It’s Time to Show Leadership and Support the Passage of House Joint Resolution 1.

From 2015 to 2019, prior Speakers of the Ohio House have demonstrated leadership and supported the most vulnerable in our state, the unborn. The numerous Heartbeat bills over this time, were passed with the support of the Republican majority. In 2018, when John Kasich vetoed the Heartbeat bill, Speaker Ryan Smith, with the support of House members, over-rode the ill-advised Governor’s veto.

On April 10 of 2019, under Speaker Larry Householder’s leadership, the Ohio House passed the Heartbeat bill which was signed on April 11, 2019 by Governor Mike DeWine. Ohio’s Heartbeat bill is now being threatened by Planned Parenthood and their affiliates with an attempt to place radical amendments within Ohio’s constitution. Link to Video.

The current Ohio Senate, under the leadership of President Matt Huffman, supports the passage of a resolution to call for an August election to establish a 60% requirement for any amendment to Ohio’s constitution. Ohioans would vote on this important issue this August in a special election. 

House Speaker Jason Stephens became speaker on January 3, after obtaining the support of all Democrats and 21 Republican house members. Link to OVV Article There were a number of reported deals cut with the Democrats by Speaker Stephens. Based upon his actions, one of his commitments to the Democrats is to keep Ohioans from voting on raising any constitutional amendment to a 60% threshold.

Speaker Stephens tweeted on March 24, 2023, “Let me be abundantly clear. I am and have always been 100% Pro-Life. I will stand for life at every turn; however, I am not for changing the rules willy nilly at a whim when it comes to changing our constitution.”

John Stover, President of Ohio Value Voters states, “Mr. Speaker, you have the right to oppose and campaign against HJR1 in August. You do NOT have the right to prohibit Ohioans from voting on this critical issue to protect the life of the unborn.” 

House Joint Resolution 1 (HJR1), must be passed by the Ohio House by May 10, 2023. Ohio Value Voters commends Representative Susan Manchester for her discharge petition to bring HJR1 to the House floor for a vote. At this time, roughly 30 of the 50 signatures required are on this petition. Once on the House floor, 60 votes are required for the August election.

Ohio Value Voters strongly urges all Republican House Members to sign the discharge petition and pass HJR1 by May 10, 2023.

Ohio Value Voters urges you to contact your State Representative and Speaker Stephens and urge them to pass the 60% Constitutional Amendment Resolution to place this on the August ballot. Contact their office by phone and e-mail and leave a brief message: "Pass the 60% Constitutional Amendment Resolution for a Special Election on August 8th."

Find your state representative here: District Maps | Ohio Legislature

Enter your address and city at the bottom of the page. Then click on the photo of your state representative for his/her office phone number.           

Stephens’s office e-mail address: Jason.Stephens@OhioHouse.gov 

and phone number: 614.466.1366

BELOW READ THE RECENT PRESS RELEASE FROM PROTECT WOMEN OHIO

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Thursday, April 13, 2023

Contact: Amy Natoce

Amy@ProtectWomenOhio.com

614-565-2795

PROTECT WOMEN OHIO LAUNCHES TWO NEW ADS TO DEFEAT EXTREME ANTI-PARENT AMENDMENT 

“Parents have every reason to fear the ACLU’s extreme agenda. The state government doesn’t know what is best for our kids, we do.”

-Molly Smith, Board Member, Protect Women Ohio

COLUMBUS, OH -- Protect Women Ohio (PWO), a pro-woman, pro-parent coalition, is launching two new 60-second ads this week aimed at defeating Ohio’s dangerous anti-parent amendment. The ads, entitled “Libby” and “Linda,” will go into rotation as part of last month's $5 million statewide television and digital ad buy. The ads feature Ohio moms Libby McCartney and Linda Corbitt explaining how the ACLU-backed amendment will eliminate parental notification and consent requirements for minors obtaining abortions or sex change surgeries. This extreme anti-parent amendment is the latest example of the ACLU’s war on parental rights, effectively cutting parents out of the most important and life-altering decisions of their child’s life.

McCartney and Corbitt explain the amendment language clearly forbids any law that “directly or indirectly” would “burden” or “interfere” with an individual’s “reproductive decisions.” Those are specific legal terms which have been interpreted by courts across the country to strike down parental notification and consent laws.

“Parents have every reason to fear the ACLU’s extreme agenda,” said Molly Smith, PWO board member. “As a mom of five, I stand with Libby, Linda, and all Ohio parents in opposing this amendment that threatens our rights. The state government doesn’t know what is best for our kids, we do.”

Watch “Libby” HERE.

Ad Text:

(Libby McCartney)

Today in Ohio, if your minor child wants to have an abortion or get a sex change, you as a parent have rights.

This amendment would take away those rights. It doesn't differentiate between a minor and an adult. And because there is language in there about reproductive decisions that do not limit it to just abortion, this is opening the door for any other reproductive therapies, sex changes, anything to do with the reproductive organs.

Then there's this phrase that the state shall not interfere. As a parent, I could be cut out of these decisions that my child is making and someone who is coercing them or is talking them into something could take my teenage daughter, she could get an abortion or get a procedure done and I don't even know about it. That’s what’s scary.

If you as a parent want to be involved in these big decisions in your child's life, read the amendment.

You'll come to the same conclusion that this is about parental rights. It's not just about abortion like they say it is.

Watch “Linda” HERE.

Ad Text:

(Linda Corbitt)

They’re going after my kids, and I get really passionate about it because I can't support something where I lose my parental rights.

The language in this amendment takes away our rights as parents to be involved with the decisions that our children make.

If they wanted it to be about just abortions, they would have made it just about abortions. They added in these really loose language terms such as reproductive decisions.

So, it could be my 11-year-old daughter going out making decisions without my involvement. She can say I'm going to go get a sex change and I can't say or do anything about it because we have this amendment now that eliminates my right as a parent.

They could have made a distinction between adults and minors, but they didn't.

So what do they mean when they say the state shall not burden or the state shall not interfere with it. It means that I lose that right to protect my child.

This amendment is so much more than pro-life versus pro-choice. It’s going directly after our children. I cannot support this amendment.

A legal analysis of the extreme anti-parent amendment is available HERE from constitutional scholars Carrie Campbell Severino, President of Judicial Crisis Network, and Frank J. Scaturro, a former special counsel to the House Select Investigative Panel on Infant Lives.

Background on the ACLU’s war on parental rights is available HERE. The ACLU has a long and well-documented history of fighting against parental rights, including in Alaska and Indiana. The ACLU specifically calls out parental involvement on its website, saying it would restrict “teenagers’ access to abortion.”

The first ad in PWO’s $5 million statewide ad buy can be viewed HERE.

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Thank you for your prayers and support.

Sincerely,

John Stover, President

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