The morning newsletter of the Ohio Capital Journal
Reporting for the People
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By David DeWitt | Editor in Chief
Good morning Ohio!
As Republicans struggle to deal with a powerful backlash against data centers, Ohio GOP U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno on Thursday issued a blunt warning: Companies can stop taking taxpayer subsidies, states can stop giving them, or the feds will tax them down to nothing.
U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno (R-OH) walks though the Capitol in Washington, DC. (Photo by Andrew Harnik/Getty Images.)
By Marty Schladen
The office of his Republican colleague, Ohio Republican U.S. Sen. Jon Husted, wouldn't say if Husted supported the move.
By Megan Henry
Ohio public schools are experiencing a 15% day-to-day bus shortage, according to the National Association for Pupil Transportation, and families are feeling the effects.
By Nick Evans
The Public Utilities Commission of Ohio is weighing what do with Nationwide Energy Partners, an electricity reseller serving apartment complexes around Ohio. In May, the state Supreme Court ruled the company is operating as a utility under state law.
COMMENTARY
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By Jean Lantz Reisz
At the beginning of Trump’s second term, 1.3 million people were living and working in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status. Most never had a path to anything more permanent, which means, as they face deportation, they have little recourse.
STATELINE
The big challenges and policy issues that cross state lines.
By Amanda Watford
Women on parole report higher rates of housing instability, poor health and serious mental health and substance use disorders than men on parole and women who weren’t on parole, according to a new analysis from the Council on Criminal Justice.
THE RUNDOWN
News from other states
By Madison McVan
Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Christian Castro, who is accused of shooting Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis through the closed door of a Minneapolis home in January, turned himself in to federal authorities on Thursday.
NATIONAL NEWS
By Alex Brown
Trump’s threats to eliminate the FEMA have subsided but experts say there’s still confusion about Trump’s decisions to approve or deny disaster declarations, leaving states with uncertainty about whether they can expect federal recovery funds.
CATCHING OUR EYE
The Mayors. The Statehouse News Bureau’s Jo Ingles reports, “Bipartisan Ohio mayors' group has recommendations for incoming governor and new lawmakers.”
The Ohio Mayors Alliance has a four-part proposal it wants lawmakers to consider:
• An investment fund to offer grants and zero-interest loans for site preparation, infrastructure and redevelopment, created by reserving 20% of the state's annual growth in sales and use tax collections
• A program for workforce housing, along with funds to help finance water, sewer, transportation and other infrastructure
• A fund to help communities hire, train and retain first responders, totaling 10% of what cities and local governments spend on police and fire payrolls
• A "reset" of the partnership between state and local governments, including a bipartisan task force looking into state revenue-sharing programs, a Home Rule Commission and a forum for collaboration between the state and local governmentsSpringfield ICE lawsuit. WYSO’s Kathryn Mobley reports, “ACLU of Ohio files lawsuit against ICE agents on behalf of Springfield man.”
A Springfield man is working with the ACLU of Ohio to sue seven Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers for what he claims is retaliation that violates his First Amendment rights to record officers in public.Politicizing Ohio higher education. Ideastream’s Conor Morris reports, “Ohio public universities are ramping up offerings at 'intellectual diversity' centers.”
After a slow start last year, five Ohio public universities say they are ramping up programming and are seeing increased student enrollment at the civic education centers established by Republican state lawmakers.
Ohio Senator Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland) also introduced a bill in June, Senate Bill 461, that would beef up requirements around the centers, including a requirement that all students take at least one three-credit-hour civics course through the centers to graduate. The centers, meant to promote "intellectual diversity," were created by a Cirino-sponsored bill in 2023 in a bid to combat alleged liberal bias on college campuses. Cirino also sponsored Senate Bill 1, which outlawed campus diversity, equity and inclusion programs last year.Another Flock down. WVXU’s Isabel Nissley reports, “Hamilton County Sheriff's Office pauses Flock camera program.”
The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office is pausing use of Flock Safety cameras amid growing scrutiny over the automated license plate readers.
Sheriff Charmaine McGuffey announced Thursday her department will temporarily suspend use of its 75 cameras and shut down access to the information the technology provides.
THE POD
THAT'S ALL FOR NOW, FOLKS.
Mahalo!
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