House Activity For Tuesday, February 2, 2010

INTRODUCED

HB 434	LAYOFF NOTICES (Yuko) To require certain employers to give advanced notice of mass layoffs, worksite closings, and transfers of operation. Am. 4141.28, 4141.301, and 4141.35 and to enact sections 4143.01 to 4143.09 Full Text
HB 435	TAX APPEALS (Goodwin, Okey) To authorize any person currently permitted to appeal a decision of a county board of revision to the Board of Tax Appeals to instead appeal the decision to the county court of common pleas. Am. 5717.05 Full Text
HB 436	GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS (Balderson, Boose) To authorize a state agency to contract out its provision of a good or service to a private contractor under specific contractual provisions; to require the state agency to prepare a business case before executing such a contract; to create the Council on Efficient Government to review business cases, issue advisory reports, and undertake other duties regarding contracting out the provision of a good or service; to require the Council to prepare an annual report; and to require the Governor to select goods or services that could be provided by a private contractor and submit the selections for Council review. Am. 107.35 and 121.80 to 121.88 Full Text

REFERRED TO COMMITTEE

Agriculture & Natural Resources:

HB 426

OIL & GAS LAWS (Skindell, Stewart, D.) To revise the Oil and Gas Law. Full Text

Civil & Commercial Law:

HB 427

CLASS ACTION SUITS (Schneider, Sykes) To declare how monetary awards in class actions that are not paid over to members of the class are to be used. Full Text

Commerce & Labor:

HB 432

UNEMPLOYMENT COMPENSATION (Pryor) To create the shared work unemployment compensation program. Full Text

Criminal Justice:

HB 429

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE (Harris, M., Lehner) To increase the penalties for domestic violence, to authorize a court to issue a protection order against a person convicted of domestic violence and to prohibit violation of such a protection order, to require a peace officer who has reasonable grounds to believe that a violation of a protection order has been committed to arrest any person who the peace officer has reasonable cause to believe is guilty of the violation, to require an offender who commits domestic violence to meet periodically with the sentencing judge and attend a batterer intervention program, to authorize a board of county commissioners to create a domestic violence fatality review board, and to require the Attorney General to track the issuance and violation of protection orders. Full Text

Economic Development:

HB 423

WORKFORCE TRAINING (Williams, S.) To create the Industry Sector Strategy Training Program, to require the awarding of academic credit to individuals who complete the program, and to require the Department of Job and Family Services to streamline core services provided under the federal Workforce Investment Act. Full Text

Education:

HB 424

OCOG GRANTS (Williams, S.) To qualify students in non-credit community college programs for Ohio College Opportunity Grants and to require the awarding of academic credit for community colleges' career certification programs. Full Text

Finance & Appropriations:

SB 4	PERFORMANCE AUDITS (Schaffer) To require the Auditor of State to conduct performance audits of the Bureau of Workers' Compensation, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Natural Resources, Department of Agriculture, and Department of Health. Full Text
SB 155	SWCD FUNDS/AUDITS (Carey, Miller, D.) To require that the costs of all biennial audits of state agencies be charged to the state agency being audited, to alter the allocation of the proceeds of the existing fee on the sale of new tires in order to provide funding for the Soil and Water Conservation District Assistance Fund, and to increase the maximum amount of the annual soil and water conservation district subsidy. Full Text
SB 185	STATE FUND TRANSFERS (Jones) To prohibit the transfer of cash from certain non-General Revenue Funds to the General Revenue Fund. Full Text
HB 428	MOTORIST LATE FEES (Boose, Amstutz) To eliminate the late fee of twenty dollars for motor vehicle registrations, commercial driver's licenses, driver's licenses, and motorcycle endorsements established by the biennial transportation appropriations act of the 128th General Assembly for deposit primarily into the State Highway Safety Fund. Full Text
HB 430	STATE EMPLOYEE SALARIES (Morgan, Goodwin) To base the total amount that the administrative departments spend on the salaries or wages of their employees on changes in the Gross Domestic Product of Ohio. Full Text

Health:

