Ohio Senate votes to repeal election overhaul bill
JULIE CARR SMYTH Associated Press Published: March 28, 2012 6:46PM
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- A bill repealing sweeping changes to Ohio's 2011 elections law cleared the state Senate on Wednesday after a debate so fierce one Democrat urged stopping because lawmakers were "about to draw blood."With election-year politics flaring, Republicans and Democrats accused each other of playing political games with the battleground state's voting rules at the expense of Ohio voters and the democratic process.
The original bill retooling the state's election laws passed last summer. It's been on hold since September, when opponents gathered enough signatures to qualify a repeal question for November's ballot.
http://www.the-press-news.com/ap%20state/2012/03/28/ohio-senate-votes-to-repeal-election-overhaul-bill-1332974514
Lawmakers honor Chardon ‘heroes’
47 praised for last month’s response to fatal shootings at high school
Just a month after a high-school shooting in Chardon left three dead and two seriously wounded, Gov. John Kasich and the General Assembly honored law-enforcement, firefighters, school officials and other first responders for their efforts.
Kasich spokesman Rob Nichols said the governor wanted the 47 men and women, whom Kasich called “ real heroes” in a tweet yesterday, to share their experiences with his cabinet.
After the emotional meeting, Nichols said, the group had lunch with the governor, before receiving commendations from the Ohio House and Senate.
Senate repeals election law despite ballot issue
By Jim Siegel
After a heated debate, the Ohio Senate yesterday voted to repeal House Bill 194, the election-law overhaul passed last year that Democrats and progressive groups are challenging on the November ballot.
Democrats objected to the repeal after unsuccessfully trying to amend the bill so that in-person early voting could take place on the weekend and Monday before Election Day. Democrats and some voter-rights groups have argued that voting should be allowed in the days leading up to the election because that follows the law that was in place before the passage of House Bill 194.
Ohio Senate votes on repeal of controversial election law: updated
Published: Wednesday, March 28, 2012, 1:30 PM Updated: Thursday, March 29, 2012, 1:34 AM
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- The Ohio Senate passed a bill along party lines on Wednesday to repeal a controversial election law that is up for a voter referendum this fall.
The vote followed a lively floor debate that left Democrats insulted and damaged the chances of any bipartisan compromise on future election law reform.
Democrats unanimously voted against the repeal, although they opposed the election law because of concerns about voter suppression. They said repealing the law would unconstitutionally circumvent voters’ right to referendum.
http://www.cleveland.com/open/index.ssf/2012/03/ohio_senate_to_vote_today_on_r.html
Published: 3/29/2012
Senate votes to repeal law before referendum
BY JIM PROVANCE
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF
BLADE COLUMBUS BUREAU CHIEF
COLUMBUS -- Despite constitutional questions, Senate Republicans on Wednesday forged ahead with repeal of a controversial election-reform law that Democrats had already succeeded in having certified for a November ballot referendum.
"This is the first time in Ohio history where a bill has been passed to stop a referendum,'' Senate Minority Leader Eric Kearney (D., Columbus) said. "It's a historic moment of lack of trust in the people of Ohio.''
The Senate voted 23-10 along party lines to pull House Bill 194 from the books with the promise that majority Republicans will be back to talk with Democrats in hopes of reaching a bipartisan compromise.
Policy, Politics Collide in Senate Passage of HB194 Repeal Legislation
Hannah Report 3/28/12
There was more than the usual conflict between policy and politics Wednesday in the Ohio Senate, where Democrats worked to divine the real intentions of Republicans in first passing a controversial elections bill and then seeking to repeal it, and where the majority sought to divine the real motives of Democrats in first calling for the legislative repeal of HB194 (Mecklenborg-Blessing) and then opposing it in favor of an election referendum on voter access.
Members first dispatched a series of bills with little drama, including a conference committee report on history education provisions in SB165 (Obhoff), capital spending in HB482 (Amstutz), business tax credits in HB18 (Baker), and abandoned property clean-up in SB109 (Gentile). Sen. Larry Obhof’s (R-Medina) SB165 was mildly controversial, ending in a 32-1 vote. The rest earned unanimous support, as did House amendments to reappropriations bill SB312 (Widener), emergency first responder bill SB243 (Hughes), and uniform commercial code bill SB208 (Obhof-Kearney). http://www.hannah.com/DesktopDefaultPublic.aspx?type=hns&id=188975
Members first dispatched a series of bills with little drama, including a conference committee report on history education provisions in SB165 (Obhoff), capital spending in HB482 (Amstutz), business tax credits in HB18 (Baker), and abandoned property clean-up in SB109 (Gentile). Sen. Larry Obhof’s (R-Medina) SB165 was mildly controversial, ending in a 32-1 vote. The rest earned unanimous support, as did House amendments to reappropriations bill SB312 (Widener), emergency first responder bill SB243 (Hughes), and uniform commercial code bill SB208 (Obhof-Kearney). http://www.hannah.com/DesktopDefaultPublic.aspx?type=hns&id=188975
Busy House Schedule Includes Passage of Reappropriation, Banking Bills
Hannah Report 3/28/12
A busy House passed a flurry of bills before its spring break, although break is a term that could be used loosely for the chamber as committees are expected to continue hearing testimony on the Mid-Biennium Review.
