Committee hears proponent testimony on bill to ban "release time" for public employees

The Government Oversight and Reform Committee held the second hearing on Senate Bill 8, which would prohibit "release time," a practice by which public employees are paid by government employers while conducting union or political activities, with proponent witnesses testifying in support.

Hannah Cubbins, legislative director for Americans for Prosperity Ohio, told the committee that "taxpayers should not be obligated to subsidize political and organized labor activities through public sector unions." She described release time as a practice that removes employees from their public duties and shifts the cost of union activity to taxpayers and cited figures she attributed to the Goldwater Institute, saying the city of…