Review February 23, 2026

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This report reflects the latest happenings in government relations, in and around the Ohio statehouse. You’ll notice that it’s broad in nature and on an array of topics, from A-Z. This will be updated on a weekly basis.

Please feel free to share it with anyone else you believe may find it of interest, as well. Also, please do not hesitate to contact us should you have any questions, concerns or if we can be of any assistance.

ABORTION/REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS

Legislation requiring a 24-hour waiting period for patients prior to an abortion would not burden reproductive freedoms for Ohioans but would provide the benefit of informed consent and thoughtful decision making, witnesses providing testimony on HB347 (Odioso-Williams) said Wednesday during the House Health Committee chaired by Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland).

AGRICULTURE

The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODAg) issued a statewide quarantine for the invasive spotted lanternfly (SLF) effective Tuesday, expanding the prior area of 18 counties previously under quarantine. This change requires a compliance agreement, permit or inspection certificate before products such as trees or nursery stock can be moved out of Ohio. Producers who ship these products to non-regulated areas must have their stock inspected and each load must be accompanied by a certificate confirming their product is free of SLF.

AMERICA 250-OHIO

America-250-Ohio was still tallying final winners of the cross-state History Bee in the Statehouse Atrium late Thursday, when 18 high school students who aced the American Legion's" Americanism and Government" test competed in multiple rounds on the "people, places and milestones of Ohio history." Speaker and "Quiz Master" Matt Huffman (R-Lima), the latest accomplishment of the former Senate president, led the competition of 10th- 11th- and 12th-graders.

CHILDREN/FAMILIES

The Department of Children and Youth (DCY) announced details Friday on its review of a record number of program integrity referrals regarding the Publicly Funded Child Care (PFCC) Program in 2025. The year saw 124 referrals, each one of which was reviewed and resulted in either termination of provider agreements, corrective actions or determinations that no further action was required. DCY said the referrals raised concerns or questions on attendance, overpayment, eligibility, adherence to policy and other issues related to suspected fraud. The investigations are part of DCY's commitment to "accountability and responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars."

Nearly half of child care providers in Central Ohio are separately operating at a loss, and over half fear not being able to stay open past the next 12 months, according to recent data released by Columbus-based Action for Children in their annual Child Care Provider Survey. The balance between child care needs, how important the fulfillment of those needs are to the region's workforce and economy, and the state of Ohio's role in filling those needs all took center stage this week as the Columbus Metropolitan Club (CMC) hosted a forum on "The State of Child Care."

Two separate bills representing distinct approaches to monitoring attendance and guarding against fraud at the state's publicly funded child care (PFCC) centers were heard by the House Children and Human Services Committee on Tuesday, as the committee considers the best way to ensure PFCC in Ohio remains a responsible and accountable steward of taxpayer dollars. The joint sponsors of both HB647 (Plummer-Young) and HB649 (Williams-Swearingen) introduced their bills separately last month in response to widely publicized accusations of fraud committed at child care centers in Minnesota.

House Minority Leader Dani Isaacsohn (D-Cincinnati) told reporters Wednesday the Legislature should work to address child care access and affordability issues, after being asked about the House Children and Human Services Committee holding hearings Tuesday on two bills about child care fraud concerns, HB647 (Plummer-Young) and HB649 (Williams-Swearingen).

Members of the House Commerce and Labor Committee say Ohio employers are exploiting school-age teens in violation of child labor laws with relative impunity and no monetary penalties. They have introduced the "Clock Out Kids Act" to fine workplaces $50,000 for each knowing offense and require public and private school employees to alert the Ohio Department of Commerce (DOC) of suspected infractions.

CIVIL RIGHTS

Following news that Rev. Jesse Jackson died Tuesday morning, Ohio officials issued statements and posted on social media about his life and legacy.

EDUCATION

Reps. Tom Young (R-Washington Twp.) and Andrea White (R-Kettering) held a press conference Tuesday on their recently introduced HB690, which adds new protections for school crossing guards. They were joined by Kettering Police Chief Chip Protsman, with Franklin City Schools crossing guard Becky Evans speaking over videoconference about her experience having been injured by being hit by a car. Evans said she volunteered to be a crossing guard to ensure children's safety and that five other people helping Franklin City Schools had been hit before her. She detailed how she still experiences medical issues and has PTSD from being hit on Jan. 31, 2025, while the driver was penalized with a $48 fine.