The last session wasn't without disagreement, as legislators argued over bills to require the teaching of founding documents in Ohio schools and to allow a prosecutor to challenge a defendant's request to waive a trial by jury, as well as a bill brought up under a suspension of the rules dealing with the interest rates that Ohio banks can charge.
The chamber first brought up the Conference Committee report on SB165 (Obhof), which requires Ohio schools to teach certain founding documents such as the U.S. and Ohio constitutions. Rep. Ron Gerberry (D-Canfield) took a shot a Republicans on the bill, saying many who promote less government and state regulations are championing something that would interfere with the work of the Ohio Department of Education. http://www.hannah.com/DesktopDefaultPublic.aspx?type=hns&id=188976
A busy House passed a flurry of bills before its spring break, although break is a term that could be used loosely for the chamber as committees are expected to continue hearing testimony on the Mid-Biennium Review.
The last session wasn't without disagreement, as legislators argued over bills to require the teaching of founding documents in Ohio schools and to allow a prosecutor to challenge a defendant's request to waive a trial by jury, as well as a bill brought up under a suspension of the rules dealing with the interest rates that Ohio banks can charge.
The chamber first brought up the Conference Committee report on SB165 (Obhof), which requires Ohio schools to teach certain founding documents such as the U.S. and Ohio constitutions. Rep. Ron Gerberry (D-Canfield) took a shot a Republicans on the bill, saying many who promote less government and state regulations are championing something that would interfere with the work of the Ohio Department of Education. http://www.hannah.com/DesktopDefaultPublic.aspx?type=hns&id=188976
House Republicans to Sit Four New Members after Spring Break
Hannah Report 3/28/12
The House Republican Caucus will have four vacancies by the middle of April, and a spokesman for Speaker William Batchelder (R-Medina) told Hannah News that all four will likely be filled when the chamber returns from Spring break in April.
Reps. Mary Matheney (R-Richmond Heights) and Phillip Rose (R-Hamden) both submitted their resignations effective in April during Wednesday's House session. Both were appointed as temporary replacements until after the March 6 Republican primaries for their respective seats.
The winners of those primaries will be seated during the April 18 House session, Batchelder spokesman Mike Dittoe said Wednesday.
The House Republican Caucus will have four vacancies by the middle of April, and a spokesman for Speaker William Batchelder (R-Medina) told Hannah News that all four will likely be filled when the chamber returns from Spring break in April.
Reps. Mary Matheney (R-Richmond Heights) and Phillip Rose (R-Hamden) both submitted their resignations effective in April during Wednesday's House session. Both were appointed as temporary replacements until after the March 6 Republican primaries for their respective seats.
The winners of those primaries will be seated during the April 18 House session, Batchelder spokesman Mike Dittoe said Wednesday.
Gongwer 3/28/12
Tempers flared in the Senate Wednesday as the Republican majority advanced legislation that repeals a controversial election law rewrite that would otherwise be subject to a referendum vote this fall.
The Senate approved the legislation (SB 295
Sen. William Coley (R-Middletown) said the measure gives the referendum backers exactly what they wanted - a straight repeal of HB 194 . He said the action sets the stage for lawmakers to make an attempt at enacting a bipartisan election law that enhances operations in time for the November vote.
Jury Trial, Credit Interest Rate Measures Generate Opposition But Clear House; Capital Measures Finalized
Gongwer 3/28/12
The House took action on 11 measures Wednesday in the last session scheduled until mid-April, with bills on jury trials and credit card interest rates generating the most debate.
The session also saw the chamber in conjunction with the Senate wrap up work on two capital-related measures that are now on the way to Gov. John Kasich for his signature.
Both the $1.73 billion capital bill (HB 482 ) and the $1.27 billion capital reappropriations measure (SB 312 ) had been processed quickly through committee with relatively little controversy, although several advocates made a late and unsuccessful appeal Wednesday for more money to bolster the Clean Ohio grant program. (See separate story) The House votes on both measures were unanimous.
Gongwer 3/28/12
Although they did not get their wish, dozens of witnesses pleaded with a Senate panel Wednesday to increase financing for the Clean Ohio fund through the capital appropriations bill.
The Senate Finance Committee unanimously voted to move the bill (HB 482 ) forward without implementing an increase in appropriation to the fund that supports local environmentally related projects. The full Senate later passed the bill unanimously.
While sponsoring Rep. Ron Amstutz (R-Wooster) said the capital bill traditionally moves through the legislature without amendments, the panel adopted a change related to the multi-agency radio communications system used by public safety personnel.
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