COLUMBUS, Ohio — Republican lawmakers’ latest in a year-long attempt to rein in Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine's authority to issue public health orders during the pandemic passed Wednesday and faces a likely veto by the governor.
A bill that would allow lawmakers to rescind public health orders issued by the governor or the Ohio Department of Health was fast-tracked out of committee one year to the day from when the coronavirus pandemic began in Ohio and moved onto the House floor where it passed on party lines.
In recent committee hearings, GOP lawmakers made several changes to the Senate bill that would close loopholes for future governors and local boards of health to issue emergency orders.
One of those changes allows lawmakers to rescind any order or rule issued in response to a state emergency on the day it is declared through a concurrent resolution. This change would encompass any order made by statewide elected officials administrative departments and state agencies.
The most consequential change for DeWine is the barring an executive from reissuing an order or rule for 60 days, an increase from the version of the bill that passed in the Senate, which contained a 30-day window.
“I've heard a lot in the last couple of months, over the last year really, about checks and balances,” Rep. Allison Russo, a Columbus Democrat, said on the House floor. “This is not balanced legislation. It’s far from it.”
Last year, DeWine, a Republican, had indicated he would veto any bill that would make it hard for him or the health department to issue emergency orders to curb the spread of the coronavirus. He made good on that promise in December when a similar Senate bill moved through the House and Senate and landed on his desk.
In the past few weeks, it appeared that the governor and members of his party were making compromises on the bill, but none of them appear to be in the final proposal.
If DeWine follows through with his earlier promise to veto the latest proposal, Republicans need more than just a simple majority to override him.
The bill the House passed 57 to 37.
The Senate concurred with the changes passed by the House.
The House would need 60 votes to override a veto by the governor and Wednesday's vote fell short of that threshold.