From the Statehouse

By Jennifer Garrison

September 3, 2010

The Ohio House of Representatives is working on legislation that affects you, your family and our community. Our goal is to make this a better place for all of us to live, work and play. Among the issues we’ve addressed this session are bills that protect the property rights of our manufactured home owners and legislation to streamline the process for dealing with issues related to your driver’s license.

House Bill 186 protects the property rights of manufactured home residents through a number of safeguards.   The first allows manufactured home owners to place a “for sale” sign on their lot

The bill also recognizes the unique issues facing manufactured home communities and transfers authority for the Manufactured Homes Commission from the Department of Health and the BMV to an independent commission.  This bill is supported by both the Ohio Department of Health and the BMV.

The bill also received support from the Ohio Manufactured Homes Association as well as the Association of Manufactured Home Residents of Ohio. Both groups are impacted by this legislation.

With the number of foreclosures still high, it is important to remember, those who live in manufactured homes. This legislation would ensure that they are notified of impending foreclosures filed against their communities.  House Bill 186 requires the mortgage company to notify the Manufactured Homes Commission within 10 days after filing a foreclosure against a manufactured home community so homeowners have time to relocate or negotiate with new owners. 

Finally, House Bill 186 provides better enforcement of health and safety requirements in manufactured home communities, and training for manufactured home community managers. This measure improves resident relations and facilitates a better understanding of tenant-landlord responsibilities, fair housing laws, and management principals between all parties.

I voted “yes” on House Bill 186 as it passed out of the House. The bill is still pending in the Ohio Senate.

House Bill 338 streamlines the judicial process for driver’s license issues.  The bill allows any court dealing with a driver’s license matter to rule on all issues regarding the driver’s license.   Such issues include driver’s license suspension, renewal and expiration.

The intent of the bill is to allow all issues concerning a driver’s license to be resolved in a single forum, creating a more efficient and effective judicial process for such matters.  The current system creates an unnecessary triplication of work.  This often leaves the courts helpless to resolve matters in which they are able to offer a solution.

I voted “yes” on House Bill 338 as it passed out of the House unanimously.  It was approved by the Ohio Senate, signed into law by the Governor and becomes effective this month.

Another area where current law is often confusing relates to a number of fees for parties in civil and criminal lawsuits. Some of these charges are categorized as costs that are assessed as judgment; others are referred to as fees.  These charges can be hard to reference in Ohio’s record of state laws, so House Bill 431 consolidates the numerous costs and fees.  The bill simply organizes fees and costs by court. 

This bill will avoid confusion and create more transparency, accountability, and consistency in Ohio’s various courts. I co-sponsored and voted “yes” on House Bill 431 as it passed out of the House almost unanimously.  The bill is pending in the Ohio Senate.

You can reach Jennifer Garrison in her Columbus office at (614)644-8728, in the district at (740)373-2414 or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Her website is www.jennifergarrison.com.

From the Statehouse

By Jennifer Garrison

August 27, 2010

The key to keep Ohio moving forward is two-fold: fostering an environment where jobs are created to grow our economy and continuing to find places to cut costs while tightening our belts.  The Ohio House has worked hard during the past session of the legislature to do both.  We are confident that our programs to extend tax credits to companies that create or retain Ohio jobs as well as our measures to reduce the costs of the services we provide will help us build a stronger, more sustainable Ohio.  

Currently, the Ohio Tax Credit Authority administers job creation and job retention grant programs to support the economic growth of Ohio companies and to attract new industries to the state.  Under these programs, a business can receive tax credits for creating or retaining jobs here in Ohio. 

House Bill 329 expands our tax credit program to include employees whose services are performed mainly from their Ohio residence.  The tax credits apply to those at-home employees whose work is performed exclusively for that business.  The number of at-home employees the business may count cannot exceed 10% of the total number of employees.

Under current law, employers are required to make a minimum amount of capital investment at the business site to qualify for job retention tax credits.  This requirement is retained in this bill for those employers who wish to include at-home employees for the purpose of the job creation credit.

This legislation will further our efforts to create jobs across the state.  I co-sponsored and voted “yes” on House Bill 329 as it passed out of the House unanimously.  The bill is still pending in the Ohio Senate.

