OML UPDATE AT-A-GLANCE

Here are the top six things you need to know from this past week:

·        On Thursday, the Ohio Supreme Court ruled that the centralized collection of municipal net profits is constitutional due to the General Assembly's authority to restrict municipal income tax. However, the Supreme Court also ruled that it is unconstitutional for the state to charge the 0.5% fee to the municipality to cover the state's administrative cost to operate the central collection scheme. You can read the ruling in full HERE and find more information in the article below.

·        Ohio saw record-breaking voter turnout numbers with over 5.8 million Ohioans casting votes in the General Election on Tuesday. So far, Republicans have gained one seat in the Senate and four seats in the House, while Democrats have flipped one seat in the House. President Trump slightly improved his margin of victory in Ohio compared to the 2016 presidential election, taking the state by 8 points or approximately 500,000 votes. Read more about Ohio’s election results in the article below.

·        As many of our members are aware, the ability to hold meetings virtually via electronic technology rather than in person will expire December 1 without the legislature taking action to extend that deadline. We are asking members to consider passing a resolution expressing the need for that continued authority to meet virtually so measures can continue to be taken to fight the spread of the coronavirus and minimize risk to both officials and the public. An example of a recently-passed resolution by Grove City can be found HERE and can be used as sample language for members interested in taking this important action. Resolutions should be sent to the Governor, state representatives and senators to share with them the urgency of our communities’ request.

·        Lame Duck Watch: Leadership in both the House and the Senate have stated that passing a capital bill is a top priority for the lame duck session. Prior to the pandemic, the proposed capital bill projected $2.6 billion in expenditures for state and local construction projects. $150 million of that was to be specifically allocated for local projects. The legislation has not been introduced but is expected the first of next week. Read more about what is coming up in lame duck in the article below.

·        On Monday, the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation (BWC) approved Gov. DeWine’s previously to return a $5 billion dividend to Ohio employers. Employers can expect the payments to go out over the first two weeks of December. This is the largest approved dividend in Ohio’s history.

·        Governor DeWine announced an expanded leadership team at the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) to continue fighting the spread of the coronavirus. Yesterday, the governor announced that Bureau of Workers' Compensation Administrator/CEO Stephanie McCloud has been selected as the Director of ODH and Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff, former Senior VP and Chief Medical Officer at Ohio Health, will serve as Chief Medical Officer.



OHIO 2020 GENERAL ELECTION RESULTS

Federal Election Results:

·        President Trump won Ohio by 8 points, or nearly 500,000 votes mirroring 2016, taking the state 53% to 45%. At the time of the publishing of this bulletin, the presidential race has not been called.

·        All of Ohio’s incumbent congressional candidates won re-election, meaning twelve Republicans and four Democrats are returning to Congress.

Ohio Senate Election Results:

·        So far Senate Republicans have gained one seat, meaning there will be 25 Republicans to 8 Democrats or 24 Republicans to 9 Democrats in the 134th General Assembly, depending on the result of the race between Republican Sen. Stephanie Kunze (R – Hilliard) and mental health professional Crystal Letts.

·        The seat gained by Republicans was Senate District 32. Senator Sean O’Brien (D - Bazetta) will be replaced by former Ashtabula County auditor Sandra O’Brien.

·        Four current House members will be moving to the Ohio Senate:

o  Rep. Niraj Antani (R – Miamisburg) is replacing Sen. Peggy Lehner (R – Kettering) as the first Indian American to be elected to the Ohio Senate

o  Rep. Mark Romanchuk (R – Ontario) is replacing Sen. Larry Obhof (R – Medina)

o  Rep. Bill Reineke (R – Tiffin) replacing Sen. Dave Burke (R – Marysville)

o  Rep. George Lang (R – West Chester) is replacing Sen. William Coley (Liberty Township)

·        Republicans also kept the seat of term-limited Sen. John Eklund (R – Chardon), who is being replaced by Lake County Commissioner Jerry Cirino.

