Democratic News

Ohio House Assistant Democratic Whip Brigid Kelly (D-Cincinnati) today responded to former Republican House Speaker cliff Rosenberger’s expedited resignation from the Ohio House amid an FBI investigation into events in which he may have been involved. Rosenberger initially announced he would resign May 1, but late Thursday announced he was resigning immediately.

Kelly says the about face amid outside political-party pressure raises new questions about the legislature’s work and the breadth and depth of the federal investigation. Kelly issued the following statement:

“It is no secret that the people’s work in the state legislature has become overshadowed by suspicions of corruption and violations of the public trust since former Speaker Rosenberger announced he could be part of an FBI investigation. We are hopeful his expedited resignation helps us all get back to work on behalf of the taxpayers sooner, but the truth is, it also creates new questions about how the outside influence of political party pressure during an election year may be dictating the terms, conditions and deadlines of the people’s work in the legislature.

“The former speaker was right – allegations of public corruption and breach of the public’s trust is bigger than one person. That is why, even though one person has resigned, we are concerned that the impact and scope of this investigation remains unclear.” 

State Reps. John Boccieri (D-Poland) and Michele Lepore-Hagan (D-Youngstown) today expressed concern about House Bill (HB) 591, a Republican-led effort to once again overhaul the state’s school report card system. The bill would leave current triggers in place for schools that are under or near academic distress—a move the lawmakers say unfairly targets districts in academic distress like Youngstown, Lorain and at least 22 other districts across the state.

Assistant House Democratic Leader Nick Celebrezze (D-Parma) today issued the following statement in response to House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger’s (R-Clarksville) Tuesday announcement that he will resign effective May 1:

“This is a deeply troubling situation that restricts the ability of this institution to focus on issues and laws that improve people’s lives. While I personally like Cliff Rosenberger, the citizens of Ohio deserve to know the truth behind these allegations as the public trust of the taxpayers should be of utmost importance.”

“The one-party rule that has dominated our state for decades has led to unchecked power that has damaged not only this institution, but our state. Ohioans deserve better and that is why I agree that Cliff should step down immediately.”

“When public officials appear to act in their own interest instead of public interest, it shakes the entire confidence of the taxpayers. It is my sincerest hope that the nature of these allegations is made public soon, so that the House can refocus on the job at hand and move our state forward.”

COLUMBUS- Representative John Patrick Carney (D-Columbus) released the following statement after learning of the introduction of House Bill 200, which would restrict a woman’s healthcare choices, force doctors to share factually incorrect information, and redefine “medical emergency” possibly putting women’s lives at risk. 

Ohio House Democratic Caucus Whip and state Rep. Brigid Kelly (D-Cincinnati) today issued the following statement announcing she will leave her leadership post with the caucus at the end of Jan:

“I’m proud of the progress the House Democratic Caucus has made during my time in leadership, welcoming an historic number of women and minority lawmakers and adding nearly a half-dozen new seats to our ranks—efforts nearly a decade in the making.

“I look forward to working with the new leadership team and my colleagues to continue to find commonsense ways to come together and give working people the tools they need for a better life.”

Ohio House Democratic Leader Tracy Maxwell Heard (D-Columbus) released the following statement upon House passage of Sub. HB 108, which would create a funding mechanism for Rape Crisis Programs administered by the Attorney General and funded through registration fees of sex offenders, new fines for sexually oriented offenses and donations.

“I applaud the creation of a state funding mechanism for the 27 Rape Crisis Centers in Ohio.  These centers provide critical care and assistance to rape survivors.  Rape is a heinous crime that happens all too often, and can have life altering effects on the victims and their families.  This fund is a step in the right direction but we must do more to prevent rape – not just deal with the aftermath.”

State Rep. Connie Pillich (D-Montgomery) today urged lawmakers to approve her legislation, House Bill 166, which would connect Ohio veterans to the Department of Veterans Services through income tax returns.

“This bill will provide a much needed linkage of services to the men and women who have served our state and nation so dutifully,” said Rep. Pillich.  “Too often a gap exists between our veterans and our Department of Veterans Services. By promoting the identification of veterans through income tax returns, the Department of Taxation and the Department of Veterans Services can work together to ensure our service members are connected to resources.”

Representative John Patrick Carney (D-Columbus) sent a letter to State Auditor Dave Yost today calling on him to perform a full public audit of JobsOhio before Senate Bill 67 takes effect in 85 days.  SB 67 was rushed through the legislature and signed by the governor in less than a week, in an effort to prohibit Auditor Yost from fulfilling his constitutional responsibility to Ohio’s taxpayers and ensuring accountability and transparency of their tax dollars.

A copy of the letter can be seen below:

State Senator Nina Turner (D-Cleveland) and State Representative Kathleen Clyde (D-Kent) released a report documenting thousands of instances of voter suppression – discouraging people from voting, denying voters their ballots, and throwing out votes – that took place during the 2012 general election.  Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted in January instructed county election officials to investigate voter suppression and voter fraud and report it to him.  The Secretary recently released a report of his findings stating that no voter suppression took place.  

Ohio House Democratic Leader Tracy Maxwell Heard (D-Columbus) joined with protestors to speak out against House Bill 151 and House Joint Resolution 5, both of which work to remove workers’ rights to collectively bargain.

Ohio House and Senate Democrats held a press conference today to lay out all of the attacks on voting rights by the Ohio GOP so far in this General Assembly and the impact that GOP voter suppression tactics are having on real voters in the House District 98 Election Contest. 

After withdrawing from the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission in this year’s transportation budget, the Kasich administration has again underlined their unwavering opposition to non-auto transportation by not settling an account in arrears with the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission.

Tuesday, the Ohio House Democratic Women’s Caucus hosted a Women’s Lobby Day to discuss issues of concern to women and working families across our state. The event featured legislative briefings, an expert “How to Lobby” training from former Rep. Nancy Garland, and keynote speaker, Kathy Groob, a former elected official and author of Pink Politics. This thirdWomen’s Lobby Day brought together over 60 women from all across Ohio to get involved with their state government and to meet their representatives.

State Rep. Matt Lundy (D- Elyria) sent a letter to Gov. Kasich today and President and CEO of JobsOhio John Minor calling on them to voluntarily release the list of the five anonymous donors that provided $6.9 million used to run JobsOhio in its first year. The anonymous donations raise serious concerns about ethics at the organization and the potential for misusing funds. It is also important for Ohioans to know whether those who made the donations received any loan or grant from JobsOhio.