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:
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
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: NFIB 134th GA Small Business Agenda
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’s Minimum Wage is indexed to the Consumer Price Index, you can get the poster to display in your business here:
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.
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.
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).