HB 420

BREAST CANCER (Boyd) To designate October 13 as Metastatic Breast Cancer Awareness Day. Full Text

Insurance:

SB 213

WORKERS COMPENSATION (Faber) To require the Administrator of Workers' Compensation to make specified changes concerning workers' compensation premium rates. Full Text

Judiciary:

HB 431

COURT COSTS (Okey, Huffman) To provide consolidated references to Revised Code sections that establish costs and fees, other than attorney fees, in the courts of record of this state. Full Text

Public Utilities:

HB 425

TOWING (Heard) To grant the Public Utilities Commission exclusive regulatory jurisdiction over all common and contract carrier towing companies and preempt local regulation, authorize the commission to establish a new certification program for common and contract carrier towing companies and a registration system for towed vehicle storage companies, authorize certain commission regulation of vehicle storage companies, revise law governing private tow-away zones, and make conforming changes in motor transportation company public utility law. Full Text

State Government:

HB 421

BINGO (Stebelton, Goyal) To allow the distribution of a free instant bingo ticket as a prize or promotional item, to modify the definition of "instant bingo," to eliminate a requirement relating to sales from a deal of instant bingo tickets, to increase from two to three the number of bingo sessions that a charitable organization may conduct in any seven-day period, to increase the aggregate prize limit distributed at a bingo session from $3,500 to $6,000, to authorize up to three charitable organizations to conduct bingo sessions at the same leased location in any calendar week, and to permit landlords to lease bingo equipment to a charitable organization. Full Text

Transportation & Infrastructure:

HB 422

ROAD NAMING (Combs) To designate a portion of State Route 4 within the municipal corporation of Fairfield only as the "Lance Corporal Taylor Prazynski Memorial Highway." Full Text

Veterans Affairs:

HB 433

MILITARY LEAVE (Ujvagi, Grossman) To provide publicly employed fire fighters and emergency medical technicians with a minimum paid military leave of seventeen 24-hour days. Full Text

Ways & Means:

HB 419

COLLEGE LOANS (Derickson, Mallory) To authorize an income tax deduction for the otherwise taxable portion of a federal Pell grant used to pay room and board for a post-secondary student. Full Text

COMMITTEE HEARINGS

Civil & Commercial Law

SB 183

ARCHITECTS LAW (Schaffer) To eliminate a grandfather exemption from the requirements of the Architects Law granted to certain operations. Full Text (CONTINUED; 1st Hearing-Sponsor)

Sen. Schaffer explained the bill was being offered on behalf of the Ohio Architects Board after finding they had no authority requiring a licensed architect to be involved with a firm that had been passed from generation to generation through a grandfathering mechanism. The grandfathering clause was originally provided for long-established firms already operating to avoid paperwork resulting from new ownership regulation.

Sen. Schaffer said the bill would simply close a loophole that prohibited any action by the board when informed a non-licensed architect was practicing after the purchase of an existing grandfathered architecture firm and, as such, did not have to comply with licensing requirements.

The sponsor said the bill would simply move the grandfathering provision from the beginning of the architecture section which exempts grandfathered companies from the ownership to the section dealing specifically with ownership requirements. He explained this would narrow the grandfathering provision to make sure that a company can keep passing down from parent to children while assuring that the company will use licensed architects to provide professional services.

HB 361

PERSONAL INJURY ACTIONS (Murray) To provide that in actions for damages arising from personal injury or wrongful death evidence that certain charges and fees in a written bill or statement are not reasonable and that the provision of certain specified services are not necessary is admissible to rebut the prima-facie evidence of reasonableness and necessity and that certain evidence is not admissible to rebut the prima-facie evidence of reasonableness in those actions. Full Text (REPORTED; 4th Hearing-Possible amendments & vote)

Tim Maglione, senior director of government relations for the Ohio State Medical Association, reiterated opposition to the bill and expressed concerns that it may have a negative impact on medical malpractice insurance rates that have cooled with the passage of tort reform some five years ago. He said tort reform has worked with a stabilization of premiums in the insurance market allowing doctors to get back to work taking care of their patients. He said the principle of insurance is money in and money out and if a jury gets only reasonable damages, rather than actual damages, awards will go up and malpractice insurance premiums will be impacted.

