OML UPDATE AT-A-GLANCE
Here are the top things you need to know from this past week:
· The Ohio Senate is scheduled to hold its final session day for 2021 next week on Wednesday, December 15. The House is currently not scheduled to meet for the remainder of the year. The Ohio General Assembly has released its tentative schedule for 2022, which you can find HERE.
· The Ohio General Assembly has passed legislation that allocates $250 million in ARPA funding for grants for law enforcement and first responders to combat crime and address mental health issues. The bill, HB 169 appropriates a total of $4.19 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funds. You can read the bill analysis HERE and the summary of appropriations HERE. Read more in the article below.
· This week, the Ohio House passed HB 243, which preempts local governments from regulating or taxing knives and knife components. The bill, which is sponsored by Rep. Cutrona (R – Canfield), was voted out of the House Government Oversight Committee and then passed by the full House by a vote of 55 to 36. The bill now heads to the Senate to begin the committee hearing process. During a previous committee hearing the League offered opponent testimony against the bill, which you can read HERE. Read more in the article below about three other preemption bills that received hearings in the House Government Oversight Committee.
· This week, the Ohio House passed SB 102, which is sponsored by Sen. Roegner (R – Hudson) and would exempt homebrewers and home fermenters from liquor law. The bill impacts municipalities by making it significantly easier to place questions on the ballot about whether an establishment can sell liquor on Sunday, and would allow cities with at least 50,000 people to have six designated outdoor refreshment areas where open containers of alcohol are allowed, rather than four as allowed by current law.
Read the bill analysis HERE. The bill now goes back to the Senate for a concurrence vote.
· This week, the Ohio Department of Development (DOD) launched two grant programs to help local communities fund brownfield cleanup and demolition projects: the Brownfield Remediation Program and the Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program. Both programs were created in HB 110, the state operating budget bill. Guidelines are now available on the program webpages HERE and HERE. Applications will be available in the coming weeks. Read more in the article below.
· The deadline for submission requests from local governments and community partners for the next capital budget is March 18, 2021. According to a memo release by Senate Finance Committee Chair Sen Dolan (R – Chagrin Falls), the capital re-appropriations budget is set to be enacted before March 31, 2022 while the timeline for the capital budget will be determined later. Members of the Ohio legislature must submit all requests by April 1, 2021. All local governments seeking capital funds should submit their request to their state legislators.
· This week, Gov. DeWine and Lt. Gov. Husted announced the allocation of more than $109 million for critical water projects in all 88 counties. This is the third and final round of grants awarded through the new Ohio BUILDS water infrastructure grant program. This funding will support 101 drinking water and wastewater infrastructure projects impacting 106 communities. The Ohio BUILDS has now allocated roughly $250 million in total grant funding for 183 critical water infrastructure projects across Ohio. Learn more about the final round of appropriations HERE.
· All Ohio mayors and city managers are invited to a Zoom meeting on Thursday, December 16 at 11 a.m. EST for a conversation with other municipal leaders from across the United States to discuss concerns with the Census count. This meeting is the result of conversations that began in October between a small group of university and city leaders affiliated with the International Town and Gown Association and the National League of Cities (NLC). These conversations have continued and have broadened to include other communities experiencing similar concerns. It seems to be increasingly apparent that the 2020 Decennial Census may have had significant errors resulting in undercounts, which can have serious long-term consequences for local government finances. If you are concerned that an undercount happened in your community, or that the CQR process might not be the right mechanism to address these issues, and would you like to share your Census challenges with other communities and work together to find a solution that fits the problem, please RSVP to spatterson@ci.athens.oh.us by Friday, December 10 to receive the Zoom information.
· On Thursday, December 16 at 11 a.m., the League is hosting a free webinar entitled “Recent Employment and Labor Law Decisions that Affect and Impact Public Employers.” This interactive session will highlight select employment and labor law decisions of the past year that affect and impact public employers in Ohio. These involve federal and state court decisions, SERB, and recent arbitration decisions. Learn more and register HERE.
OHIO LEGISLATURE PASSES BILL ALLOCATING OVER $4 BILLION IN FEDERAL COVID RELIEF FUNDS
This week, the Ohio legislature passed HB 169, legislation allocating $4.19 billion in federal COVID-19 relief funds. While most of the funds will go to schools, the bill also allocates funding for local law enforcement.