Allowing the state's high school athletes to enter into name, image and likeness (NIL) deals could lead to poor character development, supporters of HB661 (Bird-Odioso) -- legislation seeking to bar NIL deals for high school athletes -- said Tuesday during the House Education Committee. The committee heard from Stephen Specht, head football coach at St. Xavier High School, and Jonathan Cooper, superintendent of Mason City Schools, both of whom testified as proponents to the legislation. "I want to be very clear my position on this," said Specht, "I am not against the spirit of NIL ... I never have been ... What I am against is pay to play ... my question is where are the guardrails? At the high school level, where are the guardrails?" he asked the committee.

ELECTIONS

The League of Women Voters of Ohio and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) of Northern Ohio this month filed a federal lawsuit challenging provisions of SB293 (Gavarone) after previously arguing to state officials that the bill violates provisions of the National Voter Registration Act (NVRA). The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. Southern District Court of Ohio, argues that the law requires cancellation of voter registrations flagged as noncitizens or with mismatching data during mandatory monthly checks, without prior notice of the cancellations. The Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles (BMV) and federal SAVE databases, used in those monthly checks, rely on "stale citizenship data" and frequently misclassify naturalized citizens as ineligible to vote, the lawsuit also argues.

ELECTIONS 2026

Former DeWine cabinet member and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Amy Acton added another labor union to her political bona fides Friday with the capital-city endorsement of Ohio AFL-CIO. Acton, Gov. Mike DeWine's former Ohio Department of Health director, joined Ohio AFL-CIO President Tim Burga and labor affiliates at the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 1059 in Columbus.

Secretary of State Frank LaRose's office released the names of the partisan statewide candidates who met the signature requirements to qualify for the Tuesday, May 5 primary ballot, and is expected to certify them to the ballot. The lone obstacle remaining for candidates is Friday's deadline for protests against partisan candidates' petitions, which must be filed by 4 p.m. Only one candidate that filed to appear on the May ballot did not have enough signatures to meet the minimum requirement - Republican gubernatorial candidate Renea Turner.

Libertarian congressional candidate John Hancock has been charged with failing to stop after hitting a pedestrian with his car in December, the Cincinnati Enquirer reports. Hancock is running for the 1st Congressional District seat currently held by U.S. Rep. Greg Landsman (D-Cincinnati), who is running for re-election.

The following endorsements were made over the week:

- The campaign of Republican Ohio Supreme Court candidate Colleen O'Donnell announced the endorsement of U.S. Rep. Max Miller (R-Rocky River).

- The campaign of Democratic Ohio Secretary of State candidate Allison Russo announced the endorsement of the Columbus/Central Ohio Building and Construction Trades Council, the Dayton Building and Construction Trades Council, and the Lima Building and Construction Trades Council.

• The campaign of Democratic state representative candidate Michaela Burris announced the endorsement of Able Dems.

  
  

• The campaign of Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Sherrod Brown announced the endorsement of the AFL-CIO.

  
  

• The campaign of Republican Ohio Senate candidate Zac Haines announced the endorsement of U.S. Sen. Jon Husted (ROH).

  
  

• Associated Builders and Contractors of Ohio (ABC of Ohio) endorsed Johnathan Newman for re-election; Andrew Brenner for House District 61; Patti Rockey for House District 81; and Mike Kahoe for House District 31.

  
  

• The campaign of Republican state representative candidate Jill Cole announced the endorsement of Secretary of State Frank LaRose.

  
  

• The campaign of Republican Ohio Supreme Court candidate Colleen O'Donnell announced the endorsement of the Cleveland Police Patrolmen's Association.

ENERGY/UTILITIES

American Electric Power (AEP) of Ohio has followed a series of white papers and press statements released by the Ohio Manufacturers' Association (OMA) slamming the utility's "speculative" and "inflated" load forecasts in a letter to the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) justifying AEP's projected transmission infrastructure needs to serve data centers in Central Ohio and other parts of the state. AEP's Vice President-Legal Steve Nourse tells state regulators in a Feb. 12 letter that its transmission infrastructure forecasts in fact rely on formal "load studies" included in the utility's data center tariff (DCT) approved by PUCO last summer and appealed by OMA to the Ohio Supreme Court in November. The state's largest electric utility says more than 13,000 megawatts (MW) from requested data center studies have resulted in signed electric service agreements (ESA) for well under half that projected load, or 5,642 MW, by 2030. Data centers' original forecasts, moreover, were even higher, or over two times the MW value of actual study requests, says AEP.

