Ohio lawmakers put the pedal to the metal in Columbus this week, passing dozens of bills on a variety of issues, chief among them, property tax relief.
Four bills addressing rising property taxes are on the way to the governor. Proponents say collectively the bills will save taxpayers $2 billion in the coming years.
We will begin Friday’s “Sound of Ideas Reporters Roundtable” with the flurry of activity in Columbus.
A six-member committee worked overnight Wednesday into Thursday morning on a bill that places restrictions on intoxicating hemp products -- eventually banning them -- and tweaked the existing recreational marijuana statute. The work on the bill, however, still needs a final vote in the Senate because that chamber adjourned long before work on the bill was complete.
Another priority for Republicans in the marathon legislative session this week: Further tightening Ohio's election rules and voter registration. Senate Bill 293, which has received approval in both chambers, now goes on to Gov. DeWine, who has said previously that he doesn't see the need to sign off on more voting restrictions for Ohio voters.
State regulators have ordered FirstEnergy to pay a quarter of a billion dollars -- most of it to its customers -- as penalty for its actions in the bribery scheme to pass the nuclear bailout bill also known as House Bill 6. The multi-million dollar bribery scheme resulting in the passage of the wide-ranging energy bill, which directed ratepayer money to aging nuclear plants and gutted renewable energy standards. Former Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder and former Republican state party chair Matt Borges were convicted and imprisoned for their roles.
As the Haslam Sports Group moves forward with its plan to build a new covered stadium in Brook Park, Cleveland officials have set a deadline for the team to leave the current Downtown stadium. The Browns lease expires after the 2028 season but includes two one-year renewal options.
Guests:
-Glenn Forbes, Supervising Producer for Newscasts, Ideatream Public Media
-Zaria Johnson, Environmental Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Karen Kasler, Statehouse News Bureau Chief, Ohio Public Radio/TV
