Democratic News

State Rep. Jack Cera (D-Bellaire) and state Sen. Vernon Sykes (D-Akron), the two Democratic designees on the Ohio legislature’s redistricting working group, issued the following statement in response to today’s Republican congressional gerrymandering presentation to House and Senate committees:

“We are committed to achieving real reform and want to make sure that our state’s congressional districts are fair and truly representative of Ohioans. We want any congressional redistricting plan to end partisan gerrymandering.

“Unfortunately, the plan that Senator Huffman and Representative Schuring presented today doesn’t achieve that. In fact, in some ways, it is worse than our current system, as it eliminates the governor’s veto power and removes the citizen referendum from the legislative process.

“Any plan that does not include strict criteria to prevent gerrymandering or does not ensure bipartisanship weakens representation in Ohio.

“We are willing to continue discussions in good faith and hope a bipartisan plan that puts an end to gerrymandering is still possible.”

State Reps. Dan Ramos (D-Lorain) and John Boccieri (D-Poland) today renewed their call for their legislation to mandate the use of domestic steel in schools amid state reports showing that ten percent of school drinking water fixtures had elevated levels of lead last year. The state testing of school water fountains was included in legislation that passed in the wake of the lead contamination crisis in Sebring last year. Boccieri and Ramos introduced House Bill 57 soon after the crisis to require that all schools receiving public funding use American steel in school construction and renovations.

“This problem is even more widespread that we could have imagined. Our children are being put in harm’s way by importing cheaply made foreign goods, containing dangerous chemicals.  We have to do something right away to protect our kids,” said Ramos.

State reports showed that over 1,400 out of 14,000 Ohio school drinking water fixtures contained lead levels above the federal limit. School districts recently completed their voluntary testing with funding from the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC). So far, the OFCC has released $500,000 for testing and drinking fountain or faucet replacement. Approximately half of the fixtures found to be contaminated have been replaced, while the rest have been shut off or are otherwise unused.

“Any number of contaminated fixtures in our schools presenting health risks to young students means we still have a problem,” said Boccieri. “We need to do more to eliminate lead contamination and protect the safety of our kids. Requiring the use of safe, American steel in our school infrastructure is one way to start getting there.”

China’s illegal over-subsidizing of their steel industry has given it a competitive advantage in markets, but has also resulted in a

Ohio House Democratic Leader Fred Strahorn (D-Dayton) and Democratic Assistant Whip Brigid Kelly (D-Cincinnati) issued the following joint statement today in response to six proposed anti-worker state constitutional amendments:

“Taxpayers expect us to work together to increase opportunity and create jobs with wages and benefits that can sustain a family. These anti-worker, anti-family restrictions will do the exact opposite. Dangerous, divisive bills like these will only push our economy further out of balance and make people more poor and less safe on the job.”

The restrictions, introduced by state Rep. John Becker (R- Union Township), range from Right-to-Work-is-Wrong for public and private sector workers to outlawing project labor agreements, or terms and conditions of construction projects that encourage careers in the skilled trades and ensure projects are completed on time and under budget.

Over 2 million Ohio taxpayers overwhelmingly rejected similar attacks on working people in 2011, handing the Republican legislature a 62 to 38-percent defeat at the ballot box with a citizen-led repeal of Senate Bill 5.

State Rep. Emilia Sykes (D-Akron) today announced the release of $190,790 in state funding for Department of Developmental Disabilities (DODD) community housing purchases and renovations in Summit County.

“Families in Summit County depend on services like community homes to ensure loved ones are able to live safely, with some level of independence,” said Sykes. “By helping purchase and improve community residences we are able to offer people with developmental disabilities access to a safe and affordable home.”

The DODD Community Capital Assistance program helps purchase and renovate homes used to provide community living space for those with disabilities. Summit County offers a variety community housing including in-home support, shared living, adult family living and foster care living.

State Rep. Jack Cera (D-Bellaire) today responded to the state inspector general’s latest report from an ongoing investigation into corrupt activity at the Department of Administrative Services (DAS).

“Today’s report confirms what many have known for quite some time: powerful public officials at the highest levels of state government have misused the system and taxpayer dollars to benefit political insiders and friends. This is just the latest report of wrongdoing in what is quickly becoming a pattern of corrupt activity,” said Cera. “Ultimately, reviewing this activity and making recommendations on changing the process is not enough. Nobody is above the law. The scope of the investigation should reflect this and hold individuals accountable.”

Cera, a State Controlling Board member tasked with oversight of state spending, sought additional information from Inspector General Meyer in June of this year, after news reports showed DAS was steering hundreds of millions of dollars in no-bid, taxpayer-funded state contracts to a few select IT firms for consulting services.

Cera, also the lead Democrat on the House’s state budget committee, supported an amendment to the state budget to force additional oversight on hundreds of millions of dollars in no-bid handouts at DAS. The amendment passed both the House and Senate before Gov. John Kasich vetoed the added taxpayer safeguard in the final budget version.

State lawmakers moved to pass a last-minute cash infusion for counties and local transit authorities today, on the heels of a new state auditor report showing worsening financial stability for local communities across the state.

State Rep. Emilia Sykes (D-Akron) today called on Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine to respect the 8^th District of Ohio Court of Appeals’ recent decision declaring a 2016 state law outlawing local hiring standards, House Bill 180, unconstitutional.*

“Local hiring standards represent a commitment by cities to combat underemployment and reinvest in local communities. Workers benefit from public construction projects that often include jobs with apprenticeships – clear career paths and quality on-the-job training that pay dividends beyond the duration of a single project,” Sykes wrote in a letter to DeWine.

