Five things to know for Friday, Oct. 24

Dems: State taxpayers should fund federal programs during shutdown

Ohio Democrats want to keep the money flowing to federal programs if the federal government doesn’t open by Nov. 1. They’ve introduced House Bill 502 to send state tax dollars to federal welfare programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance, the Women, Infants and Children and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programs.

“Together, we’re calling for action and compassion from both here in Columbus, but then also those in Washington,” state Rep. Latyna Humphrey, D-Columbus, said during a news conference, Gongwer reported. “Because if we can use our rainy day fund to feed families in the middle of a political storm, then we’re not just protecting budgets, we are protecting lives.”

Yost: Ohio Supreme Court should uphold ban on gender-affirming treatment for children

Attorney General Dave Yost wants the Ohio Supreme Court to uphold a state law barring doctors from performing “gender-affirming” treatments on children. In a brief, the attorney general asserts that the 10th District Court of Appeals erred in ruling that parents have a constitutional right to seek these treatments.

“We look forward to showing once again that the legislature acted properly in enacting this constitutional law, which protects our children from irreversible medical decisions,” Yost said in a release. The law is in effect while the state appeals to the Ohio Supreme Court.

Ohio unemployment claims down

According to the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services, Ohioans filed 4,527 initial unemployment claims for the week of Oct. 12 to Oct. 18, a total that was 666 fewer than the previous week. Roughly 940 were flagged for confirmation that they are not fraudulent.

Ohioans also filed 40,701 continued unemployment claims during the week, which was 258 fewer than the previous week.

Ohio’s 5% August unemployment rate was higher than the 4.3% national unemployment rate. Ohio’s labor force participation rate in August was 62.5%, higher than the national labor force participation rate in August, which was 62.3%.

Rep: DeWine should declare energy emergency in Youngstown

State Rep. Lauren McNally, D-Youngstown, wants Republican Gov. Mike DeWine to declare an energy emergency in Youngstown. Doing so would allow for immediate state intervention and expand Youngstown officials’ authority and available resources.

Last month, SOBE Thermal’s operations were disrupted after equipment was repossessed, leaving some buildings without heat and hot water. The public utility is now in receivership.

Hearing set for Morrow County solar facility

The Ohio Power Siting Board will hold a Dec. 10 public hearing about Crossroads Solar I’s proposal to build a 94-megawatt solar-power facility in Morrow County. Crossroads Solar proposes to construct the facility within a 726-acre project area in Cardington, Lincoln and Westfield townships.

The facility would include photovoltaic panel arrays, access roads, a substation, and a generation interconnection line. It would also include sheep grazing and related infrastructure.