State Rep. Dan Ramos (D-Lorain) today responded to a new report that shows Hurricane Maria is responsible for the deaths of 2,975 American citizens in Puerto Rico, becoming one of the deadliest natural disasters in modern U.S. history.

“It is an absolute travesty that Maria’s actual death count is now 46 times higher than originally reported,” said Ramos. “As an American, and as a Puerto Rican descendant, I am heartbroken by our federal government’s inaction and overall mismanagement following last September’s historic hurricane. Unless we take action to provide emergency relief, this unprecedented devastation to the island will be remembered as one of the most deadly natural disaster for American citizens.”

State Rep. Dan Ramos (D-Lorain) today applauded the passage of Senate Bill (SB) 135, which would invest more than $100 million in state funds for Ohio counties to purchase new, modern voting equipment. SB 135 also appropriates $10 million to reimburse counties who purchased new voting systems on or after January 1, 2014. Voting systems, including voting machines, marking devices, automatic tabulating equipment, direct recording electronic voting machines and associated allowable expenditures, would be covered under the bill.

After nearly two months of a Republican-led legislative impasse, the Ohio House is expected to resume legislative activity following today’s narrow, marathon election of new House Speaker Ryan Smith (R-Bidwell). Chaos and dysfunction have plagued the legislature since the abrupt resignation of former Speaker Cliff Rosenberger (R-Clarksville), after he announced he was under FBI inquiry in April. Federal agents have since raided Rosenberger’s home, his state office and storage shed, as rumors of pay-to-play tactics on payday lending reform legislation continue to churn.

State Rep. Dan Ramos (D-Lorain) today released the following statement following the Ohio House majority’s decision to cancel House session for the fourth time in a row, postponing the contentious election of the House Speaker and effectively tabling progress for any legislation indefinitely: