COLUMBUS, Ohio – Bills aimed at helping veterans and women are headed to the governor’s desk and the Ohio Senate, respectively, after winning approval in House on Thursday.
House members went along with changes made in the Senate to the veterans’ component of the mid-biennium budget review, which is intended to help veterans convert military training into civilian employment. The bill now goes to Gov. John Kasich for his signature.
The House also approved a measure creating an Ohio Economic Council on Women to study issues affecting women in the workplace and the economy, including job training, education, child care and the impact of federal and state legislation on them, according to its sponsors, Rep. Marlene Anielski (R-Walton Hills) and Nan Baker (R-Westlake).
A group of leading Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, toured Ohio earlier this week to call attention to similar issues.
The bill now goes to the Senate.
The council would consist of 15 members appointed by the governor, the Senate president and minority leader and the Speaker and minority leader of the House.
Anielski and Baker say the council would report to the Governor, the General Assembly and other state and local agencies.
The veterans’ bill is designed to create a more effective process for awarding college credit to veterans for their military training and smooths out the path toward training and professional licensing.
It also requires colleges and universities to provide support and assistance to Ohio veterans. Amendments added in the Senate include requiring the Chancellor of the Board of Regents to prepare a report describing the progress made toward the implementation of the guidelines, authorizing the chancellor to defer or forgive some loans and establishing student-led groups for student service members and veterans.