COLUMBUS (WCMH) – A Wayne County Republican State Representative has introduced a bill in the House seeking to restrict health orders issued by the governor’s administration.
State Rep. Scott Wiggam (R-Wayne County) has introduced House Bill 90, a companion bill to Ohio Senate Bill 22.
According to a press release from Wiggam’s office, House Bill 90 “seeks to add legislative transparency and oversight into the process of health orders.”
As written, the bill would allow the state legislature to rescind any public health crisis orders from any department within the governor’s administration. It would also allow the legislature to expire any order after 60 days unless the General Assembly votes to extend. If the order is allowed to expire, it would not be allowed to be reissued for 90 days.
Other provisions laid out within the legislation include:
- Establishing the Joint Ohio Health Oversight and Advisory Committee, which would have the authority to oversee actions of the administration.
- Removing the word ultimate from “The department of health shall have supervision of all matters relating to the preservation of the life and health of the people and have ultimate authority in matters of quarantine and isolation” in 3701.13.
Senate Bill 22, as introduced, would do several things including creating a committee of lawmakers with the power to rescind some orders and rules by Governor DeWine and the Ohio Health Department. The bill would also limit a public health emergency to 30 days unless extended by the general assembly.
“Ohioans’ lives and livelihoods have been negatively impacted by this pandemic,” Wiggam said in a press release. “Since the beginning, every decision that impacts everyone’s life in Ohio has been made behind closed doors by individuals with little or no accountability to the people of Ohio. It is time that we bring light to these decisions and allow them to be debated in public committees where experts from all fields and concerned citizens can make their voices heard and every Ohioan can be a part of the process.”
Any legislation passed by the statehouse would need to be signed into law by the governor.