Rep. Dyer said he did not believe it to be damaging to rates to have this information at trial, otherwise there would be a mass exodus of health care providers from the state. Rep. Skindell declared that all the bill is doing is keeping in practice what has been in practice for years. "If we're keeping the status quo, how does that work to increase premiums?" he asked.

Mr. Maglione responded that is comes back to the make whole doctrine. If a jury doesn't get all the information about actual damages, awards and premiums will go up, he said.

Rep. Huffman offered, but had tabled, an amendment that would have allowed health care providers to recover any excess settlement amount that the provider accepted as full payment for any charges and fees. Rep. Coley had originally submitted the amendatory language and questioned the germaneness of it declaring that it had not been properly presently to the chair by Rep. Huffman. Chairman Okey ruled that the amendment had been "forfeited" by Rep. Coley and, therefore, was properly before the committee. Declaring that the language needed more work, Mr. Okey then accepted a motion to table.

Separately, the OSMA reported the number of medical liability closed claims is down 40% since enactment of tort reform in 2005. Mr. Maglione noted that according to Department of Insurance data in the fourth Ohio Medical Liability Closed Claim Report, medical liability closed claims in the state dropped 11% from 2007 to 2008 following declines of 14% and 21% in the previous two reporting periods.

Mr. Maglione noted that the ODI report showed that four out of every five medical liability closed claims resulted in no payment to a claimant for a fourth straight year. The report, requiring medical liability insurers to report data to the department regarding medical liability claims against doctors and other health professionals that close during the year, is a mandated part of the tort reform legislation trumpeted by the OSMA in 2005. Other parts of the reform included a $350,000 cap on non-economic damages, affidavit of merit requirement, statute of repose and limitations on claims.

Mr. Maglione added that since 2006, premiums have decreased by an average of 22% with some carriers having decreased rates by as much as 40%.

HB 379

CORPORATION LAW (Carney, Mecklenborg) To make changes to the law governing corporations including dissenting shareholders and the dissolution of a corporation. Full Text (REPORTED-AMENDED; 4th Hearing-Possible amendments & vote)

The panel adopted two substantive and one technical amendment prior to a final vote to report to Rules with a recommendation for passage.

One amendment provides for a right to indemnification or to advancement of expenses will not be eliminated or impaired unless the provision in effect at the time of the act or omission explicitly authorizes that elimination or impairment after the act or omission has occurred. Another amendment provides that the recording of corporate mortgages include mortgages by electric cooperatives.

HB 338

DRIVERS LICENSES (Book, Uecker) To allow, in certain circumstances, all issues concerning a person's driver's license to be litigated in a single court. Full Text (CONTINUED; 2nd Hearing-Proponent)

Columbus attorney Cleve Johnson appeared in support of the measure on behalf of the Ohio State Bar Association. He said the bill would simply allow a single venue to clear up driver license violations and suspensions. He noted that currently some issues can start in one court, moving to an administrative appeal with the Bureau of Motor Vehicles and then back to a different court for reinstatement of driver privileges.

HB 391

ADDRESS CONFIDENTIALITY (Chandler) To establish an address confidentiality program for individuals who reasonably believe that they are in danger of being threatened or physically harmed by another person. Full Text (CONTINUED; 3rd Hearing-Proponent)

Phyllis Carlson-Riehm, executive director for ACTION Ohio Coalition for Battered Women, said the bill would provide for the first time a new option for victims who she said must go into hiding to keep safe and to keep their children safe. She said that going into hiding and using the address confidentiality program is a last resort and will not be the choice of every victim who believes her life is in danger.

Ms. Carlson-Riehm noted that other states have implemented such programs demonstrating that address confidentiality programs within state government can work. She reported that the Ohio Secretary of State has created such a plan that needs not to be expensive or complicated as long as it is limited to domestic violence victims whose lives are at risk. It is not, she added, intended to be an escape hatch for individuals who are avoiding their responsibilities, have criminal motivations or a shady past they want to hide from or simply want to be reclusive.

