(Columbus) – Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose issued the following statement today regarding the Ohio General Assembly’s passage of the biennial state operating budget:
“This budget bill represents one of the biggest victories for election integrity in Ohio’s history, and I encourage the Governor to sign these reforms into law.
This budget prioritizes the investigation and prosecution of election crimes, which is a huge win for our Election Integrity Unit and all Ohio voters. Lawmakers even recognized the great work our team of full-time investigators is doing by making this unit a permanent part of our statutory duties. The General Assembly also created a new Election Integrity Commission to more effectively enforce election and campaign finance laws, and they clarified the timeline for election-related prosecutions.
Election integrity starts on the front lines of democracy with our poll workers, so it’s great to see this budget makes it easier for us to recruit retired public employees to serve in those positions without jeopardizing their pensions.
I commend Senate President McColley, House Speaker Huffman, the finance committee chairs and especially Senator Theresa Gavarone for their leadership on this budget bill. Their work should give Ohioans even greater confidence in Ohio’s reputation as the gold standard for election integrity.”
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