Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the State Legislation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Board hears state legislative update: classroom cell-phone restrictions advancing; property-tax elimination petition gathering signatures
Summary
At its May 19 meeting the board received a legislative report noting a state bill limiting student cell-phone use during instructional hours has passed the Senate and moved to the House, and that an initiative to eliminate property taxes has cleared an Attorney General review and is seeking roughly 400,000 signatures to reach the fall ballot.
During the board's legislative update on May 19 a board liaison reported two pending statewide developments that could affect Monroe Local.
First, the liaison said a bill that would restrict student cell-phone use had passed the state Senate and moved to the House; the language was reported to limit cell-phone bans to instructional hours rather than the entire school day. The presenter noted Monroe Local already has a policy addressing phones and said Ohio Governor Mike DeWine had indicated he would sign the measure once the Legislature completed action.
Second, the liaison reported that the Attorney General had given legal clearance to a petition drive aiming to eliminate property taxes. The speaker said the initiative needs roughly 400,000 valid signatures to appear on the fall ballot and predicted petitioners could meet that threshold quickly. The liaison cautioned that eliminating property taxes could materially affect school funding and many other services funded by property taxes, including libraries and mental-health services.
Board members discussed the local implications. One board member said the issue could be a "wake-up call" for legislators because the funding structure for schools had been challenged previously. The board urged continued monitoring of both the bill and the petition drive, and several members said they were following the developments closely in treasurer and legislative meetings.
Why this matters If the cellphone bill becomes law it would limit student access to phones during instructional hours statewide; local policy would determine enforcement details. A successful property-tax elimination initiative would require the Legislature to replace local property-tax revenue with another funding mechanism for schools and other local services; board and finance staff identified that as a material risk to district revenue and operations.
