Governor Mike DeWine Announces Hundreds of Air Taxis to be Manufactured in Ohio

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lt. Governor Jon Husted, Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik, and JobsOhio President and CEO J.P. Nauseef announced on Monday that Joby Aviation Inc. plans to build an electric air taxi manufacturing facility in the state.

According to the press release, the company will build the facility at the Dayton International Airport and anticipates the project to create 2,000 new jobs in the area.

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Republican National Committee Launches Ohio’s State Buildout for ‘Bank Your Vote’

On Friday, Republican National Committee (RNC) Chairwoman Ronna McDaniel announced Ohio’s state buildout for “Bank Your Vote” and launched the State Leadership Team.

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Ohio to Spend over $111 Million to Support Tech-Based Companies in the State

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lt. Governor Jon Husted, and Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik announced that the state plans to spend approximately $111 million to support Ohio tech-based companies.

According to a press release, two new funds, the Ohio Early Stage Focus Fund, and the Ohio Venture Fund, will aid in boosting early-stage capital investments in Ohio technology-based businesses, accelerating the growth of high-potential businesses, and creating an environment that encourages the growth, retention, and recruitment of technology businesses to Ohio.

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Google Announces Another $1.7 Billion Investment in Central Ohio

Google announced on Monday the expansion of its footprint in Central Ohio, committing to invest another $1.7 billion between its data centers in New Albany, Columbus, and Lancaster.

Earlier this year, the firm announced that it would construct two new data centers in central Ohio, one in Lancaster and the other on South High Street in South Columbus, in addition to its existing data center complex in New Albany, bringing Google’s total investment in the state to over $2 billion. According to Google, as of May, it has generated nearly $13 billion in economic activity for businesses and nonprofits.

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Ohio Governor Mike DeWine Names Giles Allen as Director of Legislative Affairs

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced Monday that he named Giles Allen as his new director of Legislative Affairs.

Allen (pictured above), who is DeWine’s former deputy director of Legislative Affairs, will replace former director of Legislative Affairs Aaron Crooks, who Lt. Governor Jon Husted recently named as his chief of staff.

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Ohio State Issue 1 Defeated

After a long campaign season for and against Ohio State Issue 1 to raise the threshold to amend the state Constitution, voting numbers from county boards of elections are pouring in and being added to the unofficial results on the Ohio Secretary of State’s Website.

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Bernie Moreno and Kari Lake Rally Ohio Republicans to Vote in Support of Issue 1

On Monday, Republican businessman and candidate for U.S. Senate Bernie Moreno and Arizona Republican politician and former candidate for Arizona Governor Kari Lake rallied Republicans to vote in support of Ohio State Issue 1 on August 8th.

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Kari Lake Endorses Republican Businessman Bernie Moreno for U.S. Senate at Ohio GOP Rally

On Sunday, Arizona Republican politician and former candidate for Arizona Governor Kari Lake announced her endorsement for Republican businessman Bernie Moreno in his run for U.S. Senate against Ohio Democratic U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH) in 2024.

Lake made the announcement at a county Republican rally north of Columbus that she attended along with Moreno, Lt. Governor Jon Husted, and U.S. Representative Jim Jordan (R-OH-04) in support of Ohio State Issue 1 to raise the threshold to amend the state constitution. Lake spoke to about 500 people at the Union County Republican Party Summer Farm Fest in Marysville.

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Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted Names Aaron Crooks as New Chief of Staff

Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted announced on Tuesday that he named Aaron Crooks, former director of Legislative Affairs for Governor Mike DeWine, to serve as his new chief of staff.

Crooks, of Upper Arlington, has served as DeWine’s director of legislative affairs since 2021. As director of legislative affairs, he oversaw the development and promotion of the administration’s legislative agenda with the General Assembly and other stakeholders in that capacity. He worked for CareSource, OhioHealth, and the Office of Health Transformation before joining the DeWine-Husted administration. In 2002, he took a position with the Ohio Senate.

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Ohio Governor DeWine Announces New Cybersecurity Training for Local Governments

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted announced that CyberOhio is now to provide free services to local governments to improve their preparedness and resilience towards cybersecurity threats.

Local governments will be guided through three levels of cybersecurity preparedness by the new Ohio Persistent Cyber Improvement (O-PCI) program. Each level of cybersecurity advancement will include five steps: education, training, exercise, mentoring, and improvement.