Reps. Daniel Troy (D-Willowick) and Mark Sigrist (D-Grove City) recently introduced HB657 to reform the nomination process for commissioners on the Public Utilities Commission (PUCO). Among other changes, the bill would require one of the governor's appointments to be nominated by the Office of the Ohio Consumers' Counsel, an independent statewide entity representing residential utility customers. They said this follows "the 133-HB6 scandal, a $60 million dark money bribery scheme" that federal authorities later described as "one of the largest public corruption conspiracies in Ohio history."

A bill to revise Ohio's laws governing oil and gas wells that passed the Senate along party lines in November 2025 was introduced in the House Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday after appearing at the center of an ethics complaint lodged against Sen. Brian Chavez (R-Marietta) last month. In January, a coalition of environmental groups in Southeast Ohio filed a formal complaint against Chavez with the Joint Legislative Ethics Committee (JLEC). The complaint alleged that Chavez used his position as chair of the Senate Energy Committee to fast-track SB219 through the Senate, and Chavez's businesses and business ties would stand to gain financially from its ultimate passage in law. JLEC, by rule, has 14 days to review such a filing but it did not take action in that window following the January complaint. Sen. Al Landis (R-Dover) told the House Natural Resources Committee on Wednesday that SB219 is the first general update to Ohio's oil and gas operation laws since 129-SB315 (Jones) was signed by then-Gov. John Kasich in 2012.

The state of Ohio has just learned it will host what the Trump administration is calling the largest natural gas plant in history, a 9.2 gigawatt -- yes, gigawatt (GW) -- generating station at Piketon to provide PJM Interconnection's 13-state grid reliable, baseload capacity 24/7/365, Chairman Adam Holmes (R-Nashport) told the House Energy Committee Wednesday. To move that energy across Ohio's growing data sector and heavy manufacturing to neighboring states, said Holmes, PJM also has announced a network of high-capacity transmission lines in the Columbus area and other parts of the state as part of an $11.8 billion "Regional Transmission Expansion Plan." "Yesterday, the nation of Japan announced a $550 billion investment in U.S. natural gas. That includes $33 billion for a natural gas generating plant in Ohio," the chair said. "The drivers on that [are] from the federal government to increase ... reliability for the U.S. baseload expansion and supporting expected manufacturing growth in Ohio. That is outstanding."

FEDERAL

New legislation from U.S. Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) would reform welfare and end the "benefits cliff" while building a secure talent pipeline for the state's workforce, the senator said Friday during a roundtable discussion with several business leaders from across Ohio.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY/STATEHOUSE

Rep. Kellie Deeter (R-Norwalk) recently introduced legislation in conjunction with Rep. Rodney Creech (R-West Alexandria) to create a clear legal framework for nuisance claims involving racing facilities and racetracks across the state. HB639 would establish a complete legal defense for racing facilities against certain nuisance claims regarding activities such as noise, traffic, dust or lighting. This would apply to a property owner who acquired or developed property after the racing facility was constructed, she explained in a release on the bill.

Rep. Mark Hiner (R-Howard) gave a second round of sponsor testimony to the House Technology and Innovation Committee Tuesday on his HB563 regarding fraudulent ticket sales, as not all members were present for the first hearing and Chair Thad Claggett (R-Newark) had requested a broader focus for the bill to address other forms of online fraud. Hiner discussed the overall issue of online ticket scams as he did in his initial November testimony, saying it costs event venues hundreds of thousands of dollars a year and that is particularly damaging for small venues. The bill would close current loopholes that enable online impersonation of legitimate sellers while ensuring a "clear distinction between fraud and legitimate resale," he continued.

Speaking in a packed committee room, Reps. Gary Click (R-Vickery) and Kellie Deeter (R-Norwalk) gave sponsor testimony Tuesday to the House Technology and Innovation Committee on their HB646, which would create a Data Center Study Commission immediately through emergency language if passed. Click said the bill stemmed from concerns in his own district, as rumors have circulated about a potential data center there. He attended a meeting related to that, with residents raising a range of topics on loss of agricultural land, environmental effects, energy requirements and whether economic development promises would be fulfilled by the data center. Many were "legitimate and deserve serious consideration," Click continued, though some were "extreme and conspiratorial" such as concerns data centers might be harvesting people's conscious and unconscious thoughts.

