Jo Ingles

A bill in the Ohio House would make it illegal for employers or schools to mandate vaccinations. Gov. Mike DeWine has some thoughts on the measure.

The Ohio State Highway Patrol says distracted driving is a big problem and to prove it, the agency is tracking those cases on a new public dashboard. 

Ohio is using millions in federal pandemic relief dollars to try to prevent rock slides on roads in some parts of Ohio. 

If you live in wooded parts of Ohio, you are probably hearing the chorus produced by the cicadas these days. Many think the bugs that come out every 17 years are noisy pests. But for some, the cicadas are interesting and even on the dinner plate.

Democrats in Ohio continue to push for passage of a bill designed to provide equity for LGBTQ plus Ohioans when it comes to housing and employment. And the lawmakers who back the bill say June, which is PRIDE month, is a good time to draw attention to it. 

The Speaker of the Ohio House says recent false comments made during testimony by a doctor opposed to vaccines are out of the ordinary. But he's pushing back on questions about what to do when false statements are made in committee hearings, which are broadcast and archived by the state.

There are only two weeks left for Vaxamillion - the state’s weekly drawings in which vaccinated Ohioans can win a million dollars or a full-ride college experience. But Gov. Mike DeWine is hinting there might be some new prizes coming in the future. 

In recent years, when big budget bills have passed, controversial changes in laws over abortion have been attached. And it's happening in this budget as well.

One of the biggest corruption cases in the nation is happening right here in Ohio. Federal prosecutors are going after the former speaker of the Ohio House and the former head of the Ohio Republican Party, along with others, for federal crimes. But if there are crimes that occured at the state level, those could be affected by an amendment that has been slipped into a bill at the Statehouse.

The Ohio House and Senate are now considering different versions of their school funding plans as part of the upcoming state budget. Some of the members of a bipartisan group that created a school funding plan that was considered in the legislature last year want to refocus lawmakers on the proposal. 

There are 200,000 doses of the one-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine in Ohio that will expire later this month. Gov. Mike DeWine has issued an urgent communication to vaccine providers to ask them to distribute as many doses as possible as quickly as possible.

Doctors blame a range of misinformation and myths for the reasons why more Ohioans are not getting COVID vaccines right now. And health leaders say more people still need to get vaccinated in order to prevent pockets where the virus can be a bigger problem.

Mayors of some Ohio cities say past and future tax abatements might be affected by a bill under consideration that would allow employees to receive refunds on income taxes if they work from home in a different city. 

Republican Senate leaders say their budget makes proposed changes in child care that will make it more accessible to low-income Ohioans. But advocates for child cares say eliminating the state’s five-star rating system for daycares will hurt children. 

Ohio’s statewide pandemic health orders have expired. And while the mask mandate has also been lifted, doctors say there are people who should still be wearing masks. 

The election for governor is more than a year away but the Democrat who plans to challenge Mike DeWine is blasting him now for failing to rein in the nuclear power plant bailout scandal that has rocked the Statehouse since last July. 

Republican leaders of the Ohio Senate have proposed a $75-billion-dollar, two-year budget includes a 5% across-the-board income tax cut – which is a boost from 2% cut in the House budget. 

There is disagreement over whether the database that was created when vaccinated Ohioans entered the state’s Vax-A-Million lottery is a public record. Now, a bill is being introduced that would make sure it isn’t. 

Both of Ohio’s U.S. Senators voted for the establishment of a commission to investigate the Jan 6th insurrection. 

Earlier this week, at the urging of a Texas group that opposes abortion, the city council in Lebanon in southwest Ohio passed a law making it illegal to perform them there. But, there’s a part of that new law that leaves some considering a lawsuit. 

Those color-coded maps of COVID cases that Ohioans have been watching on the state’s coronavirus website to see how their counties fared as compared with others will be going away. 

This story was updated at 3 p.m., Thursday, May 27, 2021

More than 2.7 million Ohioans have signed up for the state’s vaxamillion drawings. But there are questions as to whether information Ohioans gave to be eligible for that drawing could be subject to public records laws. 

Last year, Ohio lawmakers passed a law allowing municipalities to continue to collect income taxes from employees who were temporarily working from home in other communities. The Ohio House has passed a bill that would change that. 

It’s been almost a year since former Speaker Larry Householder was indicted on federal bribery and racketeering charges  then was removed by the Ohio House from his leadership position. But he is still a member there, after being re-elected in November. Now, both Republicans and Democrats are making efforts to oust him from office. 

Democrats in Congress are pushing for a full investigation into the insurrection at the U.S. Capitol building this past January. One U.S. Senator from Ohio has some concerns about it if it comes to the floor. 

A new bill would allow athletes at Ohio’s colleges and universities to receive compensation from their name, image and likeness. 

As summer approaches and more Ohioans are getting vaccinated, many businesses are thinking about what the new normal will look like post-pandemic. Certainly not everyone can work from home. A poll from Morning Consult last month showed two-thirds of employees who can want to return to the office as soon as possible. But that same poll showed 84 percent enjoyed working remotely.

Yesterday, in a phone call with reporters, U.S. Sen. Rob Portman suggested Ohio reject the extra $300 a week that is being given to unemployed Ohioans. This is a follow-up question and answer during that call that provides more  insight on his comments . 

Governor Mike DeWine has signed into law a $465 million bill meant to help lower-income Ohioans pay for rent and mortgages. 

Ohio’s Republican U.S. Senator is urging the state to stop providing the $300 weekly federal checks to unemployed Ohioans, which will stop coming September 6 unless another COVID relief package extends them.