NFIB's Ohio Legislative Update Page

Keep Current On Your Elected Officials & Legislation

If you have any questions on the information contained on this page, please contact NFIB’s Legislative Director for Ohio, Chris Ferruso. He can be reached at [email protected] or 614-221-4107.

Follow NFIB’s Legislative efforts on behalf of our 22,000 members in the state on social media on Twitter at https://twitter.com/nfib_oh and on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NFIB.OH/ it is the best way to stay current with the most up-to-date news on the goings on at the capitol.

Meet NFIB’s Lobbying team for Ohio:

From left to right: Roger Geiger, Chris Ferruso, Cameron Garczyk

The 133rd Ohio General Assembly – Review

NFIB tracked over 100 pieces of legislation in the 133rd Ohio General Assembly. 133rd General Assembly – Final

As always we like to report back to our members on how their elected officials voted the 132nd Ohio General Assembly Voting Record for NFIB Key Votes can be found here: 133rd Ohio Voting Record The 134th Ohio General Assembly – Current Issues

The 134th Ohio General Assembly – In Progress

Pro-small Business Bills that NFIB Key Voted (No opposed bills passed the 134th Ohio General Assembly) can be viewed here: Key Votes Passed

You can find our updated list of all bills we are tracking here: 134th General Assembly – Latest

NFIB is proud to have 25 members of the organization serving in the Ohio House of Representatives and the Ohio Senate this session. The list of members can be found here: NFIB Members in 134th Legislature

The NFIB Small Business Agenda for Ohio’s 134th General Assembly: 134th Small Business Agenda (Updated)

The 2021 NFIB Ohio Annual Report can be viewed here.

Updated Ohio Legislative Directory with contact information for all elected state and federal offices can be found here.

To read the detail of any piece of legislation introduced in the 134th Ohio General Assembly, click here: https://www.legislature.ohio.gov/legislation/search-legislation?0

Ohio Required Minimum Wage Poster

Ohio’s Minimum Wage is indexed to the Consumer Price Index, you can get the poster to display in your business here:

https://www.com.ohio.gov/documents/dico_2021MinimumWageposter.pdf

Testimony offered / Statements by NFIB on legislation introduced in the 134th Ohio General Assembly:

Senate Bill 8 Letter of Support – NFIB along with five other business groups submitted this letter in support of Senate Bill 8 which would expand broadband access to communities across Ohio.

Senate Bill 13 – Testimony by Chris Ferruso on Senate Bill 13 which reduces Ohio’s statute of limitations (SOL) on written contracts from 8 years to 6 years, bringing Ohio more in line with the national average.

Senate Bill 9 – Testimony by Chris Ferruso on Senate Bill 9 which continues the work of Senate Bill 1 from the 133rd General Assembly and builds upon those regulatory reform efforts.

Senate Bill 18 – Written testimony by Chris Ferruso on Senate Bill 18 which conforms Ohio’s tax law to changes in federal tax law since March 27, 2020, and also includes an amendment accepted last week to ensure the second round of Paycheck Protection Program Loans (PPP) are not subject to Commercial Activity Tax (CAT).

House Bill 48 – Testimony by Chris Ferruso on House Bill 48, companion legislation to Senate Bill 18, which conforms Ohio’s tax law to changes in federal tax law since March 27, 2020.

House Bill 126 – A letter sent to the Ohio House Ways and Means Committee on how this legislation will provide greater transparency to the process of property valuation challenges.

Senate Bill 109 – Testimony by Chris Ferruso in favor of the newly proposed Ohio Business Grant Relief program.

Senate Bill 108 – Written testimony by Chris Ferruso on Senate Bill 108, legislation aimed at providing financial relief to bars, restaurants, and the lodging industry.

Unemployment Compensation Modernization and Improvement Council – Testimony by Chris Ferruso sharing some of the experiences NFIB and our members experienced with Ohio’s unemployment compensation system in 2020.

Unemployment Compensation Modernization and Improvement Council – Testimony by NFIB Leadership Council member Clara Osterhage, owner of RLO, Inc. in Dayton on her and her employees’ experiences with Ohio’s unemployment compensation system in 2020.

NFIB member Clara Osterhage testifies before the Unemployment Compensation Modernization and Improvement Council.

House Bill 168 – Testimony by Chris Ferruso on House Bill 168 that builds upon the Small Business Relief Grant program from 2020 by providing an additional $150 million of grants to those businesses that attempted to access the initial program but were unable to because of depleted funds.