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Ohio Lawmakers Introduce Legislation to Stop Meddling in Party Primaries

Two Republican Ohio lawmakers have introduced a bill into the Ohio House of Representatives to reinforce election integrity and stop meddling in party primaries.

House Bill (HB) 210, sponsored by State Representatives Jennifer Gross (R-West Chester) and Gary Click (R-Vickery), aims to require electors who want to change political parties to register as a member of that political party by December 31st.

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Amazon to Make Second-Largest Private Sector Investment in Ohio History

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted announced that Amazon Web Services is expanding its data center operations in central Ohio making the second-largest single private sector investment in Ohio’s history.

DeWine said that Amazon Web Services will invest an estimated $7.8 billion by the end of 2029 expanding its data center operations in the state and creating hundreds of new jobs. The new data centers will be equipped with networking hardware, computer servers, data storage devices, and other types of technology infrastructure needed to support cloud computing.

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State House Passes Legislation Modernizing the Ohio Revised Code to Save Taxpayer Dollars

The Ohio House of Representatives passed a Republican-backed legislation that attempts to save taxpayers millions of dollars statewide by modernizing the Ohio Revised Code.

The Ohio House passed the legislation with overwhelming bipartisan support by a vote of 94-1, advancing it to the senate for its consideration.

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Ohio to Offer East Palestine Business No-Interest Forgivable Loans to Recover Economic Losses

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lt. Governor Jon Husted, State Senator Michael Rulli (R-Salem), and State Representative Monica Blasdel (R-Columbiana County) announced that the state of Ohio is offering zero-interest, forgivable loans of up to $1 million to businesses affected by the catastrophic East Palestine train derailment earlier this year.

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Ohio Senate Budget Reinstates Proposal Requiring Verified Parental Consent Before Kids Can Use Social Media

Lawmakers in the Ohio Senate have reinstated Governor Mike DeWine’s requirement for verified parental consent before children use social media in their version of the state budget.

DeWine included the Social Media Parental Notification Act in the executive budget for 2023-24, which he submitted to the Ohio General Assembly in February. In April, the House Finance Committee removed the proposal from the budget in favor of a potential separate bill.

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Ohio Governor DeWine Discusses Ways to Address Growing Workforce Needs

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt. Governor Jon Husted joined with Ohio Business Round Table President and CEO Pat Tiberi to address growing needs in the state’s workforce.

According to Governor DeWine, investing in education to build a skilled workforce of Ohioans is critical to continue the economy’s growth and momentum.

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Ohio Governor DeWine Authorizes Ohio State Highway Patrol to Assist with Texas Border Surveillance

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine authorized a contingent from the Ohio State Highway Patrol to assist local law enforcement in Texas with border surveillance.

The authorization by Governor DeWine came in response to a request for assistance from Texas Governor Greg Abbott in resolving the escalating border crisis, which has been marked by surging immigration rates and overburdened local law enforcement.

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Governor DeWine Launches Statewide Online Portal Improving Ohio’s Foster and Adoption Process

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine and Lt.Governor Jon Husted have launched a new statewide online portal for Ohioans to inquire and apply to become foster or adoptive parents.

According to DeWine, this online portal will help make the foster care and adoption certification process easier and more accessible to prospective families.

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Ohio to Award over $23 Million in COVID-19 Funding to Support Arts Organizations Statewide

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine, Lt. Governor Jon Husted, and Ohio Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik have announced that the state of Ohio is awarding more than $23 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding to support arts organizations statewide.

One hundred thirty-nine organizations based in 35 counties will receive grant funding totaling $23,252,605.78 as part of the first round of the Ohio Arts Economic Relief Grant Program. The grant program was created in partnership with the Ohio General Assembly as part of a bill sponsored by State Senator George Lang (R-West Chester), which was later merged into House Bill (HB) 45. Over 400 groups applied for grants.

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Ohio Governor DeWine Signs Executive Order Expanding State’s Skill-Based Hiring Practices

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed an executive order to expand upon Ohio’s ambitions to be a national leader in skills-based hiring practices.

According to DeWine, the push toward skill-based hiring places more emphasis on specific coursework, skills, experience, and training while de-emphasizing earlier qualification standards expressed in academic degrees.