Wednesday’s House session included passage of tax conformity legislation SB9 (Blessing), albeit without the emergency clause needed to put it into effect in time for this filing season; SB295 (Manning-Patton), to change the competency restoration process for those accused of serious offenses; HB326 (Ritter-Newman), expanding options for nationally standardized college admissions tests; HB472 (Salvo-Cockley), to provide free ID documents to people experiencing homelessness; HB296 (M. Miller), to give offenders returning to society a six-month grace period before being required to pay back court fines and fees; HR304 (Willis), urging support for Ohio’s proposal to the federal government for electrical vertical takeoff and landing and advanced air mobility integration; and HB385 (Moore), a road naming bill.

Wednesday’s Senate session included passage of SB106 (Reineke), regarding electrical vehicle charging stations; HB52 (Deeter), regarding certified registered nurse anesthetists; and HB277 (Blasdel-Johnson), regarding excavation requirements.

One entity recommended its sunset at the first meeting of the Joint Sunset Review Committee, chaired by Sen. Kyle Koehler (R-Springfield). The joint committee is charged with evaluating the usefulness, performance and effectiveness of various minor state agencies. Alex Penrod, special assistant to the chancellor for external affairs at the Ohio Department of Higher Education, recommended the discontinuation of the Committee on Combatting Antisemitism, Islamophobia, Anti-Christian Discrimination, which was tasked in 135-SB94 (Brenner-Landis) with writing a report outlining model policy, guidance, best practices, and recommendations for further action for campuses to use to develop their own policies related to antisemitism, Islamophobia, anti-Christian discrimination.

In other legislative action, House Children and Human Services Committee reported out HB532 (K. Miller), regarding child custody actions; House Community Revitalization Committee reported out HB58 (Pizzulli-Jarrells), regarding recovery housing and addiction services; House Education Committee reported out HB500 (Mathews-Ritter), regarding JROTC and career-technical education; House Small Business Committee reported out HB332 (Mathews-Hiner), to create a small defense business linked deposit program; House Workforce and Higher Education Committee reported out HB25, regarding foster youth in the education system; Senate General Government Committee reported out SB262, regarding construction contracts; House Health Committee reported out HB479 (Schmidt), regarding physician supervision of contrast administration for imaging; SB18 (Reynolds-Craig), to designate Cardiovascular Health Awareness Day; SB137 (Johnson), to require hospitals to provide overdose reversal drugs under certain circumstances; and HB8 (A. White), regarding coverage of biomarker testing; House Local Government Committee reported out HB428 (D. Thomas-Williams), to remove residency requirements for certain city positions; and House Ways and Means Committee reported out HB503 (Roemer-Workman), regarding municipal income tax reciprocity credits.

GOVERNOR

Gov. Mike DeWine will deliver his final "State of the State" address to a joint session of the General Assembly next month, per a resolution introduced and approved Wednesday in the House. The chamber passed HCR36 (Manning), which sets Wednesday, March 11 as the date of the speech.

GREAT LAKES

Lake Erie's ecosystem remains in "poor" condition, according to a U.S.-Canada Great Lakes assessment released recently by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Canada Water Agency through the binational Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA). With a status of "poor" and "no trend," the 2025 State of Great Lakes report assessed Lake Erie as showing little to no change from the 2022 report, which assessed the lake as "poor" and "unchanging."

HANNAH NEWS RACES TO WATCH

Both a current and a former state legislator are among the candidates running in the Republican primary in Ohio's Ninth District for the opportunity to unseat Ohio's longest serving representative in Congress. Rep. Josh Williams (R-Toledo) and former Rep. Derek Merrin are currently the frontrunners in a Republican primary field that also includes Madison Sheahan, former deputy director of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE); Air National Guard Lt. Col. Alea Nadeem; and first-time candidate Anthony Campbell. The Ohio Redistricting Commission redrew the boundaries of the Ninth District last fall to be more friendly to the eventual Republican candidate in the general election against 22-term incumbent U.S. Rep. Marcy Kaptur (D-Toledo). Kaptur is unopposed in the Democratic primary.