House Bill 169 – A letter of support by Chris Ferruso on House Bill 169 that is aimed at providing financial relief to bars, restaurants, and the lodging industry.

House Bill 215 – Testimony by Chris Ferruso in support of the Business Fairness Act, which would allow any Ohio business that can meet safety protocols to remain open in the future, all small business owners deem their business as essential.

Amendment added to House Bill 110 – A letter to the Ohio House Finance Committee pointing out an added amendment is a health insurance mandate.

House Bill 201 – A letter in support of House Bill 201 which ensures our member small businesses have certain, reliable fuel sources to meet their energy needs. to the Ohio House Energy & Natural Resources Committee.

House Bill 229 – A joint letter from NFIB and the Ohio Chamber of Commerce in support of House Bill 229 which provides qualified immunity from civil liability to owners of campgrounds for injuries resulting from a well-delineated and defined list of risks inherent to camping.

House Bill 157 – A letter in support of House Bill 157 which provides certainty concerning municipal income tax withholding and net profits obligations for our employer members.

House Bill 110 – A letter to support several provisions in House Bill 110, the state’s operating budget. NFIB applauds the Ohio Senate for continuing the good work of the Ohio House by recognizing the importance of the success of small businesses to Ohio’s economic vibrancy.

House Bill 153 – It puts restrictions on the utilization of prior authorization, increasing individual cost-sharing for a drug, moving prescription drugs to a more restrictive tier, and removal of a drug from a health insurers’ formulary during a coverage year.

Letter of support for House Bill 146 – This empowers local governments and state higher education institutions, charged with being good stewards of taxpayer dollars, to make decisions on how to progress on public improvement projects.

A letter in support of House Bill 126 – This will require a school board or legislative authority of a political subdivision to pass a resolution approving the filing of a property valuation complaint with the board of revision (BOR) at a public meeting.

Senate Bill 9 – Testimony on regulatory reform as the builds upon previous efforts to establish a regulatory environment that is responsive to those being regulated: our members.

Senate Bill 246 – Testimony on a bill that ensures that Ohio pass-through entity businesses, which is how most small businesses are structured, will not face a higher tax liability.

House Bill 443 – Testimony on how it allows businesses subjected to state-imposed health insurance mandates financial relief by offsetting some costs attributable to those mandates.

Senate Bill 105 – Testimony on a bill that streamlines the process for businesses that have already been certified by the Ohio Department of Administrative Services (DAS) as meeting the criteria for MBE, WBE, and/or VBE designations.

House Bill 277 – Testimony on a bill that takes a proactive step in modernizing Ohio’s licensure system for the barbering and cosmetology industry.

Senate Bill 251 – Testimony on legislation that will allow minors under 16 years old to work until 9 pm on school nights with the permission of a parent or guardian.

House Bill 235 – Letter to urge the Ohio Commerce & Labor Committee to jettison the bill as it is an unnecessary government intrusion into the hiring practices of private-sector employers, and sets a troubling precedent that may lead to government assuming the role of hiring manager for all private-sector employers.

House Bill 447 – Testimony on a proactive measure ensuring Ohio’s workers’ compensation system continues to provide adequate and fair treatment for injured employees while also granting certainty to Ohio businesses with work-from-home employees.

House Bill 277 – Testimony on a proactive step in modernizing Ohio’s licensure system for the barbering and cosmetology industry.

House Bill 515 – A letter of support on a bill that will clarify when the sale of business ownership interest is considered business income, creating certainty and predictability for sellers, and allowing for the benefits of the business investor deduction (BID) and lower tax rate on business income to apply.

House Bill 451 – Testimony on legislation that places limits on health insurance plans utilizing a practice known as white bagging. NFIB has some concerns with the legislation as currently drafted, specifically that costs to our members’ health insurance premiums will likely increase if the bill were to pass as currently drafted.

Senate Bill 302 – Testimony on a bill that aims to ensure unemployment compensation claimants are legitimate and eligible for benefits, allows employers to help identify recipients who are no longer meeting the work search requirements, and makes an appropriation for the Ohio Department of Job & Family Services (JFS) for a new unemployment benefits system.

Testimony before the Study Committee on Ohio’s Publicly Funded Childcare and Step Up to Quality Program

NFIB Key Votes in the 134th Ohio General Assembly:

VOTE YES on Senate Bill 13 – Senate Bill 13 reduces Ohio’s statute of limitations (SOL) on written contracts from 8 years to 6 years, bringing Ohio more in line with the national average. Senate Bill 13 also reduces contracts not in writing from 6 years to 4 years. Senate Bill 13 builds upon Ohio’s progress from several years ago in reducing our statute of limitations from 15 years to the current 8. We believe this is the next logical step in ensuring Ohio is not an outlier by having a longer SOL.

