COLUMBUS — A local legislator was honored for his work on behalf of school districts.
Ohio House of Representatives
Rep. Bob Cupp, R-Lima: Earlier this week, Cupp was awarded the 2017 Dick Maxwell Award by the Buckeye Association of School Administrators. Cupp was honored for his work on reducing the impact of lost tax dollars for school districts, funding school transportation, and highlighting the connection between education and poverty. The award was named after a superintendent in Holmes County who became known for his work in school funding and tax policy and later became the executive director of BASA.
“I am honored to receive this award,” Cupp said. “It is especially meaningful because I had the pleasure of working with Dick Maxwell, one of the legends in the field of school funding, while working to improve the school funding formula when I served in the state senate. I am encouraged to continue efforts to craft a better, fairer and more stable funding formula for the next state budget and help ensure that all schools have the resources necessary to unlock our students’ full potential.”
Ohio Senate
Sen. Cliff Hite, R-Findlay: On Tuesday, Hite announced that the U.S. Small Business Administration awarded $700,000 in grant funding to support efforts to expand overseas markets for Ohio small businesses, allowing them to promote their products and services internationally. Individual businesses can receive up to $12,500 and can apply through the Ohio Development Services Agency’s Export Assistance Office.
“We remain focused on improving Ohio’s small business climate because small businesses are the economic backbone for Ohio’s rural communities,” Hite said. “This grant will provide support to the entrepreneurs who create jobs and opportunity for Ohio families.”
On Thursday, Hite introduced legislation to create the “Keep Ohio Beautiful” license plate to help promote helping the environment through litter prevention, beautification, waste reduction and recycling.
Keep Ohio Beautiful is an affiliate of Keep America Beautiful, and proceeds from the special license plate would be used to support the organization’s efforts to connect volunteers with environmental projects in the state.
“All Ohioans have a responsibility to care for our beautiful state,” Hite said. “I am happy to help this inspiring organization carry out their mission to make Ohio a cleaner and safer place for our families.”
U.S. House of Representatives
Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Urbana: Jordan issued a statement Friday praising the implementation of new policy by the Department of Health and Human Services to allow employers to opt out of birth control requirements imposed during the Obama administration.
“Today’s decision by the Health and Human Services department is a significant, concrete victory for people of faith,” Jordan said. “The HHS mandate forced religious employers to pay for services that violated their consciences. Today’s decision protects their First Amendment rights to freely exercise their religious beliefs and conscience rights. I applaud President [Donald] Trump and his administration for boldly standing up for the Constitution and the First Amendment.”
Earlier in the week, Jordan, along with every other Ohio Republican member of the House, voted in favor of a ban on abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy. The bill passed by a 237-189 vote and will be considered by the Senate.
“I’m proud of the great work that my colleague Congressman Trent Franks, [R-Arizona,] has done to protect the unborn,” Jordan said. “I’m happy to co-sponsor his bill, which will protect babies who can feel pain in the womb.”
Rep. Bob Latta, R-Bowling Green: Latta will host a forum Wednesday in Defiance to address the increasing opioid epidemic in the state.
The forum will be held at Defiance College’s Schomburg Auditorium, with resource tables opening at 5:30 p.m. and a panel discussion beginning at 6:30 p.m.
Joining Latta will be representatives from the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and local advocates.
U.S. Senate
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio: On Wednesday, Brown introduced the Local Food and Regional Market Supply Act, which aims to help farmers sell products directly to local consumers, bolstering rural jobs and local food economies.
“When we make it easier to connect farmers to their communities, we don’t just help individual farms — we invest in entire local economies,” Brown said. “Why should Ohioans buy raspberries from California, when they could buy them from a farm in Knox County? Why should we buy apples from Washington when we could get them from the Hirsch Fruit Farm in Chillicothe? We can help farmers from around the state grow their bottom lines and sell more product at home in Ohio.”
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio: On Wednesday, the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee passed the Hack Department of Homeland Security Act, introduced by Portman and Sen. Maggie Hassan, D-New Hampshire. The bill aims to create a pilot program to allow ethical “white hat” hackers to identify undiscovered vulnerabilities in DHS networks.
“The networks and systems at DHS are vital to the security of Ohioans and all Americans,” Portman said. “It is imperative that we take every step to protect our DHS networks from the threats they face every day. One important tool would be to incentivize ethical hackers in the private sector to find vulnerabilities before bad actors do. I applaud the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee for approving this important bill and look forward to working with Sen. Hassan to continue building support in the Senate to protect DHS from cyber threats.”
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