Candidates Mike Baker and Graig Bansek are running in Ohio's 52nd District Democratic primary for the opportunity to snag the seat currently held by term limited Rep. Gayle Manning (North Ridgeville). Containing the northern part of Lorain County that includes the cities of Elyria, North Ridgeville and Avon, the district is competitive, nearly split on party lines, with a 48 percent Democrat political index and 51.1 percent Republican political index, according to 2022 demographic data compiled by Dave's Redistricting App. The winner of the Democratic primary will run against Manning's son, Sen. Nathan Manning (R-North Ridgeville) who is currently unopposed in the Republican primary. Nathan Manning previously held the House seat before switching seats and chambers with his mother.

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

A program designed to help individuals with developmental disabilities (DD) interact with law enforcement and others during traffic stops and other emergency situations has quickly spread across the state after starting as an initiative among advocates in Southern Ohio. Now backers of the initiative say they are planning their next steps as they prepare to seek a second round of funding for the Blue Envelope Program after the first round funded the distribution of more than 47,000 information packets in less than a year since its introduction to the state. The program provides individuals with a blue envelope that can be used to keep key documents and information about the individual's condition that can be provided to law enforcement during a traffic stop. It is administered by county boards of developmental disabilities, who are responsible for how to distribute Blue Envelope packets throughout their area.

HIGHER EDUCATION

Ohio State University (OSU) has been ranked one of the best in the nation for research, a statement released by the university said. The university has climbed to 12th place nationally among all universities for total research expenditures and sixth place nationally for industry-sponsored research, according to OSU's statement, which cited the National Science Foundation's annual Higher Education Research and Development survey. The survey highlighted OSU's more than $1.58 billion in research expenditures for FY24, showing an increase of more than 9 percent from the previous year, OSU said.

The Lourdes University, a Catholic institution outside Toledo, announced it will close at the end of the 2025-26 academic year after being in operation since 1958. Primary funding for the school was provided by the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania since the university's founding. A release by the Board of Trustees and the Sisters of St. Francis, said, "The sisters can no longer continue to subsidize the university at the level required to sustain its operations."

Ohio University's (OU) Heritage College of Osteopathic Medicine (HCOM) and Kettering Health are partnering to strengthen the state's physician workforce and improve care delivery in rural and underserved areas, a statement released by the university said. With a focus on whole-person care, medical training and innovative health care solutions, the organizations have established a "long-term collaborative model" which they say will ultimately work to improve health outcomes for communities across the state, most notably those in Southwest Ohio.

The University of Toledo (UToledo) College of Law joined the Ohio Governor's Expedited Pardon Project to streamline the pardon application process for eligible Ohioans who have demonstrated rehabilitation and positive contributions to their communities. The Expedited Pardon Project was started by Gov. Mike DeWine in 2019 in partnership with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (DRC), the Ohio State University Moritz College of Law Drug Enforcement and Policy Center and the University of Akron School of Law Reentry Clinic.

House Speaker Matt Huffman (R-Lima) told reporters Wednesday he believes the Legislature needs to revisit its higher education bill SB1 (Cirino) and how public colleges and universities are complying with it, saying Rep. Tom Young (R-Washington Twp.) has told him and other House members "some universities are simply ignoring the law." Young introduced HB698 to ensure compliance with SB1 on Feb. 12, and Huffman was asked about that new bill following Wednesday's House Rules and Reference Committee meeting. There needs to be a way to "incentivize complying with the law," Huffman continued, and the steps for that will likely be set out in the committee process. HB698 was referred to the House Workforce and Higher Education Committee as part of Wednesday's Rules and Reference hearing.

IMMIGRATION

Local law enforcement officials should be cooperating more with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Sen. Jon Husted (R-OH) told reporters Friday following his roundtable event with several business leaders from across Ohio.

JUDICIAL

The Ohio Supreme Court acted as one voice Tuesday by rejecting Summit County Judge Susan Baker Ross's attempt to impose prior restraint on media publication of jurors' names in the trial of former FirstEnergy executives allegedly implicated by the 133-HB6 (Callender-Wilkin) bribery scheme. The Court called prior restraint "the most serious and the least tolerable infringement on First Amendment rights," citing the U.S. Supreme Court in Nebraska Press Association v. Stuart (1976). Justices also overruled Judge Ross's order barring the media from attending and being heard at "witness objection" hearings; barring the recording of such hearings in open court; and barring the recording of defendants when they are not on the stand. The Court said Ross must first hold a hearing and make certain findings from evidence in the record before addressing the publication of jurors' names.

