Columbus, OH – Building on an idea proposed by The Buckeye Institute in 2016, policymakers have introduced legislation to increase job opportunities for military families. Senate Bill 320 and House Bill 716 were introduced by Senators Bill Beagle (SD-5) and Peggy Lehner (SD-6), and representatives Jim Butler (HD-41) and Rick Perales (HD-73) respectively.

The bills received their first hearings today and Greg R. Lawson, a research fellow at The Buckeye Institute commented, saying:

“Families of those serving our nation deserve to be able to work in their chosen profession, unencumbered by government red tape as they move from state to state. And the policies in Senate Bill 320 and House Bill 716 will make it easier for military spouses to immediately start working when their family is transferred to Ohio.” 

Lawson continued:

“Military families aren’t the only ones who deserve the right to earn a living in their chosen field of work. Ohio needs significant occupational licensing reform to enable our fellow Ohioans to start their careers and find good paying jobs. The policies in Senate Bill 255 would remove barriers to employment for workers across Ohio—particularly young and minority workers—and would ensure that Ohioans are not harmed by burdensome exclusionary policies that stop people from working.”

Senate Bill 320 and House Bill 716, which arose from recommendations made by The Buckeye Institute in its policy brief Increasing Job Opportunities for Military Families, would grant full professional licenses to military spouses as long as the requirements for the license they held in another state are similar to, or more stringent than, those of Ohio. For military spouses whose out-of-state license is not similar to Ohio standards, they would be able to obtain a temporary license while they pursue an Ohio license.

Senate Bill 255 (sponsored by Senator Rob McColley (SD-1)) would fix Ohio’s broken occupational licensing system by removing burdensome licensing requirements while giving Ohio legislators the power to rigorously review existing and new licensing laws.

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