Ohio House of Representatives Election Results:
 
·        House Republicans gained four seats while Democrats gained one seat, meaning there will be 64 Republicans to 35 Democrats in the Ohio House during the 134th General Assembly.

·        Democrats gained the seat held Republican Rep. Dave Greenspan (R – Westlake), who will be replaced by former Lakewood city councilwoman Monique Smith.

·        Two of the four seats flipped by Republicans were held by incumbents:

o  Rep. Gil Blair (D – Weathersfield) will be replaced by small business owner Mike Loychik

o  Rep. Randi Clites (D - Ravenna) will be replaced by Dr. Gail Pavliga 

·        The two other seats Republicans flipped were open seats:

o  Rep. Jack Cera (D – Bellaire) will be replaced by small business owner Ron Ferguson

o  Rep. John Patterson (D – Jefferson) will be replaced by State Board of Education member Sarah Fowler

·        Two Statehouse veterans are returning to the General Assembly:

o  Former representative Democrat Daniel Troy is replacing Rep. John Rogers (D – Mentor-on-the-Lake)

o  Former state representative and Congresswoman Republican Jean Schmidt is replacing Rep. John Becker (R – Union Township).

Ohio Supreme Court Election Results:

·        Justice Sharon Kennedy was re-elected

·        Justice Judith French will be replaced by former Secretary of State and 10th District Court of Appeals Judge Jennifer Brunner




OHIO LEGISLATURE PREPARES FOR LAME DUCK SESSION

The lame duck legislative session begins next week. In addition to the forthcoming capital bill, there are a number of legislative issues that will most likely be dealt with during lame duck that the League has been tracking.

One of the biggest legislative issues facing the General Assembly during lame duck is HB 6, a nuclear subsidy law at the center of a scandal involving former House Speaker Larry Householder, a political staffer and three lobbyists who have all been charged with conspiring to commit racketeering and other crimes. HB 6, which was enacted last year, provided among other things a $1.2 billion bail-out of Ohio's two nuclear power plants. Four bills have been introduced so far to repeal HB 6. Both chambers will work on the issue of repealing and replacing the controversial bill.

The League has been closely tracking two bills that would impact the administration of the municipal income tax. SB 352, sponsored by Sen. Roegner (R – Hudson) and HB 754, sponsored by Rep. Jordan (R – Ostrander), would both repeal Section 29 of HB 197, which currently allows municipalities to collect income tax from the jurisdiction where the employer is located, rather than the employee’s work-from-home location. The League stands opposed to both bills and has been in talks with the legislature and other interested parties about this important issue.

Another bill that directly impacts municipalities is SB 365, which is sponsored by Sen. Fedor (D – Toledo) and extends the authorization for members of a public body to conduct meetings or hearings virtually via electronic technology instead of in-person. As stated earlier in this bulletin, that authority currently, expires on December 1. The bill has been referred to the Senate General Government and Agency Review Committee and has yet to receive a hearing. The League has been speaking with members of the Ohio legislature about the importance of extending this deadline, specifically requesting that the deadline be extended to sunset 30 days after the state’s declaration of emergency expires.

Another important bill that will be taken up in lame duck is HB 13, which sponsored by Rep. Carfagna (R – Genoa Twp.) and would establish a broadband expansion grant program with the Department of Commerce. The bill has bipartisan support and was voted out of the House by 81-8 in June. The last hearing was held in the Senate Energy and Public Utilities Committee in late July. The League is supportive of this bill and the DeWine Administration has also voiced support for this legislation.

Additionally, Governor DeWine is pushing for his STRONG Ohio gun legislation, SB 221, to be taken up by the legislature. The Governor has especially been promoting a provision in the bill that would allow judges to impose stiffer sentences for repeat offenders found in possession of a gun.

The Governor has also been pushing for the legislature to deal with the issue of police reform during lame duck. The Governor has been vocally supportive of professionalizing policing through licensing in order to curb the hiring of bad cops or police officers that have been fired from previous police departments. We will continue to keep our members apprised of the legislature’s actions as lame duck progresses. 




