General Assembly activity
The General Assembly sent House Bill (HB) 93 to Gov. Mike DeWine for his approval. The bill would revise the Address Confidentiality Program and make changes to county recorder fees. The bill was amended in the Senate to move the congressional candidate filing deadline to Mar. 4, 2022; modify petition requirements; make some changes to candidate filings due to residency and district numbers; and allow the secretary of state to modify some administrative deadlines.

House activity
The House passed HB 428 by a 92-1 vote. The bill would establish the Adverse Childhood Experiences Study Commission.

The House did not place HB 126 on the calendar for a concurrence vote. That bill would prohibit school districts from filing initial complaints challenging a property’s assessed value, among other changes. The next meeting of the full House is Feb. 9.

Senate activity
The Senate unanimously passed HB 51, which would revise the process for adjusting property values due to instances that result in injury or destruction to the property. Earlier in the week, the Senate Ways and Means Committee amended the bill to allow a public body, including a board of education, to temporarily meet remotely until June 30, 2022. Additionally, the bill was amended to include federal tax law conformity provisions. HB 51 now goes to the House for a concurrence vote.

Senate Local Government and Elections Committee
The committee amended and passed Senate Bill (SB) 112, which would require abandoned land to be forfeited to the state, instead of a school district, as under current law if unsold after the first foreclosure sale, and eliminate the requirement to notify a school district upon receiving certification that a property has been offered for sale and is unsold. The amendments remove a provision of the bill that stated a county land reutilization corporation is not a public authority and made a technical correction.

House State and Local Government Committee
The committee held a fifth hearing on HB 203, which would require an occupational licensing authority to issue a license or government certification to an applicant who holds a license, government certification or private certification or has satisfactory work experience in another state under certain circumstances.

State Board of Education
The State Board of Education Performance and Impact Committee met to discuss proposed rule changes to the state's report cards for school districts and school buildings. Click here to view a document that details the proposed changes.

Ohio Department of Health
The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) released new guidance for K-12 schools pertaining to contact tracing and case investigation. The guidance includes the following changes:

  • Schools may discontinue universal contact tracing but are expected to assist local health departments with contact tracing, case investigation and exposure notification related to outbreaks or clusters in schools as determined by the local health department.
  • K-12 schools should continue to follow ODH’s protocol, “Mask to Stay, Test to Play,” and allow asymptomatic students to attend school while wearing a mask if they have been exposed to someone with COVID-19.
  • ODH will change the school case reporting cadence to weekly. 

Ohio Redistricting Commission
The Ohio Redistricting Commission voted to approve the state legislative district maps by a 5-2 vote. The approved maps did not receive bipartisan support, which makes the approved maps effective for only four years. Click here to view the approved maps.

Ohio Department of Education
The Ohio Department of Education has the following proposed rules open for public comment:

  • OAC Chapter 3301-28 Local Report Card (10 rules)
  • OAC Chapter 3301-44 Adult Diploma Pilot Program rules
  • OAC Chapter 3301-40 Rules on Nonpublic Schools Administrative Cost Reimbursement
  • OAC Chapter 3301-35 rules regarding blended/online learning (3 rules)

Click here to view the rules open for public comment.

Posted by Nicole Piscitani on 1/28/2022