Asked whether a better method to seek confidentiality would be through the court process of obtaining a protective order, the bill's prime sponsor Rep. Chandler said many victims are terrified to seek a court protective order and all they want to do is to hide. "The only people who would do this are people who are truly terrified," he said.

A Jane Doe told her personal story of being stalked and declared that she believed an address confidentiality program could make the difference in saving lives of victims of domestic violence, stalking and sexual assault. She said that many law enforcement and prosecution agencies lack personnel with expertise in stalking cases and lack policies for responding to stalking complaints and most convicted stalkers are sentenced to probation and offense-specific treatment for stalkers is non-existent. She urged the panel to approve the legislation and put Ohio among the 37 states that already have such programs.

Eve Francis testified that that even though she as a civil protective order in place against a man who had repeatedly stalked her, she is fearful to vote because public records would expose her residence thereby jeopardizing her safety and security as well as that of her daughter. "Every time I vote I am hit with the sobering reality that this abuser could easily find my residence. In past years, through sheer passion for our democracy, I have taken the risk and voted in fear, cowering with dreaded anticipation that he might find out my residence again," she said.

Elections & Ethics

HJR 13

SUPERMAJORITY VOTE (Domenick) Proposing to amend Sections 1b, 1c, and 1g of Article II and Section 1 of Article XVI of the Constitution of the State of Ohio to require sixty-seven per cent of the electors voting on an initiative or referendum to vote in favor of the issue in order for the issue to be approved. Full Text (CONTINUED; 1st Hearing-Sponsor)

Citing last November's vote authorizing casino gambling as an example, Rep. Domenick said there is a need to raise the bar for approving constitutional amendments to ensure that changes "really reflect the will of the people." He pointed out that shortly after approval of the four-city casino measure, negotiations began in Columbus to move the facility from the downtown Arena District to the west side of the city. That change also will require approval of another constitutional amendment in the May 4 primary.

Rep. Domenick's resolution proposes asking voters to approve a constitutional amendment to require 67% voter approval of any ballot issue that changes the Ohio Constitution. "This resolution would in no way limit the right of the citizens of Ohio to bring initiative petitions," he said in sponsor testimony. "I do not want to hinder the ability of the people of this state to force an issue before the people if we in the legislature are not being responsive."

Rep. Book asked why the supermajority was set at 67%, noting that only 60 votes are needed in the 99-member House to place an amendment before voters. Rep. Domenick was receptive to lowering the percentage required for adoption. "If we want to change it to 60% that's a good idea," he said. "Fifty plus one should not change the constitution."

Rep. Morgan said he agreed with the sponsor in principle, but asked if he would consider a look-back system in which an amendment would be subject to a renewal vote after several years. Rep. Domenick said once an amendment such as the casino plan was implemented, and money spent on construction, it would be difficult to repeal and could wind up costing taxpayers.

Rep. Hackett asked if the sponsor had researched past elections to determine what constitutional changes would have failed had the supermajority requirement been in effect. Rep. Domenick said he had not conducted such a review, but estimated that if the passage rate had been 67% that about 90% of the issues would not have passed. At 60%, he said, perhaps half of them would not have been approved.

HJR 15

REDISTRICTING (Letson) Proposing to amend Sections 1, 2, 6, 12, 13, and 15 of Article XI, to amend, for the purpose of adopting new section numbers as indicated in parentheses, Sections 6 (3), 12 (6), 13 (7), and 15 (9) of Article XI, to enact new Sections 4, 5, and 8 of Article XI, and to repeal Sections 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 14 of Article XI of the Constitution of the State of Ohio to revise the process for apportioning the state for General Assembly districts. Full Text (CONTINUED (See separate story); 1st Hearing-All testimony-Possible amendments & vote)

HB 358

ABSENTEE VOTING (Ujvagi) To change the time by which absent voter's ballots must be ready, to authorize the Secretary of State to make emergency revisions in the armed service absent voting provisions, and to establish write-in absent voter's ballots for certain overseas voters who are unable to cast regular absent voter's ballots. Full Text (SCHEDULED BUT NOT HEARD; 1st Hearing-Sponsor)