Ohio lawmakers fail to address tainted House Bill 6: Capitol Letter
Rotunda Rumblings
6 feet under: The 133rd Ohio General Assembly will end its two-year session without passing any legislation that in any way addresses House Bill 6, the nuclear bailout law at the center of an enormous bribery scandal. As Jeremy Pelzer writes, the reason for such a stunning failure is that legislative Republicans, who dominate both the Ohio House and Senate, are split about whether to keep, repeal, or reform the law.
Sine die? The Ohio House won’t hold any more voting sessions this year, sources said, unless the Senate votes to override Gov. Mike DeWine’s veto of Senate Bill 311, which would strip the governor of his power to issue statewide coronavirus orders. The Senate didn’t hold an override vote, though as Laura Hancock reports, it amended a tax bill to prohibit Ohio governors from closing stores during an infectious disease outbreak in a way that would hurt small businesses because big box stores carrying essentials could remain open.