Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose has directed county boards of election to limit how voters can use ballot drop boxes in this fall's election. LaRose's directive requires that a voter can only put their own absentee ballot in a drop box. If they are dropping off a ballot for a family member or someone else as allowed by state law, the voter must sign a form with the board stating they are lawfully assisting the other voter.
The story begins this week’s discussion of news on the “Reporters Roundtable.”
A federal judge this week struck down part of a new Ohio law that attempted to ban foreign nationals from donating to state ballot issue campaigns. The bill passed in a special session of the legislature earlier this summer and was to go into effect on Sept. 1.
The Cleveland Browns will be playing their home games at Huntington Bank Field for the next two decades regardless of whether they stay at their current stadium or build a new domed site in Brook Park. The team announced the deal earlier this week. FirstEnergy previously held naming rights at the stadium, but that deal was ended early due to the scandal involving the company and the passage of the so-called "nuclear bailout bill,” House Bill 6.
A working group has delivered 26 recommendations on how to improve Ohio's Department of Youth Services. The state's Juvenile Justice Working Group delivered its report alongside Governor Mike DeWine this week. One of its chief recommendations is that children under the age of 14 should not be placed in juvenile lockups.
Rain and storms are in the forecast for Friday but it likely won't be enough to end drought conditions in much of the state. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has designated 23 Ohio counties as natural disaster areas due to drought. The counties in the disaster declarations have experienced eight or more weeks of severe drought. Nearly all of the state's 88 counties are listed in drought conditions ranging from abnormally dry to severe drought. The conditions are milder in the northern part of the state but the drought is expected to persist into the fall.
Guests:
-Kabir Bhatia, Senior Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Matt Richmond, Reporter, Ideastream Public Media
-Karen Kasler, Statehouse News Burea Chief, Ohi Public Radio/TV