economists say.
Two Ohio lawmakers want to prohibit paying people with disabilities less than minimum wage
Thanks to a 2006 constitutional amendment, Ohio’s minimum wage will increase from $9.30 to $10.10 next January. Two Democratic state lawmakers want to make sure all of the state’s minimum wage workers get that raise. Under current state law, employers can pay people with disabilities less than the state’s minimum wage. When lawmakers approved the […]
After forced outages AEP offers support, scant details on improvements
In Columbus Friday, Reps. Latyna Humphrey, D-Columbus and Dontavius Jarrells, D-Columbus, joined the COO of AEP and local service providers to talk about support available for residents impacted by recent power outages. But AEP President and COO Marc Reitter was vague about steps the company is taking to avoid similar outages in the future. (Correction: […]
Rewrite of Ohio laws would remove stigma against those with disabilities, advocates say
Growing up as a person who is gay and deaf, Joe Osborne-Payne knows how it feels to be stigmatized. He doesn’t want the language of state laws to stigmatize him, too. Osborne-Payne, the chief information officer for the Ohio Association of the Deaf, is among those advocating for legislators to rewrite certain sections of the […]
Here are the proposals to raise the minimum wage for Ohio workers
There are multiple efforts underway to raise the minimum wage for Ohio workers to $15 an hour. The plans differ slightly on the timeline to reach that goal, but Democrats in the Ohio Statehouse, in Congress and in the White House are simultaneously pushing for an increase they say is necessary to benefit low-income Americans. […]
Meet the freshmen lawmakers of the 134th Ohio General Assembly
Monday marked the beginning of the 134th Ohio General Assembly, the two-year legislative term that will run through the end of 2022. With each term comes a slate of new faces representing every corner of the state. Here is a quick introduction to the freshman class of the 134th Ohio General Assembly: Ohio House of […]
Dontavius Jarrells is ready for the Ohio Statehouse
Dontavius Jarrells believes every person has a defining moment in their life that makes them who they are. His own moment came in middle school. Back then, Jarrells rode along three public bus routes to get from his Hough neighborhood in East Cleveland to the Garrett Morgan School of Science across town. Jarrells dragged his […]