The Buckeye Institute won another legal victory. This time, the city of Cleveland paid The Buckeye Institute the maximum allowed under Ohio law to cover its damages after Buckeye took the city to court for refusing to turn over public records in accordance with Ohio law. “The public has a clear right to public records, and Cleveland could have avoided this payout by simply complying with The Buckeye Institute’s lawful request.”

The Buckeye Institute filed an amicus brief in Gun Owners of America v. ATF, calling on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to uphold the Freedom of Information Act and reverse the lower court’s ill-advised ruling restricting the use of public documents, something the FOIA law does not allow. “In the lower court’s ruling, the court has given itself a new power to create a new governmental right under the Freedom of Information Act that does not exist and that Congress did not authorize.” 

The Buckeye Institute submitted written testimony to the Ohio Senate Local Government Committee on the policies in Ohio House Bill 335, which, if adopted, will help ease property tax burdens on Ohioans. Buckeye urged lawmakers to reform local government, as recommended by The Buckeye Institute, to help lower property taxes. The policies in House Bill 335 are “sorely needed to protect Ohio taxpayers from an outmoded, undemocratic system that has cost them dearly.”

The Buckeye Institute submitted written testimony to the Ohio Senate Local Government Committee on the policies in Ohio House Bill 186, which will help rein in unvoted property tax increases. Buckeye urged lawmakers to reform local government, as recommended by The Buckeye Institute, to help ease property tax burdens on Ohioans and noted that House Bill 186 takes a “decisive step toward a more efficient local government structure and property tax system.”

The Buckeye Institute testified before the Ohio House Judiciary Committee on the policies in Ohio House Bill 88, urging lawmakers to protect The Buckeye Institute-championed mens rea reforms, which were “the first and best of their kind in the country.” “For more than a decade, Ohio has demonstrated its commitment to prudent, commonsense criminal justice policies and reforms,” but “House Bill 88 retreats from those reforms” by removing mens rea requirements in some circumstances.

The Buckeye Institute testified before the Ohio Senate Health Committee on the policies in Ohio Senate Bill 198, which should be tailored narrowly to make the opaque 340B drug pricing program more transparent. Rea S. Hederman, vice president of policy at The Buckeye Institute, noted that Senate Bill 198 “makes a noble effort to help Ohio’s community health centers,” and urged the committee to ensure “that any action Ohio takes does not undermine program sustainability or raise costs.”

In a new policy memo, The Buckeye Institute outlines how Senate Bill 256 and House Bill 534 take reasonable, necessary steps to help Ohio families seeking debt relief. “Ohio’s household debt crisis demands practical, consumer-focused solutions. Clarifying the state’s debt-settlement law offers a responsible path forward by enhancing consumer choice. Senate Bill 256 and House Bill 534 take reasonable, necessary steps to help Ohio families seeking debt relief.”

The Buckeye Institute testified before the Ohio House Energy Committee on the policies in Ohio Senate Bill 103, which will help create a dynamic energy future for Ohio by eliminating rigid regulatory procedures for approving natural gas projects. The Buckeye Institute noted that delays in approving natural gas projects undermine Ohio’s “economic and technological growth,” and that the policies in Senate Bill 103 will “help keep Ohio competitive and spur economic development by attracting new technology and industrial investment.”

The Buckeye Institute testified before the Ohio House General Government Committee on the policies in Ohio House Bill 59, which opens doors to Ohio’s workers by eliminating and reforming unnecessary occupational licensing requirements that make it harder to start a new career or get a promotion. The Buckeye Institute urged lawmakers to adopt the recommendations outlined in The Buckeye Institute’s third Opening Doors policy brief and eliminate or reform 39 state-required licenses. 

The Buckeye Institute submitted written testimony to the Ohio Senate Local Government Committee on the policies in Ohio House Bill 309, which gives county budget commissions another tool to reduce property tax levies if the levies collect more taxes than the voters approved. This is one of the 10 recommendations The Buckeye Institute offered to the Property Tax Reform Working Group to lower Ohio’s soaring property taxes.