Ohio's Senate Bill 5 - UPDATE

Posted by Site Admin

Service Area(s): legal

On March 2, 2011, the Ohio Senate passed what is known across Ohio as Senate Bill 5, a controversial amendment to existing laws eliminating the majority of collective bargaining rights held by unionized public employees.  The bill itself is 264 pages, and is available online here.  Our legal analysts are currently reviewing these amendments to develop a comprehensive summary of the bill's effect on rural water associations statewide.  Although the bill generally focuses on collective bargaining, there are additional amendments that address public employees as a whole.  These sections will become important to R.C. 6103, 6117, and 6119 organizations throughout Ohio, particularly regarding OPERS contributions, health insurance, and other benefits associated with public employment.  We look forward to providing our members with a more comprehensive analysis of these issues in the near future.  In the meantime, we found a recent article pubished by the Cincinnati Enquirer highlighted several important aspects of the bill.  

The bill will now proceed to the House of Representatives, where it will continue to be debated before coming to a vote.  If passed, Governor Kasich, as a prime supporter of the legislation, will sign it into law.  

Stumphauzer | O'Toole, RWA's strategic legal services partner, will present a brief snapshot of Senate Bill 5's impact on rural water districts in Ohio at the Ohio Rural Water Association's Quarterly Meeting on March 8, 2011.  Click here to preview the presentation.

This article originally appeared in the , on .
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