b'General Assembly Session Overviewby ORCA Legislative Consultant, Chris SinagraOh io General Assembly is back and starting one ofthissession.Legislatorsalsowanttoremove the busiest times of the legislative session.Aimpediments to employment for former offenders.majority of the new General Assembly?s time and energy will go to a few top issues including state budgets, criminal justice reform, energy policy, school funding, and redistricting. Please view more on these topics below:State Budgets - Ohio?s legislators consider hundreds of bills during their two year session, but no legislation is moreimportantthanthebillsthatformthestate budget. The major budget bills will be enacted in 2021 to fund state government agencies and make policy changes consist of the state operating, transportation andBWC/IndustrialCommissionbudgets.Someof theStatebudgetprovisionsincludesmallbusiness grants, millions in infrastructure projects, millions for workforce investment in economically distressed ruralurban areas, moving of the State?s Equal Opportunity ServicesProgram(MBE,EDGE,andWBE)fromthe DepartmentofAdministrativeServicestothe Development Services Agency.ORCA has worked to build strong labor and management support for their initiatives.Pictured here is John Hayes, Past President oftheMid-StatesCouncilofRoofersandFredHornerof Advanced Industrial Roofing.Both present to present testimony in support of roofing licensing.Energy Policy? HB 6 (Energy Policy ) was passed and intendedtomaintainOhio?sNuclearplants.Key playersinHB6lastyearcameunderfederal investigation which continues today. Legislators are notcomfortablewithhowHB6waspassed.Thus, efforts to repeal the bill or replace portions of it will be a major focus of this General Assembly.School Funding? Last session a school funding plan did not make it all the way through the process, thus this subject will be a focus again this year. Legislation ORCA has worked to build contractor support from across Ohio for their initiatives. Pictured here is: Valerie Pope, ORCA?s Deputyhas been introduced to establish new base costs for Director; Fred Horner, ORCA President from Advanced IndustrialeducatingtypicalOhiostudentsanduseamixof Roofing in Massillon and Jim Eckstein ORCA Past President from Eckstein Roofing Company in Cincinnati. property and income wealth to determine the capacity of communities to fund education locally. Legislators are viewing the budget as a vehicle to pass this type of Criminal Justice Reform? Portions of criminal justicereform.reform pasted last year, but legislation to give judges Continued on Page 4more discretion and divert offenders will be revisited www.ohioroofing.com 3'