SB 178 • HB 151 • HB 458 • State Board of Education
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Statehouse
House Votes 46-41Against
Senate Bill 178 & House Bill 151
Partisan State Takeover of Public Education
and LGBTQ+ Discrimination FAIL
This morning around 2:30am, the House voted against amendments to
House Bill 151 that folded in Senate Bill 178, a transgender athlete ban, and anti-discrimination protections for children not vaccinated against COVID-19.
Throughout the week, there were many stops and starts of meetings and chamber sessions, essentially allowing legislators to barter and trade Ohio public education and the rights of Ohio students like commodities and political currency.
The pathway for both bills was long and winding, we've provided a helpful timeline below. You can watch all committee meetings and chamber sessions on
The Ohio Channel.
At this point, there are no other meetings scheduled for General Assembly, and the House and Senate have indicated they will NOT meet for their "if needed" meetings next week. Absent any changes in the legislature's schedule, this closes the legislative activity for the 134th General Assembly.
Timeline of SB 178 & HB 151 this week:
- Monday, Dec 12, 1pm - House Primary and Secondary Education Committee hears sponsor testimony for SB 178
- Tuesday, Dec 13, 2pm - House Primary and Secondary Education Committee hears proponent/opponent/interested party testimony for SB 178
- Tuesday, Dec 13, 3pm - Senate Primary and Secondary Education Committee hears proponent/opponent/interested party testimony for HB 151
- Wednesday, Dec 14, 9:30am - House Primary and Secondary Education Committee hears more proponent/opponent/interested party testimony for SB 178 (meeting paused for a recess, was scheduled to return at 12:30pm, never did)
- Wednesday, Dec 14, 11:30am - 9pm-ish - House and Senate caucus on and off throughout the day trying to secure votes for SB 178 in the House and searching for bills to add SB 178 language as an amendment
- Wednesday, Dec 14, 1pm - House Session
- Wednesday, Dec 14, 1:30pm - Senate Session
- Wednesday, Dec 14, 3pm - Senate Primary and Secondary Education Committee votes 4-2 to pass HB 151
- Wednesday, Dec 14, 10pm - Senate votes 23-7 to approve amendments to HB 151, including Senate Bill 178, a transgender athlete ban, and anti-discrimination protections for children not vaccinated against COVID-19
- Thursday, Dec 15, 2am - House votes 46-41 to reject Senate amendments to HB 151
Resources
- Learn more about SB 178 HERE
- Learn more about HB 151 HERE
News
DEMOCRACY - TAKE ACTION!
HB 458
From the League of Women Voters Ohio:
In the marathon session that lasted into morning hours of the following day, the Ohio House of Representatives passed SUB HB 458. The bill makes numerous and significant changes to Ohio’s elections and voting laws that would likely disenfranchise Ohio’s most vulnerable and disadvantaged populations.
SUB HB 458 was not originally on the agenda as House Republicans indicated they would not concur with the changes agreed to in the Senate, but after backdoor negotiations between the two chambers, the Ohio House eventually approved the bill, sending it to the Governor to be signed.
Some of the most significant changes to this massive overhaul of Ohio’s elections and voting law include:
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An unnecessarily prohibitive photo ID requirement to vote.
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Reducing the grace period for absentee ballots that will punish Ohioans for slow mail and make voting even harder for our active duty military serving abroad
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Limiting drop boxes to one per county at the county board, that opens after the voter registration deadline.
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Prohibiting using military ID for voter registration
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Requires a Driver's License, State ID or the last four digits of a person's Social Security number, to register to vote.
TAKE ACTION
Call Governor DeWine at 614-644-4357 OR 614-466-3555
Demand that he VETO SUB HB 458
The bill sits on Governor Dewine's bill awaiting his signature but WE STILL HAVE A CHANCE.
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State Board of Education
At the State Board of Education meeting on December 13, Board members voted 10-7 to adopt an amended version of Member Mike Toal's Resolution to Oppose the Proposed Changes to Title IX and to Affirm Parental Rights and Local Control of Ohio K-12 Education. The amendment struck the preamble describing sex as biological sex. Toal's final resolution is a watered-down version of Member Brendan Shea's original resolution introduced in September.
VOTE COUNT: 10-7-1-1
- 10 YES: Walt Davis, Diana Fessler, Sue Hackett, John Hagan, Kirsten Hill, Jenny Kilgore, Paul LaRue, Charlotte McGuire, Brendan Shea, and Mike Toal
- 7 NO: Christina Collins, Michelle Newman, Meryl Johnson, Antoinette Miranda, Martha Manchester, Melissa Bedell, Tim Miller
- 1 ABSTAIN: Mark Lamoncha
- 1 ABSENT: Brandon Kern
Contact State Board members sharing the impact their vote has on YOU and your community. Contact HERE
Toal's amended resolution:
- does not recognize federal anti-discrimination protections based on sex extend to gender identity and sexuality (see landmark decision of the US Supreme Court in Bostock v Clayton County;
- rejects Title IX anti-discrimination protections extending to LGBTQ+ students;
- opposes recent updates to the US Department of Education's Title IX agency guidance about complying with federal Title IX anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ students;
- sides with a lawsuit filed by the Ohio Attorney General, and 21 other attorneys general, suing the US Dept. of Agriculture for their rule requiring schools receiving federal nutrition funding must comply with federal anti-discrimination laws;
- asks the General Assembly to endorse and protect school districts that discriminate against LGBTQ+ students; and
- requires the acting state superintendent send a letter to every Ohio public school district and every Ohio elementary or secondary school or preschool program licensed by the Department of Education receiving federal funds stating:
- The State Board opposes the proposed regulatory changes released by the U.S. Department of Education on June 23, 2022
- The applicable USDOE guidance documents have been enjoined by a U.S. District Court and are, therefore, unenforceable at this time
- The State Board disagrees with the rule promulgated by the Department of Agriculture on June 14, 2022
- While this rule currently remains in effect, the Ohio Attorney General has joined with twenty-one other state attorneys general in seeking injunctive relief from the new USDA rule
- This correspondence is intended to inform schools and districts, not to compel them to take a particular course of action
Learn more about the resolution HERE
❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚💙💜❤️🧡💛💚
THANK YOU!
OHIO SHOWED UP AND SPOKE OUT
Since the introduction of these harmful, discriminatory proposals in September, thousands of Ohioans have shown up and spoken out for Ohio LGBTQ+ students. At the State Board of Education, 159 people delivered in-person opposition testimony, 32 Honesty partner organizations delivered in-person opposition testimony, and 308 people and organizations submitted written opposition testimony.
Watch and read the testimony from hundreds of Ohioans demanding the State Board prioritize affirming, inclusive policies that protect the rights and safety of ALL Ohio children.
Sept Watch | Read
Oct Watch | Read
Nov Watch | Read
Dec Watch | Read
THE FIGHT IS NOT OVER! This targeted discrimination and endangerment of Ohio children have NO HOME at the State Board of Education and Ohio public schools. The work continues...
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Visit the Honesty website to learn how you can help protect honest education across Ohio!
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Follow Honesty @Honesty4OhioEd
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