Majority Republicans in the Ohio House voted to approve a Senate bill that they say will stop liberal indoctrination at the state's public colleges by banning diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Only three Republicans joined all Democrats in voting against the bill, which passed the Senate in February after a similar version stalled last session.
Senate Bill 1 also bans faculty strikes, requires post-tenure performance reviews, a civics course focused on American history and free market capitalism, and "intellectual diversity" in discussion of issues the bill describes as controversial.
The debate on the bill went on for more than two hours, with a few interruptions from protestors and some complaints from lawmakers that speakers were not addressing the bill. All House Democrats in attendance voted against it, along with Reps. Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill), Scott Oelslager (R-North Canton) and Cindy Abrams (R-Harrison).
Stephens was a notable "no" vote, in that the bill didn't come to the House floor when he was speaker last session - but he said that wasn't because he blocked it, but because it didn't have the votes.
As SB 1 was being discussed, hundreds of protestors marched from Ohio State University's main campus in Columbus to the Statehouse. Student and faculty groups, Democratic organizations, civil rights groups and unions have opposed the bill.
There were two changes from the version that passed the Senate in February - a clarification that the bill doesn't prevent universities from providing services for people with disabilities, and a carve out for programs that need to comply with DEI standards for legal compliance, accreditation or licensure.
Sponsor Sen. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland) proposed SB 1 earlier this year after a similar bill failed to get to the House floor last session. In negotiations to get Senate Bill 83 passed, Cirino had dropped the ban on faculty strikes as well as agreed to other changes, which he said he would not do if it were reintroduced. Cirino was in the back of the House chamber to watch the debate over the bill.
SB 1 must go back to the Senate to approve changes before it heads to Gov. Mike DeWine. He said on Friday that he thinks he'll probably sign it.