Notably for municipalities, the bill allocates $250 million in grants for law enforcement and first responders to combat crime and address mental health issues. These grants are funded by dollars the state received from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).
The remaining appropriations are revenues from the CARES Act and are allocated as follows:
· $2.49 billion for the Department of Education
· $687 million for the Dept. of Job and Family Services
· $529 million for the Dept. of Medicaid
· $250 million for the Dept. of Public Safety
· $142 million for the Dept. of Developmental Disabilities
· $91.1 million for the Dept. of Health
· $4 million for the Dept. Higher Education
HB 169, sponsored by Rep. Cutrona (R – Canfield) and Rep. Swearingen (R – Huron), was originally drafted to make appropriations to support recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. The Senate Finance Committee amended the bill on Tuesday to allocate these federal relief dollars. The full Senate passed the bill Wednesday and the House concurred on the Senate’s changes on Thursday. The bill will now head to the Governor for his signature.
OHIO HOUSE GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE HOLDS HEARINGS ON THREE MUNICIPAL PREEMPTION BILLS
This week, the House Government Oversight Committee held hearings on three bills that would preempt municipal Home Rule authority.
A first hearing was held on HB 445, which is sponsored by Rep. Stoltzfus (R – Paris Twp.) and would provide an opportunity for a concealed handgun licensee or qualified military member to avoid charges for carrying a deadly weapon into a prohibited place if the person leaves upon request and would penalize failure to leave upon request or returning with a firearm. This legislation would preempt municipal authority to prohibit individuals from carrying deadly weapons into public facilities.
The committee also heard two bills that are considered “companion legislation” because both bills are virtually identical. These bills are HB 325, which is sponsored by Rep. Wiggam (R – Wooster), and SB 185, which is sponsored by Sen. Schaffer (R – Lancaster). Both bills prohibit local governments from blocking firearms sales or seizing weapons during an emergency, such as a riot, by establishing firearm-related firms as "essential businesses" that can remain open during such emergencies. In an earlier Senate committee hearing, the League reminded senators in testimony that “the Ohio Constitution grants Home Rule authority to municipalities in recognition that a government closest to the people governs best, and that each city and village should be equipped to serve and protect the interests of their communities.” You can read the testimony in full HERE.
If adopted by the legislature, these bills will continue the steady erosion of local control for communities across the state by preempting local authority granted to municipalities by the Ohio Constitution. The League strongly opposes the continued growth of state government by stripping Ohio’s local leaders of the ability to manage issues locally, and strongly encourages our members to call their state representatives and senators to tell them to protect the will of the people in their communities by not supporting these bills that are a gross violation of the principles of local control.
THE LEAGUE AND OTHER OPPONENTS TESTIFY ON VACCINE MANDATE EXEMPTION BILL
This week, the Ohio Senate General Government Budget Committee held a second hearing HB 218, which was amended in the Ohio House to include language limiting vaccine mandates and passports. Many opponents, including the League, testified on the legislation.
HB 218, which is sponsored by Rep. Cutrona (R – Canfield), prohibits employers, schools and institutions of higher education from requiring vaccines that has not been fully approved by the FDA and provide exemptions to such vaccine mandates medical reasons, natural immunity demonstrated by COVID-19 antibodies and religious beliefs. These provisions would sunset in 2025. You can read the bill analysis HERE and the comparison document HERE.
The League’s testimony focused on a provision in the bill that infringes on local control by prohibiting facilities owned by a political subdivision from requiring proof of vaccination. You can read the League testimony HERE.
Another provision impacting municipalities is language extending qualified immunity for institutions including local governments. This provision was initially in HB 606 during the 133rd General Assembly. The qualified immunity would be extended through June 30, 2023. You can read the HB 606 analysis HERE.
We will continue to keep our members apprised of this legislation.
OHIO DEPT. OF DEVELOPMENT LAUNCHES TWO BROWNFIELD REVITALIZATION GRANT PROGRAMS CREATED IN BUDGET BILL
This week, the Ohio Department of Development (DOD) launched two grant programs to help local communities fund brownfield cleanup and demolition projects: the Brownfield Remediation Program and the Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program. Both programs were created in HB 110, the state operating budget bill.
On Tuesday, Gov. DeWine signed an executive order that speeds up the distribution of the $500 million appropriated in the latest state budget. Of this appropriation, $350 million is allocated for Brownfield Remediation Program grants and $150 million is allocated for Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program grants.