OHIO SUPREME COURT RULES ON STATE CENTRALLY COLLECTING MUNICIPAL INCOME TAXES

The Ohio Supreme Court has ruled the centralized collection of municipal net profits is constitutional due to the General Assembly's authority to restrict municipal income tax. However, the Supreme Court also ruled that it is unconstitutional for the state to charge the 0.5% fee to the municipality to cover the state's administrative costs to operate the central collection scheme.

In 2017, the Ohio legislature passed HB 49, which allowed the Ohio Department of Taxation to centrally collect municipal net profit taxes from businesses with tax obligations in multiple municipalities. The state collected the net profit businesses filings, deducted 0.5% to cover administrative costs, and distributed the revenues to the municipalities.

That same year, over 100 municipalities filed a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of HB 49 and HB 5, a bill that was passed in 2014 that mandated municipalities had to adopt the provisions of ORC Chapter 718 in order to levy an income tax. The lawsuit was initially filed in Franklin County Common Pleas Court and was eventually appealed all the way up to the Ohio Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court’s majority opinion states that Article XVIII of the Ohio Constitution allows municipalities to levy an income tax and that the Court has consistently recognized local taxation as part of Home-Rule authority. However, the ruling states that other provisions in the constitution allow the General Assembly to limit local taxation, thus centralized collection is constitutional.

However, the Court ruled that the state does not have the power to tax municipal revenues, which is why the opinion states the 0.5% administrative fee is unconstitutional. Municipalities may be entitled to a refund of this fee as the Court struck it down as unconstitutional, meaning the fee was never constitutional from the beginning. We will keep our members updated as more information becomes available.



MAYORS ASSOCIATION OF OHIO URGES MAYORS TO HELP COMMUNITIES FIGHT COVID-19 SPREAD

The League’s Mayor’s Association of Ohio Board of Directors sent a letter to the members of the Mayor’s Association urging our mayors that a greater commitment and further action is needed from Ohio’s local leaders to create a heightened awareness of the importance of taking the steps that health experts have identified as crucial in fighting what has become a rapid spread of the coronavirus. We feel it is important that the call to action sent to our mayors is also received by the League’s members and that each of us have a responsibility to fight for our communities’ recovery and the end to this pervasive and destructive pandemic. You can read the letter in full below:

Dear Mayor:

When, in past years, our country has been threatened by a common enemy, our country has united to defeat the enemy. We simply have to do that again. As the elected leaders of the Mayors Association of Ohio, we are writing to urge you and our colleagues from across our great state to join together to impress upon the citizens of our respective communities the importance of taking the steps that best equip them to succeed in our fight against COVID-19.

The economic and social disruption caused by the pandemic is devastating. The closure of businesses, some of which will never reopen, the strain on critical infrastructure, and the adjustments that have impacted business and education have been dramatic. Not only has the pandemic been devastating to our health, but the economic impact on jobs, businesses and local revenues has been unprecedented in modern times.

As the leaders of our cities and villages, we must work hard to advance the important message that wearing masks, maintaining social distance, and avoiding large groups are the best tools we have to prevent the continued spread of the coronavirus. The only way to revitalize our communities is to bring the number of coronavirus cases down and allow our communities to begin the healing process – physically, emotionally and financially.

We must do what we can to prevent the continued devastation and the resulting long-term consequences of COVID-19. The time is now to make the sacrifices necessary so that we build the future. 

As mayors, we are in a critical position to urge the residents of our communities to work together to slow the spread of this virus. Ohio cannot heal and recover unless we come together against this common enemy and do what we can to protect one another. We urge you to do your part to help Ohioans work together to ensure a strong, bright future for our state. Wearing masks, maintaining social distance and avoiding large gatherings seems a small sacrifice to ask our residents to make.

Sincerely,

Jeff Hazel, President               Mark Cegelka, 1st Vice President       
Mayor of Celina                       Mayor of Glenwillow                      

Mike Barhorst, 2nd Vice President
Mayor of Sidney

John Thebout, Secretary           Ben Stahler, Treasurer
Mayor of Batavia                     Mayor of Bellefontaine


The League greatly appreciates our member’s continued efforts in battling the ongoing pandemic and we thank you for your attention to the efforts towards ultimately ending the COVID-19 epidemic.




