COLUMBUS, Ohio — It’s a new year and a new General Assembly will soon begin at the Ohio Statehouse. Although this is an off year when it comes to elections, there will be plenty to do at the state level.
Here are some of the most important topics likely to be discussed in 2025.
US Senate pick
First things first: Governor Mike DeWine will soon be appointed to the US Senate, replacing JD Vance who is resigning to become vice president.
“It has to be someone who really wants to do the job and get the job done and who we think has the ability to do it,” DeWine said, adding that the Senate nomination could also stay in place for a long time . time.
Previously, the governor said he wanted someone who could not only win the 2026 primary and general elections, but also hold on to the seat in 2028.
I was the first to report that the governor and Lt. Gov. Jon Husted traveled to Mar-a-Lago to meet with President-elect Donald Trump and Vance in late 2024.
I constantly pestered DeWine and Husted about the Senate nomination.
Ohio Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted visit Trump and Vance ahead of US Senate nomination
RELATED: Ohio Governor DeWine and Lt. Governor Husted visit Trump and Vance ahead of US Senate nomination
DeWine has been extremely secretive about his meetings, and I’m still waiting for my recording request from months ago for his agenda log.
Based on my extensive analysis, talking to three dozen political insiders, the front-runner is Husted. However, several other names were regularly mentioned. Leading candidates include Ohio RNC Leader Jane Timken and Ohio Treasurer Robert Sprague.
Politicians also mentioned State Rep. Jay Edwards, Sec. Frank LaRose, State Sen. Matt Dolan and State Department of Development Director Lydia Mihalik.
Operating budget
There will also be the 2026-2027 operating budget, which provides billions to fund government and other state policies. State Rep. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland), who is the next Finance Chairman according to his nameplate on the Finance Chairman’s specific door, previously explained that this includes school funding, tax changes and the support or reductions in public programs like Medicaid.
“The job of every senator and House member is also, you know, to try to represent their districts well and try to meet needs through the budget process that we go through,” he said. “If something isn’t funded now, it could be funded in the next cycle.”
House Minority Leader Allison Russo (D-Upper Arlington) is hoping for property tax relief but isn’t counting on it from her Republican colleagues.
“We have always said that not providing direct relief on this property tax issue is a choice made by the majority not to respond to this concern and the real financial pressure that weighs on “Many Ohioans, especially those who are older and are budgeting,” Russo said.
There are options to provide immediate help, she said.
Dozens of bills have been proposed to provide relief to homeowners due to ever-increasing property taxes. Commissions had been created. Statewide reports have been released, including one on Wednesday. Nothing widespread has been achieved.
We have a series about property taxes and the struggles Ohioans face. Click here to learn more.
“We don’t need to wait six months for the budget, when, moreover, we will probably have less income,” the leader continued. “There are other tax cuts being considered that will reduce the amounts coming in to provide relief to residents.”
The state will have much less money than in previous years since there are no more COVID-related federal dollars.
“Do I think this is probably going to pass at that point as well? Probably not,” she added. “I think there will always be excuses not to address this issue.”
Republicans continue to say they will eventually address the property tax issue, and it will likely be in the budget. However, outgoing Rep. Bill Seitz (R-Cincinnati) raised the point that lawmakers really need to sit down and think about the possible repercussions of their choices.
“We have to be careful when we give these kinds of property tax breaks that we don’t upend the school funding formula…,” Seitz said. “I would hate to see a constitutional school funding formula upended at the last minute by a series of local property tax cuts that would upend it.”
Electoral redistricting
The Ohio Redistricting Commission (ORC) is responsible for drawing a new map for the state’s 15 congressional districts.
The ORC is made up of seven spots. Two will still go to Republicans and two to Democrats in the Statehouse. The three remaining seats are those of the governor, secretary of state and auditor.
This led to Ohio’s 2022 redistricting mess, where a bipartisan Ohio Supreme Court struck down seven different adopted maps, citing that GOP members of the commission were drawing lines to unfairly benefit their party.
Since the ORC vote on the map was not unanimous upon its initial approval in 2022, it could only last for four years. That congressional map was declared unconstitutional, along with a similar earlier version, by the bipartisan Ohio Supreme Court.
Redistricting reform, the first issue, failed last November, so Republican lawmakers will still be in charge. With a slim Republican majority in Congress, the stakes are high for both sides.
Although a majority of voters rejected a change to the current system, politicians across party lines acknowledge that the 2021-2022 redistricting process was a “mess,” as DeWine called it.
The governor proposed another plan – modeled after Iowa’s hybrid system – to prevent gerrymandering. DeWine is on said commission and voted for said maps which were declared by the Supreme Court to be gerrymandering.
Governor DeWine says he opposes anti-gerrymandering proposal on November ballot and wants to introduce new proposal
Marijuana reform
Now that President-elect Matt Huffman (R-Lima) will control the House and President-elect Rob McColley (R-Napoleon) will lead the Senate, they will likely have a better chance of changing marijuana policy.
Currently, adults 21 and older are allowed to smoke, vape, and ingest weed. Ohioans can grow up to six plants, or up to 12 per household.
“There were fundamental flaws in the initiative that was presented and passed by voters — which is usually the case when there is no oversight on all sides,” Huffman said. “The bill passed by the Senate last December addresses many of these issues.”
In December 2023, the Senate passed a bill to restrict marijuana. If enacted, it would decrease the THC content and increase the cost. Among dozens of other restrictions and changes to what voters chose, it would ban the vast majority of vapes. It would also limit home marijuana cultivation from 12 plants to six.
House leaders insisted on listening to Ohioans, blocking Huffman’s proposal.
But now Huffman is set to become Speaker of the House, giving him a better chance to change the law.
Sales have already started since August, which is why House leaders said changing the law now would be harmful and confusing.
RELATED: Ohio GOP again proposes restricting marijuana and making it more expensive
Ohio GOP again proposes restricting marijuana and making it more expensive
When it starts
The 136th AG begins on January 6. The new lawmakers will be sworn in during a ceremony in each chamber.
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