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Chairman’s Update
Good Evening, The Georgia Senate runoff elections set to take place on January 5th are races that continually deserve our attention. Nearly one month ago, some of Ohio’s Trump Victory staff went down to Georgia to help Senators Loeffler and Perdue on their path to victory. It is imperative we hold the line and re-elect conservative leaders. Republicans made great gains in the U.S. House nationally, but we still need to maintain our conservative majority in the Senate. Otherwise, we risk having radical Democrat control in all three chambers of Congress. The fight for free and fair elections continues in Georgia. If you are interested in helping us win two very important Senate races, you can Volunteer Here! Sincerely, Jane M. Timken
Portman Introduces CARA 2.0 to Increase Access to Treatment, Prevention & Bolster Fight Against Addiction Epidemic Last week, U.S. Senators Rob Portman, Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) introduced the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act (CARA) 2.0 to increase the funding authorization levels for the Comprehensive Addiction & Recovery Act (CARA) programs enacted in 2016 and put in place additional policy reforms to help combat the opioid epidemic that has worsened during the coronavirus pandemic. CARA was a bipartisan, national effort designed to ensure that federal resources were devoted to evidence-based education, treatment and recovery programs that work. In FY 2020, CARA programs were funded at $658 million.
CARA 2.0 builds on this effort by increasing the funding authorization levels and laying out new policy reforms to strengthen the federal government’s response to this crisis. The CARA 2.0 bill text is here, section-by-section here, and a summary here.
Governor DeWine Announces Tax Credit Approvals; First Lady Promotes Imagination Library On Monday, Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted announced the approval of assistance for 16 projects set to create 4,183 new jobs and retain 1,051 jobs statewide. During its monthly meeting, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority (TCA) reviewed economic development proposals brought to the board by JobsOhio and its regional partners. Collectively, the projects are expected to result in more than $240 million in new payroll and spur more than $864 million in investments across Ohio. On Wednesday, Ohio First Lady Fran DeWine encouraged more Ohio children to enroll in Ohio’s Imagination Library Program as a new documentary about Imagination Library founder Dolly Parton premiered. “The Library That Dolly Built” is a behind-the-scenes look at the Imagination Library Program country music singer Dolly Parton started in 1995 to encourage reading to preschool children. In 2019, the Ohio Governor’s Imagination Library Program partnered with the Dolly Parton Imagination Library to spread the program throughout Ohio. Partnerships and funding have been established in each of Ohio’s 88 counties, so that all children who enroll – from birth to age 5 – can receive a free book in the mail each month to help accelerate their development. “Dolly Parton and her dedication to children’s literacy and this program is so inspiring,” said Ohio First Lady Fran DeWine. “We share a belief that the gift of reading is one of the best things you can give a child. We are proud of all the partners in Ohio that have ensured that every single eligible Ohio child can receive these books every month.” Currently 255,672 Ohio children younger than age 5, or 35% of eligible children, receive the Ohio Governor’s Imagination Library books. Nearly 2 million children worldwide receive free monthly books from the Imagination Library. For more information about the film, visit www.imaginationlibrary.com/film. To enroll children, parents and caregivers can sign up at OhioImaginationLibrary.org.
Husted Announces DataOhio Portal Lt. Governor Jon Husted and InnovateOhio, in partnership with the Department of Administrative Services and the Office of Information Technology’s InnovateOhio Platform (IOP), announced the launch of the DataOhio Portal, which offers a first-of-its kind service to Ohioans by delivering unprecedented access through an innovative, data-sharing platform. “We’ve all learned over the past year how critical data is to tackling our biggest challenges,” said Lt. Governor Husted. “The IOP team has built a one-stop-shop for the state’s data, providing a secure approach to data access and displaying datasets that, in some cases, are available now for the first time. This collaboration will help Ohio make better public policy decisions so we can better serve the people of our state.”
Yost Joins Lawsuit to End Facebook’s Illegal Monopoly Attorney General Dave Yost joined 48 attorneys general last week to file a lawsuit against Facebook, saying the company used dominance and monopoly power to illegally stifle competition and reduce consumer privacy. The lawsuit alleges that Facebook illegally acquired competitors in a predatory manner over the last decade, depriving users of the benefits of competition, and reducing privacy protections. “Facebook’s unchecked power has grabbed an alarming level of control over what we see, say, buy and even who our friends are,” Yost said. “It is a dangerous seduction where we, as consumers, have become the product for Facebook by controlling so many aspects of our lives.
LaRose to Preside Over the 55th Ohio Electoral College On Monday, December 14, 2020 at noon, the 18 members of Ohio’s Electoral College will gather in the Senate Chamber of The Ohio Statehouse to cast their electoral votes for President and Vice-President of the United States for Donald J. Trump and Michael R. Pence. You can watch the state’s 55th Electoral College At Facebook.com/FrankLaRose. Faber Recognizes City of Niles with Auditor of State Award After taking office in 2019, one of Auditor of State Keith Faber’s first acts was to remove the City of Niles from fiscal emergency, after years of bad bookkeeping had put the city into a dire financial situation. This week, Auditor Faber returned to honor the city with one of the highest distinctions from his office: an Auditor of State Award. Hear more about Niles’ journey from fiscal emergency to fiscal excellence by clicking here.
Sprague’s Family Forward Proposal Clears the Senate On Wednesday, the Ohio Senate unanimously approved House Bill 405, a measure to create Treasurer Robert Sprague’s Family Forward initiative. The new program will help families to lessen the financial burdens often experience when navigating the adoption process.
“Too often, families shy away from adoption when faced with the skyrocketing costs associated with it,” said Treasurer Sprague. “With the Senate’s passage of House Bill 405, we take a big step forward for Ohio’s families to alleviate some of that financial burden and help bring more children into loving homes. I thank Representative Cross, Senator Burke, and the Ohio General Assembly for their leadership and support of Family Forward.”
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