shane wilkin
Ohio House committee advances amendment supermajority provision and elections bill
An Ohio House committee advanced two controversial voting measures Monday without additional debate, one to raise the threshold for constitutional amendments to 60% and the other for various election administration provisions. The 7-5 Republican-to-Democratic party line votes put both proposals on track for a full House vote later this week. In previous hearings, numerous speakers […]
Opponents line up against Ohio House elections bill for photo voter ID as GOP readies a vote
House lawmakers faced stiff opposition Wednesday as hearings continued for two controversial voting measures. Proposals to impose voter ID requirements and establish a higher threshold for passing constitutional amendments still appear poised to pass, however. The same committee will hear both measures Thursday and a vote on both is likely. After more than two hours […]
Should Ohio businesses have their COVID-19 health violations expunged?
Last spring, a Tiffin bar was caught serving alcohol for on-site consumption when Ohio bars were supposed to be closed. In the fall, a Parma Heights bar was cited for serving alcohol past 10 p.m. in violation of the pandemic curfew. Two weeks later, it was cited again. On Sunday, an Athens bar was cited […]
Mailbag: How Ohio gov’t x-ray funding involved an anime controversy
We’ve reached the end of the 133rd General Assembly, which means farewell speeches at 1 a.m. and late-night trombone solos. Like Sen. John Eklund, The Ohio Capital Journal Mailbag is always in tune. Let’s get to it: Got a question about Ohio politics/government? Send them by email to [email protected] or tweet them to @tylerjoelb. This […]
Ohio Biz Fairness Act passes House to prevent future COVID-19 shutdowns
‘All businesses are essential,’ lawmaker says A bill seeking to prevent any future COVID-19 business shutdowns as part of a pandemic response took a major step Wednesday toward reaching Gov. Mike DeWine’s desk. House Bill 621, nicknamed the Business Fairness Act, passed the Ohio House of Representatives with bipartisan support and now awaits action by […]
DeWine again caught in middle of tug-of-war over COVID-19 response
Ohio has reached another crossroads in the battle against COVID-19. Gov. Mike DeWine is once again caught in the middle as the state repeatedly sets new records for virus cases and hospitalizations. After months of a decentralized approach and emphasis on personal responsibility, DeWine now says Ohio faces “a monumental crisis.” As much as the […]
Bill seeking business fairness in health shutdowns passes in committee
On a day when Ohio set more records for COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations, some Republican lawmakers turned their attention once more to reining in the state health department’s authority in trying to curb the spread of an infectious disease. For much of 2020, Ohio Republicans have introduced and approved various pieces of legislation that targets […]
Not a single HB 6 ‘yes’ vote lost their election. Some ‘no’ votes did.
The scandal surrounding House Bill 6 took out the speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives. It has dominated the newspages and airwaves for months. It was the subject of countless campaign attack ads. In the end, voters didn’t seem to care. The scandal implicating former Speaker Larry Householder and his effort to get a […]
Republicans on Ohio Controlling Board reject prepaid postage for voters
A majority of Ohio Controlling Board members are not convinced there is a need to make voting by mail more convenient by prepaying for postage this fall. They made that determination Monday at a meeting held digitally because of COVID-19 safety protocols — a Zoom conference which began just 45 minutes after news broke that […]
FirstEnergy money flowed to Ohio politicians who supported Householder-backed HB6
FirstEnergy Solutions said it needed a government bailout to continue operating. It still had hundreds of thousands of dollars available to donate to Ohio politicians. The Akron-based energy company spent years working toward what would become House Bill 6 — passed by the Republican-controlled state legislature and signed by Gov. Mike DeWine in the summer […]
Reps want level playing field with ‘Ohio Business Fairness Act’
State Reps. Shane Wilkin and Jon Cross believe there is an inherent unfairness with the COVID-19 business shutdown order, and they’ve addressed that concern through proposing a new bill. Wilkin, R-Lynchburg, and Cross, R-Kenton, introduced the Ohio Business Fairness Act on Thursday. It includes 32 cosponsors, all of whom are Republicans. Their House Bill 621 […]
GOP lawmakers proposing new bill to limit powers of Ohio health director
Two Republican state lawmakers are proposing new legislation that would strip the state’s health director position of much of its power to respond to a pandemic. The bill is being proposed by state Reps. Ron Hood of Ashville and Reggie Stoltzfus of Minerva. The two sent a cosponsor request to colleagues in the Ohio House, […]