VOTE YES on Senate Bill 8 – Senate Bill 8 establishes the Residential Broadband Expansion Grant Program. This important bill creates a public-private partnership to deliver broadband internet service to unserved and underserved areas of Ohio.

VOTE YES on Amended Senate Bill 18 – Small businesses were hit especially hard as a result of the COVID pandemic. The federal government made some substantial changes to tax law to provide needed assistance and relief in an attempt to keep businesses open and their workers employed. Senate Bill 18 (SB 18) will update Ohio’s tax law to conform with federal law tax changes made after March 27, 2020.

VOTE YES on House Bill 2 – House Bill 2 is the companion piece to Senate Bill 8, an earlier Key Vote for NFIB, that establishes the Residential Broadband Expansion Grant Program. This important bill creates a public-private partnership to deliver broadband internet service to unserved and underserved areas of Ohio.

VOTE YES on Senate Bill 9 – Senate Bill 9 extends the prohibition, included in the last operating budget, on adding new regulatory restrictions without removing two, through June 30, 2025, and further requires state agencies to reduce regulatory restrictions 30 percent by that same date.

VOTE YES on Senate Bills 108 and 109 – Senate Bill 108 provides grants to bars, restaurants, and lodging businesses on a sliding scale based upon revenue loss, number of employees, and occupancy rates. Senate Bill 109 provides additional funding for the Small Business Grant Relief Program.

VOTE YES on Amended House Bill 2 – Amended House Bill 2 establishes the Residential Broadband Expansion Grant Program. This important bill creates a public-private partnership to deliver broadband internet service to unserved and underserved areas of Ohio.

VOTE YES on House Bills 168 and 169 – House Bill 168 provides additional funding for the Small Business Grant Relief Program and House Bill 169 provides grants to bars, restaurants, and lodging businesses on a sliding scale based upon revenue loss, number of employees, and occupancy rates.

VOTE YES on Senate Bill 134 – Senate Bill 134, The Business Fairness Act, permits any business, that was required to cease or limit operations as a result of a Department of Health order, to remain or reopen so long as they can demonstrate their ability to meet government safety protocols required of businesses that were allowed to stay open during a public health crisis. Please note we issued a Key Vote on Amended House Bill 215, the version of this bill in the Ohio House of Representatives.

VOTE YES on House Bill 215 – House Bill 215 will permit any business, that was required to cease or limit operations as a result of a Department of Health order, to remain or reopen so long as they can demonstrate their ability to meet government safety protocols required of businesses that were allowed to stay open during a public health crisis.

VOTE YES on Substitute House Bill 75 – House Bill 75 contains responsible funding for fiscal years 2022-2023 for the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation. This funding is necessary to conduct administrative functions that ensure injured workers receive timely care while keeping costs down for employers. The bill also includes three “cleanup” provisions that are beneficial for the system.

VOTE YES on Substitute House Bill 157 – Substitute House Bill 157 will continue Section 29 of House Bill 197 from the 133^rd General Assembly which, in effect, temporarily suspended the 20-day casual entrant rule, requiring employers to withhold employee municipal income tax to the principal place of work through December 31, 2021.

VOTE YES on House Bill 168 – House Bill 168 was amended to allow the administration to pay off the outstanding unemployment compensation loan to the federal government. This action will save employers tens of millions of dollars in increased federal unemployment tax (FUTA) in 2022. (The attached link is for the key vote in the Ohio Senate, but a key vote was sent to the Ohio House as well).

VOTE YES Amended House Bill 215 – House Bill 215 was earlier key voted in the Ohio House of Representatives, it is the Business Fairness Act.

VOTE YES on Substitute House Bill 126 – Substitute House Bill 126 creates a real property valuation challenge process that provides property owners with certainty while allowing for non-property owners to challenge valuations in certain circumstances.

VOTE YES on Concurrence on Substitute Senate Bill 9 – Substitute Senate Bill 9 reforms Ohio’s regulatory scheme, which ranks third behind California and New York, and helps to lessen the burdens placed on small business owners.

VOTE YES on the Report of Conference Committee on House Bill 126 – House Bill 126 creates a real property valuation challenge process that provides property owners with certainty while allowing for non-property owners to challenge valuations in certain circumstances.