The City of Cleveland sued the state in 2016 after the Republican-passed bill directly conflicted with the city’s Fannie Lewis law, a local ordinance requiring public construction be completed with at least 20 percent local labor. Akron similarly uses local hiring standards on more than $1 billion in public works projects.

“Ohioans deserve a fair shot at good-paying local jobs because they have a stake in rebuilding the communities where they live and raise their families,” Sykes continued. “By putting money back in the hands of Ohio workers, local hiring ordinances like Cleveland’s Fannie Lewis Law are strengthening local businesses and giving workers the opportunity to get ahead. Without local hiring ordinances, investments would be more likely to flow to out of state companies and workers with no stake in the health and success of our regional economies.”

Sykes said she plans to introduce legislation in the new year that will strengthen Ohio communities’ ability to make decisions about local hiring standards.

House Democratic Leader Fred Strahorn (D-Dayton) today announced changes to the caucus’ leadership team, following Democratic Whip Rep. Nickie J. Antonio’s (D-Lakewood) recently announced campaign for the Ohio Senate. Internal caucus rules require members seeking elected office outside the Ohio House to forgo any official leadership post or duties.

 “I feel confident that our work as a caucus and leadership team during the last three years has better positioned us to influence the discussion at the Statehouse,” said Rep. Antonio. “I have been honored to be a part of that, and I look forward to continuing to serve my constituents and the caucus in every way possible.”

House Democrats nominated and elected state Rep. Emilia Strong Sykes (D-Akron) to replace Antonio as Democratic whip. Sykes had been serving on leadership as assistant whip for the past year.

“As we head into the New Year, I am eager to continue our work of standing up for a strong middle class and pushing pro-family policies that let people plan for their future,” said Rep. Sykes.

State Rep. Brigid Kelly (D-Cincinnati) was elected as assistant whip to round out the four-person House Democratic leadership team.

“I am honored to play a bigger role in advancing our caucus’ pro-job and pro-worker priorities into 2018 and beyond,” said Kelly. “It’s a great feeling to be a part of a caucus and team who puts working families first.”

Kelly, a freshman lawmaker from the Cincinnati area, brings experience as a local elected official and representative for members of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) to the caucus’ leadership team.

“After years of slow growth, drug addiction and limited opportunity, it is important to the people we represent that we head into 2018 with an intense focus and drive to get our state back on track,” said

State Representatives Teresa Fedor (D-Toledo) and Bernadine Kennedy Kent (D-Columbus) recently filed the Ohio Health Security Act, House Bill 440, which will establish a single-payer health care plan in Ohio. Medical, dental, mental health, and vision services will be covered under the act and payments to healthcare providers for all eligible services will be made from a single fund, the Ohio Health Care Fund.

“We need to be guided by the facts,” according to Fedor, “Sixty-two percent of bankruptcies in the US are linked to healthcare costs and seventy-eight percent of those families had health insurance.”

Under the plan, every Ohioan may receive full health care coverage, regardless of income or employment status, and may freely choose their own health care providers for services such as outpatient services to prescription drugs, medical supplies and medical transportation without costly co-payments or deductibles. There will also be no exclusions for pre-existing conditions.

According to Kennedy Kent, the two representatives are “putting together a concrete plan to make care affordable and flexible to work for you and your family.” The new plan will offer flexibility and affordability.

“Taxpayers deserve a plan that gives them a real choice and the freedom to pick a plan that works for them,” said Kennedy Kent.

The new health care plan will be administered by the Ohio Health Care Agency, which will operate under the direction of the Ohio Health Care Board. The board will consist of two elected representatives from seven regions across the state and the director of the Ohio Health Care Agency. The board will:

-          Negotiate or set prices for health care services provided.

-          Establish standards to demonstrate proof of residency.

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The Ohio Ethics Commission today confirmed in a letter* to state Reps. John Boccieri (D-Poland) and Michele Lepore-Hagan (D-Youngstown) that Youngstown City Schools CEO Kris Mohip is bound by state ethics laws and must file an annual financial disclosure statement with the commission. The letter comes in response to the lawmakers’ inquiry as to whether Mohip must follow ethics laws after news reports found he steered business to a partner company of his former employer. Mohip ended his status as a paid consultant with the partner company the same day the Vindicator confronted him about the seemingly cozy relationship.

Correspondence with state officials revealed that the Youngstown CEO has 'Carte Blanche' authority to manage the district, however the lawmakers say running government like a business becomes complicated with respect to appropriate checks-and-balances.

“I am thankful the Ohio Ethics Commission answered our questions and provided clarity that – even with the privatization of our public schools – a school district CEO still must be fiscally, legally and ethically accountable to the school district and taxpayers,” said Boccieri.

The ethics commission declined to provide an advisory opinion on whether or not Mohip hypothetically broke the law, instead noting an official complaint needs to be made to determine whether to open a confidential investigation. Under Ohio law, anyone may confidentially bring a complaint before the Ohio Ethics Commission for review.

“Our community deserves a system that puts the needs and best interests of our children over the business interests of one person,” said Lepore-Hagan. “Ultimately, we want to ensure that the structure we have in place isn’t fatally flawed, putting our kids at an even greater disadvantage.”

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