Dick Stein kicks off his third term in the House

COLUMBUS — With four years under his belt, Dick Stein feels right at home in Columbus.

"I don't know if I am a veteran in politics but I am a veteran in the Ohio House," Stein said Monday morning prior to being officially sworn in for his third term as state representative in the 57th district.

Stein had an unofficial swearing-in ceremony Sunday in Columbus.

Stein owned a photography business in Norwalk before jumping into politics. He said he had his eyes opened that first term but now he knows how the system works.

He said he enjoys what he does.

"I know now how things work or don't work," the 66-year-old Republican said. "I know who we need to communicate with (to get a bill passed)."

One of Stein's bills is set to be signed Wednesday by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine concerning the retirement ceremonies for Ohio state flags.

"At a time when our country is so divided and we need to respect our flag," this is good timing, he said

The bill will culminate a four-year process, started by an Eagle Scout project by Brandon Tolle of the Avon area.

"Four years ago I was asked to consider a bill on retiring the Ohio flag," Stein said. "I thought it was simple ... in the first year passed off the house floor. It went to Senate then died."

House Bill 32 was finally passed just passed a couple of weeks ago, Stein said.

"I am happy for him (Tolle) and the process," he added. "It does illustrate how hard it is to get a bill passed."

Stein said a concern now is helping heal a divided country and fixing the election process.

"Obviously, depending on who you speak with, there are people happy to see someone besides President Trump," Stein said. "Policy-wise I think he did a lot of good things. He was divisive and turned a lot of people off."

About the election, Stein said, "We have to find some way to validate the election process to make sure we do have a fair election. A lot of people do not feel we have a fair election.

"That is something important to me in two years, in four years. We have enough voter apathy as it is and we do not help things with this. ... We do not know if your vote was properly cast or not.

"I think our (Ohio) elections laws are in place. There needs to be some type of ability to have an audit trail. I was on the election board for three of four months before I had to resign when I ran for election. As I saw it in Huron County it was a very audited trail.

"But what about ballots in the mail? There should be a chain of custody. Certified, bar-coded mail. There should be some system out there to make sure the transaction with the ballot to the voter and back again does exist. The chain of custody needs to be improved. We will have discussions on that this year."

How has the pandemic affected things in Ohio?

"Survived with the infusion of federal PPE money," he said. "What that means for 2021 will be one of our primary concerns. In the longterm what do, we do moving forward."

Stein is the only Huron County resident in Columbus representing this area among the 99 members of the house and 33 in the Senate.

"There is something to be said for proximity," he said. "Do I go to Lorain County? Yes. I am over there a couple times a month but it is not the same daily as living in a district.

"One of my concerns in four years is who will pick up the torch for Huron County. We are talking about it. Is anybody out there willing to take on this role? God-willing I will get through this and hopefully a fourth term and then it will be up to somebody else to pick up the torch."

Stein's district covers all of Huron County and parts of Lorain County.

"We make hard decisions that make an impact on peoples' lives and I take that seriously," he said. "I have learned a lot more about government ... there are a lot of good people on both sides of the aisle who want to be the true solution to the problem.

"By and large, most of the people want to do the right thing for the citizens of Ohio. I have co-sponsored bills with people on the other side ... the vast majority of legislation has bipartisan support. Does everybody agree? No. We have bipartisan support on most issues.

"I do find while politics is divisive ... I do feel like do the right thing."

Aside from politics, Stein has gone through another big change in his life during the past four years.

"This is a real demanding job mentally and physically," he said. "I felt I would be in a better place to be a little healthier."

Stein lost 60 pounds in the first two years and 75 more pounds in the last two years through a combination of Keto and fasting.

"I feel good and at this point, I am 66 years old and if I want to be healthy in my retirement years ... the proof is in the pudding," he said. "I feel better mentally and physically in all ways."