Guidelines are now available for each program HERE and HERE. Applications will be available in the coming weeks.
The Brownfield Remediation Program will provide grants for the remediation of brownfield sites throughout Ohio. A set-aside amount of $1 million per county will be available until June 30, 2022. Remaining funds will be available on a first-come, first-served basis. The Demolition and Site Revitalization Program will provide grants for the demolition of commercial and residential buildings and the revitalization of surrounding properties. A set-aside amount of $500,000 per county will be available until June 30, 2022. Remaining funds will be available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The Greater Ohio Policy Center will be holding a webinar with the Ohio Dept. of Development as part of their ongoing “Revitalizing Ohio’s Brownfields” webinar series. The webinar will take place on January 12, 2021 at 11 a.m. and will discuss the newly released guidelines for the Brownfield Remediation Fund. Register HERE.
We will alert out members when applications for the grant programs become available.
OHIO LEGISLATURE PASSES LEGISLATION LEGALIZING SPORTS BETTING
This week, the Ohio legislature passed HB 29, legislation legalizing sports betting. Earlier this week, a conference committee on the bill adopted an omnibus amendment on the bill that was then concurred upon by both legislative chambers You can read the omnibus amendment HERE, the synopsis of conference committee amendments HERE and the fiscal analysis HERE.
The Ohio Senate originally passed HB 29 back in June, but the Ohio House refused to concur on the Senate’s amendments. Earlier this week, a conference committee made up of members from both legislative chambers reported an amended version of HB 29. On Wednesday, the Senate voted 31-1 to pass the bill. The same day, the Ohio concurred on the bill 72-23. The legislation now heads to the desk of Gov. DeWine for his signature.
HB 29, which is sponsored by Rep. Wiggam (R – Wooster) and Rep. Miller (D – Columbus), was originally drafted to modify laws affecting state military IDs.
Some of the provisions in the new version of HB 29 include:
· Creates three classes for licenses for sports book contracts: Type A for mobile wagering; Type B for brick-and-mortars such as casinos and racinos; and Type C for bars and restaurants via Keno machines.
· Caps the number of betting facilities per county based on population
· Requires the state to begin issuing licenses on April 1 and requires the program to be completely set up by Jan. 1, 2023.
· Sets the minimum age limit to place a bet at 21.
· Taxes net revenues from betting at 10%, with 98% of the revenues allocated for public and private schools and the remaining 2% allocated to fund problem gambling programs.
· Requires the Casino Control Commission to prescribe a procedure for a sports governing body to obtain anonymized sports gaming data from proprietors.
· Allocates 0.5% of licensing fees to go to veteran services through a new Sports Gaming Profits Veterans Fund.
· Legalizes wagering on esports events.
· Adds gaming agents to the list of professions considered peace officers.
· Requires proprietors to audit their information technology systems and security programs once every three years and submit the audit to the submit to the commission.
According to the LSC fiscal analysis, the bill is projected to raise several tens of millions of dollars per year, once the program is fully operational and sports wagering markets mature. The state’s General Revenue Fund (GRF) revenue from the commercial activity tax (CAT) will increase between $500,000 and $1 million annually once the program is fully operational and earnings generated by profits realized through gambling is subject to local taxation.
LEAGUE TO HOST FREE WEBINAR ON RECENT LABOR LAW DECISIONS IMPACTING PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
On Thursday, December 16 at 11 a.m., the League is hosting a free webinar entitled “Recent Employment and Labor Law Decisions that Affect and Impact Public Employers.” This interactive session will highlight select employment and labor law decisions of the past year that affect and impact public employers in Ohio. These involve federal and state court decisions, SERB, and recent arbitration decisions. Learn more and register HERE.
INVITATION TO JOIN MUNICIPAL ENGINEERS ASSOCIATION OF OHIO (MEAO)
The League is inviting your municipal engineer to become an inaugural member of the Municipal Engineers Association of Ohio. As an inaugural member, your municipality will help us shape the mission, goals, and priorities of this important organization. Membership will allow you to engage your fellow municipal engineers, understand and impact state legislation, programs and policies, receive professional development. Learn more about MEAO membership HERE.
