SB 1 Passes Committee
Yesterday, the House Workforce and Higher Education Committee voted Senate Bill 1 out of committee along party lines, but not before adopting amendments that put the bill closer in line with the last version of SB 83 from the previous legislative session.

One amendment offered by Rep. Gayle Manning (R-North Ridgeville) clarifies that the bill’s ban on DEI spending does not prohibit public colleges and universities from complying with any state or federal law to provide disability services. It also includes language to exempt students from the bill’s American civic literacy graduation requirement, if they have completed at least three credit hours in American history or government.

The second amendment, offered by Rep. Josh Williams (R-Sylvania), would allow public colleges and universities to apply to the Ohio Department of Higher Education for exemptions to SB1’s DEI ban to comply with state or federal law, professional licensure requirements, or accreditation standards. The committee rejected another amendment from Williams to gradually phase out diversity-related scholarships instead of banning them.

Ranking Democratic Member Beryl Brown Piccolantonio (D-Gahanna), introduced amendments that would have removed the anti-union and anti-tenure provisions of the bill. Those were tabled mostly along party lines.

SB 1 Passes Full House
Later that day, the full House of Representatives engaged in a lengthy debate, but ultimately passed SB 1 by a vote of 59 to 34. Republican Representatives Cindy Abrams (R-Harrison), Scott Oelslager (R-North Canton) and Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) joined Democrats in opposition. There were six representatives who were not in attendance.

During the House debate, the Ohio Conference AAUP led a massive protest of nearly a thousand people outside of the Statehouse (pictured above). Hundreds of students marched from Ohio State University down High Street to the Statehouse to meet us. Even though we knew what the result was going to be, it was important to show up in solidarity with students, labor partners, and community supporters. We’re not backing down. This isn’t the end; it is just the beginning of fighting the political interference into Ohio’s public higher education system.

Senate Concurrence and Governor’s Desk
Next week, SB 1 heads back to the Senate for concurrence on the changes that the House made to the bill. The Senate is expected to concur on Wednesday, March 26. Following Senate concurrence, the bill will be sent to Gov. DeWine to sign or veto.

We encourage you to contact the governor and ask him to veto SB 1 through this Action Network page, as well as by calling his office at 614-644-4357.

However, we want to be transparent about the prospects of the governor vetoing SB 1. Last week, DeWine told reporters that he would likely sign the bill after reviewing the final version. In addition, the governor is joining President Trump today at a ceremonial signing of an executive order intended to end the federal Department of Education–a move almost assuredly to be challenged on constitutional grounds.

Nevertheless, it is always worth making the case and ensuring the governor realizes that SB 1 is still broadly opposed and will undermine workforce development and Ohio’s research economy. The vote in the House indicates that the House may not be able to override a veto, should the governor choose to veto.

If the governor approves the bill, it will take effect 90 days after signing. We have received a lot of questions about potentially repealing the bill via referendum, as was done with SB 5 in 2011. Unfortunately, such an effort is not realistic given the substantial resources it would require. However, pulling together a statewide effort with other labor organizations in the future that would restore collective bargaining rights may be on the horizon, as we know that the union-busting isn’t going to end with professors.

Next Steps for AAUP
We will be working on a statewide virtual event for all Ohio AAUP members in April to discuss the implementation of SB 1 and what that entails for our faculty unions as well as individual faculty members. Stay tuned for more information and the registration link.

In addition, we will be having conversations with allied groups about the possibility of litigation on particular pieces of the law. There have been a number of lawsuits in other states over similar legislation, and we will research all of our options.

We are fiercely proud of the work we’ve done around SB 83/SB 1 to defend academic freedom, union rights, and the well-being of faculty and students. The short-term result may not be what we fought and hoped for, but this fight has increased AAUP membership and galvanized a coalition of higher education supporters that will work together for years to come. We are stronger together!