Ohioans Deserve More Than Political Timing

Ohio families have been asking for relief from rising childcare costs, property taxes, utility bills, healthcare costs, and school funding pressures for years, and those concerns have continued to grow in recent months. For each of these issues, Ohio Democrats have proposed solutions to lower childcare costs through a child tax credit, provide meaningful property tax relief by expanding the Homestead Exemption and creating a property tax circuit breaker, hold data centers accountable for their impact on utility bills, expand access to affordable healthcare, and pursue fair school funding, yet there has been no urgency across the aisle.

Less than two weeks after the Ohio Senate President canceled two sessions scheduled for the middle of September, we were suddenly rushed back to the Statehouse for a proposal to suspend the gas tax pushed by the Republican gubernatorial candidate, with the sitting Ohio Senate President and Speaker of the House standing beside him. If affordability wasn’t urgent a couple of weeks ago, why is it urgent now?

Perhaps polling and electoral desperation are the explanation.

The Senate President, who is currently campaigning to be our state’s next Lieutenant Governor, controls what comes before our chamber. The legislative process should serve Ohioans, not political ambitions or campaign schedules. When previously scheduled sessions ahead of the November election are canceled, only to be rescheduled when action becomes politically urgent, it calls into question the integrity of those making these decisions. 

The same question applies to the proposal to potentially use $726 million from the state’s general revenue fund to offset revenue losses from a suspended gas tax, a proposal that economists say would save Ohioans $80 at most over the three months it would be in effect. Why are state resources being considered for this purpose when Republican lawmakers have continuously blocked proposals to provide Ohioans with relief in much more substantial and permanent ways? When the Republican-led legislature can allocate $600 million in Ohioans’ unclaimed funds for a billionaire family's stadium but not for affordability concerns, what does this say about the state’s priorities? 

Perhaps the people who benefit is what makes the difference.

Ohioans deserve to know that the decisions made at the Statehouse are driven by their needs, rather than the political agenda of those in leadership. That is why, in the next General Assembly, I intend to introduce legislation requiring the President of the Senate or Speaker of the House to step down from their leadership position when they become candidates for statewide or other political office. 

This is about protecting the integrity of the legislative process. Leadership carries immense power over legislative priorities, and that power should serve the people and the needs of Ohioans, not political aspirations. This General Assembly has had multiple opportunities to deliver meaningful relief and address the affordability challenges facing the public, all of which were ignored until it became politically expedient for the leader of our chamber. Ohioans deserve a legislature that works on their timeline, responds when people need help, and treats these challenges with the urgency they deserve, regardless of how it might improve the poll numbers of any one of its members.

Affordability should be a priority, not a platform. Ohioans deserve meaningful financial relief with or without an election around the corner.