COLUMBUS — The state representative for Putnam County was recently honored by the Ohio Farm Bureau.
Ohio House of Representatives
Rep. Robert McColley, R-Napoleon: On Thursday, McColley was honored with the 2016 Friend of Agriculture Award by the Ohio Farm Bureau Federation. The bureau said McColley’s continued support for the agriculture industry and his work on such issues as the CAUV property tax valuation and nutrient management plans.
“Agriculture plays an integral role in our economy,” McColley said. “In northwest Ohio, many of our communities are unified through agriculture. Agriculture promotes commerce and growth for our region. I am proud to accept the 2016 Friend of Agriculture award for these reasons.”
U.S. House of Representatives
Rep. Robert Latta, R-Bowling Green: Latta will be holding one-on-one meetings with constituents from 9 to 11 a.m. Tuesday at the Putnam County Courthouse assembly room in Ottawa.
These meeting times allow residents to not only meet one-on-one with the congressman to discuss issues important to them, but it also gives them the chance to work with Latta’s staff members for assistance with casework or other federal government issues.
No reservation is required, but it is suggested that residents call Latta’s office at 800-541-6446 in advance if they have any questions.
U.S. Senate
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio: Portman took this week to celebrate the signing of the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act into law. Portman announced that more than 230 anti-drug groups praised the new law because it expands “evidence-based education, treatment and recovery programs that have been proven to work,” he said.
It will address “every aspect of this crisis, from prevention to treatment to long-term recovery,” Portman said in a video he released Tuesday.
In the weekly Republican address, he further outlined what CARA is designed to do to fight the opioid addiction epidemic.
“CARA will increase our investment in federal opioid programs by $181 million a year,” he said. “CARA improves prevention by expanding educational efforts, including a new national awareness campaign about the link between prescription painkillers and heroin, fentanyl, and other drugs. It expands treatment, including giving prescribing authority to nurse practitioners and physician assistants for medication-assisted treatment. It expands drug courts. It increases the availability and training for a miracle drug called naloxone, or Narcan, that can actually reverse a drug overdose instantly. And CARA is the first federal law to support long-term recovery.”
