Ohio’s Bid to Keep Transgender Athletes Out of Women’s Sports Fails

The Ohio state House of Representatives failed to pass a bill that would have banned transgender athletes from competing in sports outside of their biological gender, despite passing the Ohio state Senate only hours before.

The bill was first introduced in the House in June by Rep. Jena Powell and originally included a line requiring athletes to undergo a physical exam to determine their biological gender, according to FOX 8. During a 2 a.m. vote, the House failed to pass the bill after the state Senate included it in Senate bill 178, which stripped the State Board of Education of significant powers and gave control of educational policy enforcement to the governor Wednesday, according to the Columbus Dispatch.

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Legislation Could Create Licensure Reciprocity in Ohio

Ohio moved a step closer to recognizing business licenses from other states, which could help with an ongoing labor shortage, a Columbus-based policy group believes.

The House and Senate each passed versions of bills that would adopt universal occupational license recognition before the summer recess, a move The Buckeye Institute believes will make the state more attractive to newcomers and allow employers more options to fill open spots.

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Ohio Representative Jena Powell: ‘Ohioans Deserve Better Than They Are Getting Now’

Representative Jena Powell (R-Arcanum) is a freshman legislator from Ohio’s 80th District with the tenacity of a rookie and the strategic thinking of a veteran. During a Friday afternoon phone call with The Ohio Star, Powell said “everyone can speak on things, but it takes a plan to get there. I am not the kind of person that says ‘open Ohio’ and doesn’t have a plan – you have to have a plan to get to the endpoint.”

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Ohio School Reopening Plan Draws Criticism

Schools in Ohio are planning to employ a mix of in-person, at-home and hybrid options when schools reopen, according to the Ohio Department of Education.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the state has left the decision on how to start the new school year to individual school districts.

Schools in Ohio are planning to employ a mix of in-person, at-home and hybrid options when schools reopen, according to the Ohio Department of Education.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the state has left the decision on how to start the new school year to individual school districts.

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Ohio Bill Proposal Would Prevent Biological Men From Competing in Women’s Sports

Two Ohio state representatives are set to introduce a bill this week that would prevent biological men from competing in women’s sports.

The Save Women’s Sports Act (SWSA), co-sponsored by Jena Powell (R-Arcanum) and Reggie Stoltzfus (R-Paris Twp.), will designate that sport teams be based on a person’s biological sex rather than how he or she feels.

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