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Ohio Senate Bill 1

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Rachel Coyle

Previous Work:

Innovation Ohio
ACLU Ohio
A bunch of campaigns
Political party stuff
More campaigns
Ohio Senate
Ohio State Emergency Department

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Bullet points so Rachel doesn’t forget her intro:�

DON’T WORRY about memorizing this info or the links. We’ll email everything to you afterward!

DON’T WORRY if you’re new to state or local advocacy. This is the perfect time to start!

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WHAT WE’LL COVER TODAY:

Statehouse Basics
Ohio Senate Bill 1 (SB 1)
Actions You Can Take
Resources
Q&A

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REMEMBER:

You have SO MUCH POWER at the state level

Why? Because hardly anyone contacts their state legislators

It only takes a few people to make noise in state government

Use this power. If you don’t, someone else will

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STATEHOUSE BASICS

TERM TO KNOW: “General Assembly” or “G.A.”�

The Statehouse operates in 2-year terms (G.A.s)�
Any bill that doesn’t pass by the end of the G.A. dies and has to be reintroduced

HB 378

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STATEHOUSE BASICS – THE NUMBERS

TERM TO KNOW: ”Supermajority”�

Ohio Senate has 33 senators

24 Republicans – 9 Democrats

Ohio House has 99 members

65 Republicans – 34 Democrats

Veto Power

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STATEHOUSE BASICS – Leadership

Majority

(R)

Minority

(D)

Senate

House

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It’s amazing what we can accomplish by being loud

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HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW IN OHIO

OR

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�

SB 1 has passed the Senate

Next, it has hearings in House Higher Ed Committee
Then it receives a full House vote
Then it goes to Gov DeWine for his signature

You are here

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IMPORTANT

Bills keep their same number for the full 2-year term

SB 1 will STAY SB 1 when it goes over �to the House

SB 1 has an identical twin in the House (HB 6)

But we don’t expect that bill to move

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Top Priority — SB 1 — Higher Education Destruction Act

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Ban on “Segregation”

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Ban on�“China”

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TAKE ACTION: CALL Ohio legislators

Yes, I said call. It’s not like calling Congress. They aren’t recording your info�

You’re talking to an aide. Be nice!

Each state rep only has 1 aide
Each senator only has 2 aides
Build a relationship

They WILL get your messages

There’s only 1 phone line per legislator
You’re calling the same number the legislators call….

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YES YOU CAN call legislators who don’t represent you!

Example: “I’m calling about this bill in your XXXXXX Committee”

But it will always be MOST effective to call your own legislator�

So if you are calling the person who represents you, �let them know!

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TESTIFYING IN COMMITTEE

Come testify against SB 1!

GOAL: Testify in-person��

TRY TO testify in-person whenever possible

BUT you can submit written-only testimony if needed!�

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IMPORTANT — You can only submit testimony if a bill has been scheduled for a hearing AND if the committee plans to accept your type of testimony

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HOW TO SUBMIT TESTIMONY �(IN-PERSON OR WRITTEN-ONLY!)�

STEP 1: Write your testimony�

STEP 2: Email your (written or in-person) testimony �to the Committee Chair 24 hours in advance�

STEP 3: Email a completed “Witness Slip” form along with your testimony

Testimony + witness slip = you officially submitted testimony!

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WHAT MAKES GOOD TESTIMONY�

Short and sweet!!

If there’s a lot of testimony, you’ll likely be limited to 2-3 minutes. Make them count

Consider your audience

Think of your most conservative relative. That’s your audience

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Social Media is your friend �

All House and Senate Sessions AND committee hearings are available on OhioChannel.org – it’s free!

They make GREAT social media content….

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GET LOUD on social media!

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SHOW UP — Being visible is so important

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Get kicked out? Offer press interviews!

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Decide your own comfort level — decide in advance!

OhioStateHouse.org/About/CSRAB/Rules

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WANT TO FIND YOUR REP/SENATOR?�

Legislature.Ohio.Gov → Legislators → District Maps

Type your address �below these maps

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HOW TO FIND STATEHOUSE BILLS

Legislature.Ohio.gov

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HOW TO FIND STATEHOUSE BILLS

Legislature.Ohio.gov → “Legislation” → “Search Legislation”

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Legislature.Ohio.gov BILL PAGES LOOK LIKE….

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The Documents Tab is so important!

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This is what a bill analysis looks like

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Follow “How Things Work at the Statehouse”

Twitter: @HowThingsWorkOH

Twitter List: “Reporters to Follow”

Facebook: How Things Work at the Statehouse

Bluesky: HowThingsWorkOH.bsky.social

TikTok: RachelCoyleOhio

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HonestyForOhioEducation.org

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OhioStudentAssociation.org/Sign-Up

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THINGS TO REMEMBER:

You have SO MUCH POWER at the state level
Anything you do at the Statehouse is more than was happening before�

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QUESTIONS?

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HOW A BILL BECOMES A LAW IN OHIO�

Step 2: The bill is assigned to a committee

ACTION ITEM: CONTACT committee chairs. Ask to be placed on their “committee notice list”