GOVERNOR DEWINE TO ADDRESS ATTENDEES OF THE LEAGUE’S FIRST-EVER VIRTUAL ANNUAL CONFERENCE ON MONDAY AT 2 P.M.

Make sure you are registered for the League’s 2020 first-ever virtual Annual Conference next week from Monday, November 9 to Friday, November 13. Attendees will be able to hear from Governor Mike DeWine in an exclusive address on Monday at 2 p.m.

We do not want municipalities to miss out on this unique opportunity to hear directly from Governor DeWine on the challenges facing cities and villages and the work his administration will do in the months to come that will affect local governments.

Our Annual Conference features valuable and timely information local leaders need to navigate these unprecedented times. In addition to many sessions dealing exclusively with the myriad of unique challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, our agenda also offers sessions addressing many other important local concerns that local leaders are facing.

Our Annual Conference is a great value for local leaders at a reduced cost of $150 for League members and $225 for non-members. You can find the conference agenda and register HERE. We look forward to having you join us!



OHIO CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE UPDATE:

  • As of Thursday afternoon, Ohio is reporting 235,170 cases of coronavirus, 5,461 deaths, 20,015 hospitalizations and 3,969 ICU admissions.

  • Updated Ohio Public Health Advisory System map:
  • Upgraded to Level 3 (Red): Ashland, Champaign, Clinton, Coshocton, Fairfield, Henry, Holmes, Jefferson, Medina, Morrow, Pickaway, Preble, and Sandusky
  • Watchlist Counties: None

  • On Thursday, Ohio set a new record in daily COVID-19 case growth with an additional 4,961 cases of COVID-19 from the previous day, according to the Ohio Department of Health (ODH). Additionally, all 88 counties in Ohio are now considered "high incidence" as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Job and Employment Updates:

  • According to the Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS), Ohioans filed 21,263 initial claims for unemployment compensation last week, an increase of 3,732 or approximately 21% from the previous week. ODJFS also reported residents filed 265,613 continued jobless claims last week, which is a decrease from 266,208 the previous week. ODJFS has sent over $7.1 billion in unemployment compensation to more than 833,000 Ohioans over the last thirty-three weeks.

  • The U.S. Department of Labor reported 751,000 new jobless claims were filed across the country last week, a decrease from 7,000 the previous week.

Other Updates:
 
  • In addition to the announcement that Gov. DeWine is appointing Stephanie McCloud as Director of the Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff as Chief Medical Officer, the governor announced two other key additions to the existing administration at the ODH:
  • Senior Deputy, Lance Himes: Former ODH Interim Director
  • Chief of Staff, Kathleen Madden: Former Assistant Director at the Ohio Office of Budget and Management
 
  • Gov. DeWine also announced that John Logue, the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation's (BWC) Chief of Strategic Direction, will become the new administrator of Ohio BWC effective on November 16.

  • The DeWine Administration has created a “coalitions communication” documents for a variety of entities, including local governments and law enforcement. This document includes helpful talking points, sample social media posts, resources, updated COVID data, etc. You can access those documents HERE and HERE.


NATIONAL LEAGUE OF CITIES (NLC) VIRUTAL ANNUAL CITY SUMMIT CONFERENCE IS APPROACHING

The National League of Cities' (NLC) annual City Summit conference, which will run from November 18 -20, is an event for local officials elected and staff to learn about the issues affecting local governments and expand their professional network.

This year, City Summit is going virtual, which means local leaders will get access to the same incredible trainings and workshops all from the comfort of their (home) office. Attendees will be joined by hundreds of other participants from across the country to gain best practices, tools and resources to handle whatever their community needs. The virtual conference will include informative panel discussions, keynotes and fireside chats, as well as engaging workshops and opportunities to network with other local leaders.

To find out more and to register, click HERE.