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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2009 > September > 15
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
House approves bill to protect gay rights in housing, employment
In a historic vote, the Ohio House on Tuesday, Sept. 15, approved legislation banning discrimination in employment and housing based on sexual orientation or gender identity.
The vote was 56-39.
The bill now goes to the Senate where passage is less likely. Lynne Bowman, executive director of Equality Ohio, said supporters have 16 more months before this session of the legislature ends to win final approval. Bowman’s group advocates for equality for gay, lesbian, transgender and bisexual Ohioans.
“This is a new opportunity,” Bowman said. Twenty states and the District of Columbia and 17 Ohio cities already have similar laws in effect, she said.
The vote was the first ever by the House and Senate on such legislation, said Bowman.
Rep. Peggy Lehner, R-Kettering, was one of five Republicans who joined 51 Democrats in supporting the bill. Lehner said that as a long-time opponent of abortion, she supported the “unalienable right to life” contained in the Declaration of Independence. She said she also supported the unalienable rights to liberty and the pursuit of happiness, also in the Declaration of Independence.
Two of the other Republican supporters were Reps. Ross McGregor of Springfield, a joint sponsor of House Bill 176, and Terry Blair of Washington Township.
Rep. Lynn Wachtmann, R-Napoleon, angrily denounced the bill.
“Keep your hands and your morals and your immoral beliefs to yourselves,” he said, shaking a finger at Democrats. “Don’t punish those who disagree with you…”
This is the fourth legislative session in which such legislation has been proposed, said Bowman.
Advocates accelerated their efforts after Ohio voters in 2004 overwhelmingly approved a constitutional amendment banning same sex marriage.
The House gallery was filled with supporters of the bill.
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Dems field candidate for Ohio Supreme Court
Ohio 11th District Appeals Court Judge Mary Jane Trapp plans to announce her candidacy for Ohio Supreme Court on Wednesday, Sept. 16.
Trapp is holding a press conference with Gov. Ted Strickland at the Statehouse on Wednesday afternoon.
Trapp was elected to the 11th District Court of Appeals in November 2006.
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Doctors holding health care forum tonight in Centerville
Doctors for America’s Ohio physician activists are hosting a Committee for Health Care Reform Forum tonight, Sept. 15 at 6:30 pm at Centerville High School, 500 East Franklin Street.
This is an opportunity for physicians and health care experts to share their perspective and several testimonials will be shared about the health care system. The session will include a question and answer period.
Doctors for America is a grassroots group of more than 14,000 physicians in all fifty states committed to passing meaningful health reform legislation.
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Voters like gambling plans, support cell phone while driving ban
Ohio voters like proposed new gambling plans for the state and they want Gov. Ted Strickland and the legislature to ban the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.
Those are key results of a Quinnipiac University Poll released on Tuesday. Sept. 15.
In the poll, voters approved both the plan to add video slot machines to Ohio’s seven racetracks and the ballot proposal to permit construction of casinos in Columbus, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Toledo.
Voters approved the slots plan, which is part of the state budget, 60-34 percent. They approved the casino proposal - Issue 3 on the Nov. 3 ballot - 58-37 percent.
Also, in the poll, voters approved making it illegal to use a hand-held cell phone while driving, 75-23 percent.
On a second question, they supported a bill banning text messaging while driving, 89-9 percent.
Several bills have been proposed both in the Ohio House and Senate outlawing text messaging and the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.
The poll was taken Thursday, Sept. 10, through Sunday, Sept. 13, with 1,074 voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
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Strickland approval up slightly; voters frown on his handling of economy
Gov. Ted Strickland’s approval rating edged up slightly in a poll released on Tuesday, Sept. 15, but voters disapproved of the Democratic governor’s handling of the state economy and the budget.
The Quinnipiac University Poll found Strickland’s approval rating up slightly to 48 percent approve to 42 percent disapprove. This compares to a 46-42 percent approval rating in a poll released on July 3.
However, voters disapproved of Strickland’s handling of the state’s economy 54-33 percent in the new poll and disapproved of his handling of the budget 47-36 percent.
In a matchup with Republican John Kasich in next year’s governor’s race, Strickland led 46-36 percent, up from 43-38 percent in the July 3 poll.
“The good news for Strickland is he’s not going down any more,” Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, said.
Part of the reason for the governor’s decline in the last poll was the inability of Strickland and the legislature to reach a budget agreement, Brown said. Since then, they came up with a deal, Brown added.
Voters’ discontent with his handling of the economy and the budget should be of political concern to the governor, Brown said.
Strickland fared better than the state legislature. Voters disapproved of the legislature’s performance, 48-33 percent, about the same as the 49-31 percent disapproval rating in the July 3 poll.
The poll was taken from Thursday, Sept. 10 to Sunday, Sept. 13 with 1,074 Ohio voters with a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points.