The Ohio Venture Capital Program was created for the purpose of increasing private investment in Ohio- based businesses in the early stages of development.  Through allocations made by the Ohio Capital Fund, 35 Ohio companies have received investments—and those 35 companies have over $90 million in annual payroll.  This program invests in Ohio’s entrepreneurs and fosters innovation in high-growth industries which ultimately leads to good-paying jobs for Ohioan’s and further strengthens our economy. 

House Bill 348 shores up the Ohio Venture Capital Program and bolsters private investment in Ohio businesses by expanding the investment capacity of the Ohio Venture Capital Authority.  This bill increases the annual tax credit authorization from $20 million to $26.5 million.  This program does not use state tax dollars or General Revenue Funds. 

I co-sponsored and voted “yes” on House Bill 348 as it passed out of the House unanimously.  This bill is also still pending in the Ohio Senate.

Senate Bill 194 streamlines the process by which taxpayers receive their refunds.  The bill allows an individual taxpayer filing their income tax return electronically to have the state directly deposit their refund into a savings or retirement account or annuity.  In addition to making the refund process easier for taxpayers, the bill generates modest cost savings by allowing the state to avoid the cost of mailing paper checks, approximately 40 cents for every refund issued.

I co-sponsored and voted “yes” on Senate Bill 194 as it passed out of the House unanimously.  The Senate agreed to the House changes and the Governor signed it into law. The bill took effect in mid August.

You can reach Jennifer Garrison in her Columbus office at (614)644-8728, in the district at (740)373-2414 or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Her website is www.jennifergarrison.com.

From the Statehouse

By Jennifer Garrison

August 20, 2010

You don’t like to waste your money, and you don’t want your state government to waste your money either. That’s why the legislature is taking a close look at all the boards and commissions that exist to make sure they are still serving the public good.

The Ohio Sunset Review Law establishes expiration dates for state boards, commissions, committees, and councils.  The law requires that the state legislature renew each entity, or allow it to be disbanded (“sunset.”) 

The state also created the bipartisan Sunset Review Committee with three members appointed by the Senate President, three appointed by the Speaker of the House, and three appointed by the Governor.  The committee is charged with reviewing the state entities that fall under the Sunset Review Law and determining whether those entities or functions should be abolished, transferred, or continued.

The committee completed its review and made recommendations for those entities that are set to expire at the end of this year.  In order to implement those recommendations the House passed House Bill 495.  HB 495 eliminates or consolidates over 89 state boards and commissions and abolished funding for the Workers’ Compensation Council.

Additionally, this bill eliminates the Workers’ Compensation Council which never lived up to its promise of advising the Bureau of Workers Compensation on legislation.  The bill eliminates the funding for the council but retains the functions of the council while the legislature continues its review of the council.  Currently, the council is funded by both the state and fees paid by employers who are subject to the Worker’s Compensation Law.  By eliminating the funding for this council, we lift a burden off of businesses and save Ohio approximately $1 million.

This bill cuts government waste, streamlines agency functions, and promotes fiscal responsibility by eliminating outdated boards and combining the functions of others.  I co-sponsored and voted “yes” on HB 495 as it passed out of the House unanimously.  It is now pending in the Ohio Senate.

No person can practice architecture in Ohio unless they have filed specific paperwork and comply with Ohio law on the subject.  Current law exempted corporations that were lawfully providing architectural services prior to 1982.  This exemption was originally enacted in order to allow longstanding firms to avoid paperwork and fees and allow relatives of the original founders of the firm to continue to operate the business.

This exemption, however, has been abused.  After being notified that a non-licensed individual was performing architectural services, the Ohio Architects Board discovered that they did not have any regulatory authority to correct this problem.  The non-licensed individual had purchased a firm that had previously been grandfathered in and was exempted from the Architects law.  Because the individual had purchased a firm which had been previously exempted the board did not have the authority to order the firm to comply with the professional code of conduct or any statute governing the practice of architecture. 

SB 183 continues to exempt those firms who have been transferred to non-licensed family members.  However, these firms will be required to obtain a certificate of authorization and must use licensed architects to provide the professional services. 

This bill is designed to protect the people of Ohio while still allowing family businesses to be passed down from generation to generation.  I co-sponsored and voted “yes” on SB 183 as it passed out of the House almost unanimously.  The bill was signed by the Governor in June and becomes effective this September.

You can reach Jennifer Garrison in her Columbus office at (614)644-8728, in the district at (740)373-2414 or by email at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .  Her website is www.jennifergarrison.com.