Keeping it Brief

State

“A bipartisan bill introduced in the Ohio House seeks to reduce the number of end-of-course tests, make ACT/SAT tests voluntary and take the pressure off the third grade reading guarantee.”
The cosponsors of the bill hope to understand when the exams begin to stress students out and become less of a benefit.
“House Bill 73 eliminates two requirements: one that mandates high school students take “a nationally standardized college admission assessment,” and another that attaches the ability to hold a child back based on their scores on a third grade reading guarantee test.”
“If the bill passes, a work group must be formed in each school district, community school and STEM school “to examine the amount of time students spend on district or school-required testing,” according to bill language.”

“A ban on the use of telemedicine for medication abortions was stopped by a Hamilton County judge on Monday, holding up a law that was set to take effect last week.”
- This was due to a preliminary injunction from Planned Parenthood on SB 260
  - SB 260 declared that it was “unlawful for medication abortion services to be administered via telemedicine”.
“At Monday’s hearing, the attorney representing Planned Parenthood called out what she called “factual issues” in the arguments of the state, namely the risks involved in a medication abortion via a two-pill regimen, mifepristone and misoprostol. The state argued that telemedicine was not appropriate for a medication abortion because of the medications’ risks, such as bleeding or infection, which would require monitoring and possible hospitalization.”

This week, “democrats outlined a few different ideas they say would curb gun violence including:
- Removing a loophole that allows gun sellers to flout background checks for buyers in transactions at gun shows and in private gun sales
- Creating a “red flag” law, which would allow families, housemates or police to petition a judge to temporarily remove firearms from someone believed to pose a threat to themselves or others
- Offering a tax credit to families who purchase equipment to safely store guns in their homes
- Repealing a pre-emption law that prohibits cities from setting their own gun regulations
- Repealing a “stand your ground” law, passed last session, that removes the “duty to retreat” before responding to a perceived attack with deadly force”
No Republican state lawmakers have signed on to support any of these initiatives
- Instead, they have “proposed legislation that would allow any resident aged 21-and-older to carry a concealed weapon without a license or training, force state government to ignore federal law or court rulings that lawmakers deem to be in violation of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and prohibit cities from restricting possession of knives beyond state law.”

A bill was recently introduced that “requires “age-appropriate instruction” in child sexual abuse prevention for students in kindergarten through sixth grade. The education would include resources and available counseling for children who are sexually abused.”
- Sexual violence prevention education would be made available in schools for children in grades 7-12. Teachers would provide in-service training.
- “The Ohio Department of Education would be tasked with providing free resources for schools and instructors, according to the bill’s sponsors.”
This bill has bipartisan support and comes in light of an event in which “a teacher in Springboro was charged with 36 counts of gross sexual imposition involving 28 students, all under the age of 13.”

“A bipartisan bill introduced by Sens. Stephanie Kunze, R-Hilliard, and Hearcel Craig, D-Columbus, proposes to allow eviction records to be expunged under certain circumstances.”
- “A judge could authorize expungement if they feel the record “is no longer a reasonable predictor of future tenant behavior” and if expunging it would be in the “interests of justice.”
Landlords would be able to argue against expungement
This bill comes as a result of many instances of evictions that have occurred during the pandemic.

“House Bill 62 would declare any federal law, executive order, administrative action, or court ruling to be “null, void, and of no effect in this state” if it infringes upon the Second Amendment”
Legal acts that are considered infringements in the bill are:
- Any tax on guns, gun parts, or ammunition not common to other goods and services
- Any registering or tracking of guns
- Any registering or tracking of gun owners
- Any act forbidding the possession, ownership, use or transfer of guns or ammo by law-abiding citizens
- Any act ordering the confiscation of guns
Law enforcement cannot enforce federal laws that are considered infringements under the bill

SB 157 aims to “creates a first-degree felony manslaughter offense for a medical professional who fails to save the live of “a child born by attempted abortion who is alive when removed from the uterus of the pregnant woman.”
- The state would collect information on the abortion through a “child survival form” on which the physician’s name and medical facility in which the abortion took place would be included.
“A doctor who performs an abortion in an ambulatory surgical facility “or other location that is not a hospital,” which encompasses clinics under Planned Parenthood’s purview, must “provide post-birth care,” call for emergency medical assistance and “arrange for the transfer of the newborn to a hospital,” according to the bill.”
The person receiving the abortion are harmless in the bill.

“A court of appeals said an Ohio law banning abortions in Down Syndrome cases can continue, reversing the decision of a lower court.”
- “The court also ruled against a preliminary injunction for the law, which would have kept the state from implementing or enforcing the law.”

Federal

An anti-Asian American hate crime bill passed this week in the Senate which aims to “create a Justice Department position focusing on the issue and beef up state and local hate crime reporting.”
The bill passed with overwhelming support from both parties
Included in the bill is grants that will be made available to state and local governments to improve reporting systems.
The House will now vote on the bill in the coming weeks.

This week, the House passed a bill that would make D.C. a state.
- The bill passed along party lines
- If D.C. were to become a state, they would have one representative and two senators
The Senate now has to debate and vote on the bill

Guest UserApril 22, 2021