The changes include:
- Eliminating a requirement that the House’s legislative session agenda be set at least 24 hours prior to session starting;
- Eliminating a rule that required committee amendments be submitted to committee chairs before midnight the night before a hearing;
- Eliminating a rule that required proposed floor amendments be submitted to the House clerk at least two hours before session. The minimum notice is now an hour.
“All Ohioans deserve the opportunity to testify and express our concerns or support for legislation,” reads the letter, which was signed by over 50 Ohio organizations. “The removal of the 24-hour notice deprives Ohioans of their right to assemble and have a say in the government we elect and pay for.”
Another rule change bars the public and lobbyists from congregating outside the Ohio House chamber in Columbus a half-hour before and after sessions.
In January, Huffman told reporters that the change was security related. He referenced a story in which an unnamed lobbyist blocked the chamber entrance while demanding to know how lawmakers were going to vote on a pending bill.
“Any member of the public will do what they did before,” Huffman said, noting that the House chamber’s second-floor gallery will still be open to the public.
The civic organizations behind the letter, however, view the change as one that “blatantly attack(s)” Ohioans’ First Amendment rights.
“The hallway outside the Ohio House Chamber has always been a critical space for free speech and direct engagement with elected officials,” the letter reads. “This area is essential for the public to be involved with the laws that ultimately will impact them.”
When asked for comment on the letter, House Press Secretary Olivia Wile defended the House’s new rules, which were passed with strong support from the Republican supermajority.
“Speaker Huffman and the members of the Ohio House are committed to promoting safety and order in and out of House spaces. Members of the public are still welcome to watch session in-person in the gallery,” Wile said.
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Avery Kreemer can be reached at 614-981-1422, on X, via email, or you can drop him a comment/tip with the survey below.
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