MEDICAID

With experiences in managed care and legislative oversight, Scott Partika came into the role of Ohio Department of Medicaid director with a focus of seeing DeWine administration initiatives through the final year and preparing to hand off a program to a new administration that will have to grapple with major federal changes. In an interview with Hannah News, Partika said an interest in helping people brought him to government service, but his strong focus on Medicaid policy developed through working with two people in particular: Dave Burke and Susan Ackerman.

The Ohio Department of Medicaid (ODM) foresees relatively modest program savings in the current biennium from sweeping federal changes enacted last year, but major costs for the state and providers in the coming years, lawmakers heard Thursday. The Medicaid committees of the House and Senate met jointly for the first time Thursday since the recent budget bill, HB96 (Stewart) assigned them to perform the duties of the former Joint Medicaid Oversight Committee. Rep. Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester), chair of the House Medicaid Committee and of the joint gatherings, set an agenda including an introduction of ODM Director Scott Partika, who's been on the job a few months, and an overview of changes in federal HR1, aka the One Big Beautiful Bill.

PENSIONS

State Teachers Retirement System (STRS) Board Chair Rudy Fichtenbaum breached his fiduciary duty to the pension fund in his dealings with investment firm QED and must be removed from his role, Franklin County Common Pleas Judge Karen Phipps wrote in a ruling that also bars any future service for former trustee Wade Steen. Phipps issued the ruling in a case brought by Attorney General Dave Yost, who alleged Steen and Fichtenbaum violated their obligations to the system through backchannel communications with QED officials who were seeking a deal to direct some of STRS' investment dollars. "The evidence presented revealed that Steen and Fichtenbaum engaged in a course of conduct that demonstrates, at best, a split loyalty between STRS participants and beneficiaries and QED," Phipps wrote.

PUBLIC SAFETY

The DeWine administration has added Ohio's "first summer resort" to the long list of state, regional and local agencies having adopted the Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board's minimum law enforcement standards. The Ohio Department of Public Safety's (DPS) Office of Criminal Justice Services (OCJS) has certified Geneva-on-the-Lake Police Department in Ashtabula County for officer use of force, including deadly force, and agency recruitment and hiring.

TAXATION

Customary legislation to align Ohio's tax code to its federal counterpart is at least temporarily delayed after Democrats declined Wednesday to sign on to an emergency clause to put the changes into effect in time for this tax filing season. Shortly after an amendment was blocked, Democrats united to oppose the emergency clause for SB9, leaving it just shy of the two-thirds majority required, with a 63-33 final vote. Absent members included two Republicans and one Democrat, meaning full attendance still would have left the emergency clause a vote short. The bill nonetheless went on to pass, 84-11. But without an emergency clause, the changes can't take effect while the normal filing season is open. The Senate was scheduled Wednesday to take up the House amendments to SB9, but did not do so after the events in the House. Senate President Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) said his chamber held off to give the House a chance to reconsider the vote.

TRANSPORTATION/INFRASTRUCTURE

Bipartisan groups of legislators in the Ohio Senate and House sent letters to CSX Transportation Friday to request clarification on freight pool changes that would affect the Collinwood Rail Yard in Cleveland, with potential effects for workers around the state as well. The Senate letter said there are reported CSX plans to shift work and staff from Collinwood to Buffalo, NY that may go into effect "imminently" and asked CSX President and CEO Steve Angel to reconsider making that decision while discussing the matter with local rail workers who would be affected.

The Ohio Turnpike and Infrastructure Commission approved 20 items on its agenda Tuesday, including the purchase of more deicing agent after it had exhausted nearly all of its supply combatting winter storms. Maintenance engineer Bryan Emery presented the resolution to the commission, which would nearly double the amount of Meltdown Apex-C deicing agent that the commission has purchased from EnviroTech Services Inc., bringing the amount to $1.6 million for the season. He told the commission that the purchase was necessary to get the commission through the rest of the season.

WORKFORCE

The Ohio Department of Development (DOD) and Governor's Office of Workforce Transformation recently announced the application window has opened for the current round of the High School Tech Internship Program, which connects students and businesses working in technology fields. The program provides employers with wage reimbursement for high school interns in tech-related roles, fostering recruitment pipelines and giving the students valuable work experience. Reimbursement payments are capped at up to 75 percent and $5,000 per intern, with a requirement that the student worked at least 120 hours and was paid $12 or more per hour. More information is HERE.

[Story originally published in The Hannah Report. Copyright 2026 Hannah News Service, Inc.]