Robert Alt, president and chief executive officer of The Buckeye Institute, issued a statement on the news that the Ohio Coalition for Equity and Adequacy of School Funding is planning to challenge Ohio’s school voucher program, saying in part, “This is the wrong lawsuit at the wrong time for the wrong reasons.”
In Giving Families Certainty: Enhancing Education with Education Savings Accounts, The Buckeye Institute outlines how federally funded education savings accounts (ESA), can stabilize educational routines for families during future epidemics, natural disasters, or other unanticipated disruptions. “A federally funded ESA initiative—funded using existing tax dollars and with states in the lead—would give families the tools they need to continue their child’s education during future epidemics or natural disasters.”
In written testimony to the Ohio Senate Judiciary Committee on the policies in Senate Bill 308, The Buckeye Institute urged the Committee to define “reasonable conduct” in the COVID-19 context using either the state’s or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s guidelines for workplace safety as Buckeye recommended in its recent policy memo.
The Buckeye Institute submitted written testimony to the Ohio House of Representatives Civil Justice Committee on the policies in House Bill 606, which would provide businesses and workers with immunity from COVID-19 related lawsuits, writing, “Ohio should provide businesses and individuals clear safety guidelines that give them the confidence to reenter the marketplace without fearing virus-related lawsuits.”
In Policy Solutions for the Pandemic: Remove Barriers to Mental Health Services, The Buckeye Institute outlines why Ohio should permanently remove barriers that prevent out-of-state mental health professionals from treating Ohioans and practicing in the state. “The COVID-19 pandemic threatens not only Ohioans physical health, but also our mental health, and any increase in mental illness or difficulties will require more treatment from therapists and mental health providers.”
In Policy Solutions for the Pandemic: Protecting Businesses and Workers from COVID-19 Related Lawsuits, The Buckeye Institute calls on policymakers to provide businesses and workers with immunity from COVID-19 related lawsuits as long as they are taking reasonable steps to keep Ohioans healthy and safe. “As Ohio begins to safely reopen, policymakers must ensure that workers and businesses that take reasonable precautions to protect customers from COVID-19 do not become victims of needless lawsuits.”
The Buckeye Institute submitted written testimony to the Ohio Senate Local Government, Public Safety, and Veterans Affairs Committee on the policies in Senate Bill 303, which would allow pharmacists to care for those with chronic conditions. Noting that the policies in Senate Bill 303 are a “step in the right direction,” Buckeye urged policymakers to “build on Senate Bill 303’s foundation with policies that will help Ohioans access the sort of drug treatment already offered in Florida and other states.”
In Policy Solutions for the Pandemic: Bail Reform Will Keep Our Communities Safer, The Buckeye Institute calls on the Ohio Supreme Court to enact a temporary bail reform rule to take immediate effect that includes a presumption against cash bail and provisions that ensure judges base pretrial detention decisions on a defendant’s threat to the community and risk of non-appearance for trial. The General Assembly should then make the court’s emergency rule permanent.
In Policy Solutions for the Pandemic: Expanding Broadband to Underserved Areas, The Buckeye Institute calls on Ohio to offer targeted state grants to deploy high-speed broadband service to underserved areas of the state, writing, “We have recommended expanding Ohio’s telehealth services for routine medical care and bolstering education savings accounts to help families afford the unanticipated costs of distance learning online for their now ‘home schooled’ children. Both recommendations require high-speed broadband internet access.”
Robert Alt, president and chief executive officer of The Buckeye Institute, issued a statement thanking United States Senator Rob Portman of Ohio for his leadership in calling on the Small Business Administration to allow people who have a criminal record but have turned their lives around and started a small business to qualify for the Paycheck Protection Program.
