Ohio workers are the focus of this week's podcast. Policy Matters Ohio has released its new report on the economic conditions for workers in the Buckeye State. Ohio Statehouse Scoop Host Jo Ingles talked to the group's director, Hannah Halbert, about the new study. She also spoke to Greg Lawson with the Buckeye Institute to get his thoughts on the state of Ohio's economy where workers are concerned. And Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kasler and Reporter Sarah Donaldson offer their thoughts on the impact workers may have on the election this November.

Supporters of an amendment on Ohio's ballot this fall have taken the Ballot Board to court over the summary majority Republicans on that panel adopted. The summary is the language voters will see on the ballot and backers of the amendment say it is misleading, inaccurate and partisan, thereby making it unconstitutional. We'll explore those claims with Citizens Not Politicians spokesman Chris Davey, Republican State Senator Rob McColley, Democratic Senate Minority Leader Nickie Antonio, and Democratic House Minority Leader Allison Russo. Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kasler and Reporter Sarah Donaldson join Ohio Statehouse Scoop host Jo Ingles to discuss other happenings at the Statehouse last week. And we look back at the national political conventions and look forward to the campaigns.

The Republican-dominated Ohio Ballot Board approved summary language for the proposed redistricting amendment that sponsors of that map-drawing reform effort promise to take to court this week. In this episode, Ohio Statehouse Scoop Host Jo Ingles reports on the controversy over the language Ohioans will see on the ballot when they cast votes and why sponsors of the plan say it does not represent at all the actual amendment voters will be deciding. Ohio Public Media Statehouse Bureau Chief Karen Kasler and reporter Sarah Donaldson talk about school bus driver shortages, difficulties facing social workers, and the latest update on the state's tax revenue. Plus we'll give you the latest on the HB 6 scandal, the largest corruption crime in Ohio's history. First Energy agreed to pay $20 million in damages but many are saying that's not enough given the company benefitted from a $60 million bribery scheme.

Last week was the first for sales of legal marijuana to adults in Ohio. Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Bureau reporter Sarah Donaldson covered that story and shared her experiences with Ohio Statehouse Scoop podcast host Jo Ingles. Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kasler joined the conversation to talk about what comes next. Also, Associated Press Reporter Julie Carr Smyth talks about her experience in Pennsylvania recently, covering the rally during which former President Donald Trump was injured after an assassination attempt.

Ohioans will be voting on a constitutional amendment this fall that would, once again, change the process for making legislative and congressional maps. The processes voters approved in 2015 and 2018 resulted in maps ruled unconstitutional seven times by the Ohio Supreme Court. The majority Republicans, who control the Ohio Legislature and all statewide elected offices, also controlled the process of drawing lines for districts. A federal court eventually ruled the unconstitutional maps could be used this year. But people who watched the process approved by voters play out were outraged by what they saw. So, Democrats, Independents, and Republicans, including former Ohio Supreme Court Justice Maureen O'Connor (a Republican), came together and have taken the proper steps to put the issue before voters again. And this time, they say politicians and lobbyists will be put out of the process altogether. Ohio Statehouse Scoop Host Jo Ingles heard what Governor DeWine had to say about the situation last week. She talked to redistricting experts, including Chris Larimer (political science professor at University of Northern Iowa), Sam Wong (Princeton Gerrymandering Project), Brianna Mack (Politics and Government Assistant Professor at Ohio Wesleyan University), and Paul Beck (professor emeritus of political science at Ohio State University). Jo is also joined by Ohio Public Media Statehouse Bureau Chief Karen Kasler and Statehouse News Bureau Reporter Sarah Donaldson to talk about how this could all play out with voters in November.

The Repubican-dominated Ohio General Assembly is considering a bill that would limit drag performers to adult cabarets and would make it illegal for them to perform in public parks, libraries, or places where there are children under 18-years-old. Backers of the bill say it is needed to protect kids from observing harmful behavior that confuses them. But advocates for LGBTQ Ohioans say the bill would hurt LGBTQ Ohioans. Host Jo Ingles reports on all sides of the debate including testimony from proponents who testified for it and advocates for Ohio's LGBTQ community who are fighting against it. Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kasler and Reporter Sarah Donaldson weigh in with their ideas about the chance of passage for this controversial legislation.

Ohioans had been signing petitions since last year to get a $15 an hour minimum wage proposal on Ohio's ballot this November. So why aren't voters going to vote on it? Ohio Statehouse Scoop Host Jo Ingles talked with Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Reporter Sarah Donaldson about what she discovered when trying to figure out what went wrong. OPM Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kasler tells us where the effort goes from here.

It appears likely Ohioans will be able to vote on a constitutional amendment this November that could oust politicians from the process of drawing lines for legislative and congressional districts. Petitions from more than 730,000 registered voters were submitted last week to put the measure on the ballot. And Libertarian candidates might be able to, once again, have their party affiliation listed on the ballot along with their names. But a proposal to raise the minimum wage in Ohio won't be on the ballot this fall after organizers failed to get enough signatures in rural areas. Ohio Statehouse Scoop Host Jo Ingles explains what is, and isn't, on the ballot. Ohio State University Political Science Professor Emeritus Paul Beck and Stephen Brooks, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Akron weigh in on how those issues might affect candidates up for election in November. Plus Ohio Public Media Statehouse News Bureau Chief Karen Kasler and Reporter/Producer Sarah Donaldson explain the process for moving forward and how the petition-initiated changes could impact the political landscape in the Buckeye State.

Ohio lawmakers passed more than 50 bills last week before heading out the door for summer break. Ohio Statehouse Scoop Host Jo Ingles, Ohio Public Media Bureau Chief Karen Kasler, and Ohio Public Media Reporter Sarah Donaldson explain what the legislators did and what they left undone. Plus Jo talks to an organizer of "Citizens, Not Politicians," a group that is filing to put a proposed constitutional amendment before voters in November that would change the redistricting process in Ohio.

This is the last scheduled week for the Ohio General Assembly to meet before going on a long summer break. The big ticket item on this week's agenda is a $4 billion capital bill. It's believed to be the largest in state history. Ohio Statehouse Scoop host Jo Ingles talks to her Ohio Public Media Statehouse Bureau colleagues, Karen Kasler and Sarah Donaldson, about the big spending bill and other legislation that might be addressed this week.