Stay engaged, involved, and up-to-date: 11/27/2017 Week in Review


Stay engaged, involved, and up-to-date: In the weekly reviews from the Women’s Public Policy Network, we look back on last week’s highlights from the WPPN, share updates on bills affecting women that are moving at the Statehouse, showcase weekly news clips, and provide calls to action on bills pending in the Legislature. Sign up for our emails to receive these updates in your inbox every week!


FEDERAL TAX BILL PASSES ANOTHER HURDLE
 
This weekend, the U.S. Senate passed their version of the tax bill in the middle of the night with a 51-49 vote. The House had previously passed their bill, which differs from the Senate version in a number of ways. Now, Congress is on track to sort out a compromise between the House and Senate versions of the tax legislation before the end of the year.
And let’s be clear, the Senate GOP tax bill is also a health bill. Public health policy expert and WPPN advocate, Allison Russo, wrote about the Senate tax bill’s implications for health care in a recent guest blog. Read the full post here


LOOKING AHEAD: PARTNER EVENTS THIS UPCOMING WEEK  
Thursday, December 14
12:00 PM – 2:00 PM
The Ohio Statehouse

1 Capitol Square, Columbus, OH 43215

When reproductive rights are under attack, what do we do? Stand up fight back! We have crafted some gorgeous banners detailing all NINETEEN of Governor Kasich’s abortion bans and we need reproductive rights warriors showing up IN FORCE at the Statehouse in Columbus, on December 14 to display them. Find out more here.


Visit our Partner Events Calendar for more details on future events hosted by our coalition partners across the state
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#OHLEG ALERT
We are tracking the progress of any state bills affecting women in the Ohio Legislature for the 132nd General Assembly. Here’s a quick overview of some key highlights from last week and looking ahead to this upcoming week:
  •  HB 258 (Hagan, Hood) – Six-week Abortion Ban: This bill would outlaw any abortion at the earliest detection of a fetal heartbeat, which is as early as six weeks – at a time before many women even know that they are pregnant. The House Health Committee held a second hearing for proponent testimony on Wednesday, November 29. You can find all testimony here (look under Hearings for documents from November 29). The Committee will hold a third hearing on the bill this upcoming Wednesday, December 6. The Committee will meet at 9:00 AM in Statehouse Room 121.
  • HB 302 (Boggs, Antonio) – Pregnant Minors: Allows for a pregnant minor to have consent to her own health care decisions during her pregnancy. The House Health Committee will hold a first hearing on the bill for sponsor testimony on Wednesday, December 6. The Committee will meet at 9:00 AM in Statehouse Room 121.
  • HB 365 (Hughes, Boggs) – The Reagan Tokes Act: Requires released violent offenders wearing GPS monitors to have set geographic boundaries and would give law enforcement the ability to access the GPS data without a subpoena. The House Criminal Justice Committee held a third hearing on the bill on Tuesday, November 28. You can find all testimony here (look under Hearings for documents from November 28).
  • HB 383 (Carfagna) – Child-care: Requires that child-care centers provide parental notice of any serious risks to health or safety of children while under their care. The Community & Family Advancement Committee will hold a second hearing on the bill on Wednesday, December 6. The Committee will meet at 3:00 PM in Statehouse Room 114.
  • HB 385 (West) – Wage Information: Prohibits a state agency from preventing employees from discussing their own wages or another employee’s wages and prohibits retaliation against an employee who has discussed wages. It also prohibits a state agency from seeking the wage or salary history of a job candidate. Many of these issues the bill addresses are the reason for gender pay discrimination and the gender wage gap. The House Economic Development, Commerce & Labor Committee will hold a first hearing for sponsor testimony on Tuesday, December 5. The Committee will meet at 1:30 PM in Statehouse Room 113.
  • HB 403 (Howse, Kelly) – Equal Pay: Creates a Gender Pay Disparity Task Force. The bill was referred to the House Government Accountability & Oversight Committee this past week on Tuesday, November 28, but has not yet been scheduled for a hearing.
  • HB 426 (Hagan) – Sexual Conduct: Prohibits an employee of a school or higher education institution who are not in a position of authority from engaging in conduct with certain students. The House Criminal Justice Committee will hold a first hearing for sponsor testimony on Tuesday, December 5. The Committee will meet at 1:30 PM in Statehouse Room 114.
  • SB 41 (Eklund) – Testimonial Privilege: Provides testimonial privilege for open communication between an advocate providing services and a victim of sexual violence, stalking, or domestic violence. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a first hearing for sponsor testimony on Tuesday, November 28. You can find testimony here (look under the Committee Documents from November 28). 
  • SB 164 (LaRose) – Down Syndrome Abortion Ban: This bill would charge a doctor with a fourth degree felony if they performed an abortion procedure for a woman if the reason for seeking to terminate the pregnancy is in part due to a Down syndrome diagnosis. The bill was passed out of the Senate by a 20-12 vote and is now moving through the House. The House Health Committee will hold a first hearing for sponsor testimony and vote this upcoming Wednesday, December 6. The Committee will meet at 9:00 AM in Statehouse Room 121.
  • SB 207 (Kunze) – Strangulation: Expands the offense of felonious assault to include the acts of strangulation or suffocation. The Senate Judiciary Committee held a second hearing on the bill on Tuesday, November 28. You can find all testimony here (look under the Committee Documents for November 28). 
We will keep tracking any new updates and will be sharing timely legislative updates on these and other women-centric legislation on Twitter using the #OHLeg hashtag. Follow us to stay up-to-date on what’s happening at the Statehouse.

RAISE YOUR VOICE TO STOP THE BANS

The Ohio legislature has continued to advance abortion bans, making it more difficult and costly – and sometimes completely impossible – to access reproductive health care. This upcoming week, the House Health Committee will take up the six-week abortion ban (HB258) and the Down syndrome abortion ban (SB164).

Take action: It’s time for the Ohio legislature to stop the bans! You can take action in a few different ways:

1  Show up: Pack the room for the House Health Committee, which is likely to take a vote on the Down syndrome abortion ban (SB164). The Committee will meet on Wednesday, December 6 in Statehouse Room 121 beginning at 9:00 AM. Find the full details of the event spearheaded by our partners at NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio here.

2  Contact your representative: Find and contact your state representative here. Urge them to end attacks on abortion access, including the six-week abortion ban (HB258) and the Down syndrome abortion bans (HB214 and SB164). You can also use this email form created by our partners at NARAL Pro-Choice Ohio to urge your legislators to stop the bans.

3  Get active on social media: Use the hashtag #StopTheBans to add your voice to the conversation