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Former Ohio Congressman Jim Renacci Pushes to Enforce and Clarify Current Law to Stop Party Raiding in Primary Elections

A former Republican lawmaker is pushing for Ohio to strengthen the state’s current laws to secure the primary election system and stop party raiding.

According to former Ohio Congressman Jim Renacci, the current Ohio election law, which allows challenges to party raiders in primary elections, is not being enforced.

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Lt. Governor Husted Pushes Ohio Lawmakers to Pass Proposal Requiring Verified Parental Consent Before Kids Use Social Media

According to Ohio Lt. Governor Jon Husted, if lawmakers do not pass a separate bill that includes the requirement for verified parental consent prior to children’s use of social media by June 30th, lawmakers should add it back into the state budget due for Governor Mike DeWine’s signature by that date.

“The Lt. Governor’s support for the Social Media Parental Notification Act remains very strong and he will continue to advocate for its passage this spring. The budget, along with the social media provision, is currently under consideration in the Senate and we are urging members’ support there as well,” Husted spokesperson Haley Carducci told The Star. 

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Ohio House Introduces Their Version of the State Budget

The Ohio House introduced its version of the state budget on Tuesday, including a $1 billion tax cut, higher income limits for school vouchers, and a ban on TikTok from government devices.

The second iteration of a plan to spend more than $86 billion over the subsequent two fiscal years is contained in the 5,300-page proposal known as House Bill (HB) 33.

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Ohio Proposal Aims to Require Verified Parental Consent Before Kids Can Use Social Media

A new proposal spearheaded by Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted would require certain online companies to obtain verified parental consent before permitting kids ages 16 and under to use their platforms.

The executive budget for 2023–24 that Governor Mike DeWine submitted last week to the Ohio General Assembly includes the Social Media Parental Notification Act.

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Ohio Lawmakers React to Governor DeWine’s State of the State Address

Following Governor Mike DeWine’s State of the State address in the Ohio House chamber on Tuesday, Ohio lawmakers in the House and Senate voiced their opinions.

DeWine centered his address on his budget proposal. The proposal will be presented in the Ohio House in the near future as a piece of legislation that the Ohio General Assembly will need to approve.

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Republican Think Tank Leader Matt Mayer Announces Exploratory Campaign for Ohio Governor in 2026

Republicans swept the statewide positions, beginning with the governor, in the November general election. However, a probable Republican candidate for the upcoming 2026 election for governor has already been identified.

Former president of the conservative policy organization Buckeye Institute, Matt Mayer now serves as president of Opportunity Ohio. Due to the time and resources required to create that campaign, he has decided to launch an exploratory campaign for the Republican nomination for governor in 2026.

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Ohio Lawmaker Proposes Bill Prohibiting COVID-19 Vaccination Discrimination in Schools

An Ohio lawmaker introduced a bill that would prohibit a public or private school from discriminating against an individual based on COVID-19 vaccination status.

Republican Representative Scott Lipps (R-OH-62) put forward House Bill (HB) 739 earlier this month. Although the state does not mandate COVID-19 vaccines in schools, Lipps said HB 739 is a preemptive measure for future law changes.

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Ohio Governor DeWine Delivers Update on State Response to COVID

Governor DeWine held a 90-minute briefing during which Lt. Governor Jon Husted and Ohio Department of Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff contributed.

The following information was relayed by the trio during the Tuesday session.

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Ohio Hits Milestone in Funding for Businesses to Train Employees

Nearly 300 Ohio companies are in line for funding aimed at increasing training for current and new employees.

Lt. Gov. Jon Husted said the state’s TechCred program has reached nearly 1,000 companies after the latest application period. Husted serves as the director of the Governor’s Office of Workforce Transformation.

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Sinking Approval and Boos Don’t Move DeWine Off the Dime 

Ohio Republican Governor Mike DeWine enjoyed an 81% approval rating in April for his handling of COVID – the top rating in the country.

By the end of August, DeWine’s rating saw the sixth biggest drop in the U.S. according to The State of the Nation – a 50-State COVID-19 Survey.

The report was created by a consortium of contributors from American colleges – Northeastern, Harvard Medical School, Harvard Kennedy School, Rutgers, Northwestern.

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