· January 26, 2015

Six Ohio Proposals For Women We Hope To See Again

The 131^st General Assembly begins its work soon, and the caucuses are rolling out their priority legislation later this week. While we don’t know if women’s issues will be on the agenda or how proposed ideas will impact women, we’ve listed some pro-women pieces of legislation from the last General Assembly that we would like to see again.

• Contraceptive Coverage (House Bill 604, Representative Clyde; Senate Bill 355 Senators Tavares and Turner) – This bill would require health insurers to provide coverage for contraceptive drugs approved by the FDA. It would also prohibit employers from discriminating against employees’ reproductive health decisions on the basis of personal beliefs.
• Gender Pay (House Bill 120, Representatives Lundy and Driehaus) – This bill would create the Gender Pay Disparity Task Force to determine the extent and causes of pay disparity between men and women in Ohio. The Task Force would be required to issue a report with its findings and recommendations to decrease pay disparity. The Task Force would be eliminated once their work is complete.
• Campus Dating Violence (House Bill 626, Representative Barnes) – This bill would enact the “Respect Your Date Act” to require each state institution of higher education to adopt a policy addressing dating violence and rape on campus.
• Economic Council on Women (House Bill 575, Representatives Baker and Anielski) – This bill would create the Economic Council on Women to examine the economic concerns and needs of women in Ohio, including employment policies and practices, educational needs and opportunities, child care, property rights, health care, domestic relations, and the effect of federal and state laws on women.
• HPV Vaccine (Senate Bill 39, Senators Brown and Schiavoni) – This bill would require health insurers to cover expenses related to HPV screenings and vaccinations.
• Pay Equity (Senate Bill 92, Senators Turner and Tavares) – This bill would enact the “Fair Acceptable Income Required (FAIR) Act” and prohibit discrimination on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation. It would also prohibit employers from paying different wages for the performance of equal work.

As always, a complete list of Ohio legislation impacting women can be found on our Women’s Watch page. We will add information and analysis on bills as they emerge during the 2015-2016 legislative session. Follow Ohio Women’s Watch on Twitter and Facebook to receive updates and alerts on legislative action.