BILLS PASSED BY THE OHIO HOUSE
· HB 458 – Special Elections. Sponsored by Rep. Hall (R - Middletown), would eliminate August special elections except when held to nominate or elect candidates for the United States House of Representatives. During its third hearing before the House Ways and Means Committee, an amendment was adopted to allow a political subdivision to hold an August special election if going into fiscal emergency and to allow a local government to hold a special election for a charter proposal in 2022. The bill was voted out of committee and the passed by the full House by a vote of 68 to 22. The League is neutral on this legislation.
· HB 243 – Knife Regulation. Sponsored by Rep. Cutrona (R – Canfield), is regarding the regulation of knives. The Ohio House passed the bill by a vote of 55 to 36. The League is opposed to this legislation.
· SB 217 – Criminal Record Checks. Sponsored by Sen. Schaffer (R – Lancaster), would modify the law regarding access to criminal record check information with respect to long-term care ombudsman programs, direct-care positions, community-based long-term care services, and certain persons serving as a municipal corporation tax administrator, and declare an emergency. The Ohio House passed the bill 89-5. The bill now heads to the Governor for his signature. The League is neutral on this legislation.
NEW BILLS OF MUNICIPAL INTEREST
· HB 505 – Concealed Weapons License. Sponsored by Rep. Grendell (R – Chesterland) and Rep. Gross (R – West Chester), would rename a concealed handgun license a concealed weapons license, allow a concealed weapons licensee to carry a concealed deadly weapon, and allow a person who is age 21 or older to carry concealed deadly weapons without a license.
COMMITTEE RECAP: BILLS OF MUNICIPAL INTEREST
· HB 445 – 9-1-1. Sponsored by Rep. Carfagna (R – Genoa Twp.) and Rep. Smith (D – Euclid), would make changes to the law governing 9-1-1 service and to repeal program requirements for emergency-service-telecommunicator training. During its third hearing before the House Transportation and Public Safety Committee, several interested parties testified with concerns regarding whether the bill’s universal device fee would generate enough funding. The League is supportive of this legislation.
· HB 126 – Property Values. Sponsored by Rep. Merrin (R – Monclova Twp.), would require local governments that contest property values to formally pass an authorizing resolution for each contest and notify property owners. During its fifth hearing before the Senate Ways and Means Committee, an omnibus amendment was amended to rescind and replace the original bill. The new bill includes language stating that political subdivisions can only file initial complaints for properties they own. You can read the full synopsis of changes made in the substitute bill HERE. The League is neutral on this legislation.
· SB 225 – Tax Credits. Sponsored by Sen. Schuring (R – Canton), would temporarily modify the historic rehabilitation and the opportunity zone investment tax credits. During its fourth hearing before the Senate Finance Committee, the bill’s sponsor outlined seven potential amendments that could later be adopted into the bill. The changes would clarify that historic restoration projects approved for 2021 that have not begun construction can apply for the enhanced credits, align the Ohio tax credit with the federal historic tax credit, specify considerations for a historic theater’s application for a tax credit, establish two application time periods for the Opportunity Zone Tax Credit and permit that credit to be transferred, revise budget bill language accommodating parking for TIFs, and relieve the city of Canton of duties related to a charitable foundation established 1879. The League is supportive of this legislation.
· SB 196 – Building Inspections. Sponsored by Sen. Roegner (R – Hudson), would make changes to the law relating to building inspections. During its first hearing before the Senate Small Business and Economic Opportunity Committee, the bill’s sponsor explained that the legislation expedites the building appeals process for state and local boards by requiring them to commence the appeal within 24 hours of the request and to hold a hearing withing 72 hours after the request is made. These requirements exclude Saturdays, Sundays and certain legal holidays. The League is neutral on this legislation.
· SB 83 – Brownfields. Sponsored by Sen. Williams (D – Cleveland) and Sen. Rulli (R – Salem), would direct the $150,000 appropriation in the original bill to a voluntary program for Phase 1 property assessments for contamination at no cost to communities. During its fifth hearing before the House Agriculture and Conservation Committee, the bill was reported out of committee. The League is supportive of this legislation.
· SB 72 – Officer Assault (Williams (D – Cleveland) and Rep. Thomas (D – Cincinnati), would prohibit assault by a law enforcement officer. During its first hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee, the bill’s sponsor explained that the legislation follows the policy recommendations made by the Ohio Collaborative Community-Police Advisory Board. The League is still looking into this legislation.
