COLUMBUS — The Ohio House of Representatives voted along party lines Wednesday and approved a Republican-backed bill that would limit the powers of Ohio Department of Health Director Dr. Amy Acton.
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The bill, if approved and signed into law, would require all orders issued by the Department of Health to only be in effect for 14 days, including any stay-at-home order. Should the health department want to extend the order, the proposed bill states the department would need to seek the approval of an existing bipartisan committee, the Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review, our news partners at WBNS-TV report.
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The committee, comprised of five state representatives and five senators, would then decide how long an order would be extended, if at all, the station reports.
The bill passed in the House 58-37, and now goes to the Senate for approval.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine slammed the move and his office said he will veto any bill that makes it to his desk that would limit the power of the health director. DeWine added his fellow Republicans should be focused on increasing coronavirus testing, dealing with a $775 million budget deficit and reopening the economy, WBNS-TV reported.
Republican backers of the bill said the legislation is necessary to check the power of DeWine and Acton.
If vetoed by the governor, the amount of yes votes in the House Wednesday would not be enough to override DeWine’s decision, WCPO-TV reports.
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