The Ohio Senate approved bills, which were sponsored by the Mahoning Valley’s state senators, to increase federal COVID-19 relief funds for those struggling to pay rent and utilities, and another for small businesses impacted by the pandemic.

The two were among three COVID-19 relief bills approved Wednesday by the Senate. The bills were introduced two weeks ago, and will now move to the Ohio House for consideration.

State Sen. Sandra O’Brien, R-Knox, sponsored a bill with Sen. Steve Wilson, R-Maineville, to provide $465 million more in federal funds to help Ohioans having trouble paying their rent and utilities because of the pandemic.

“We owe it to our constituents to ensure these dollars are distributed thoughtfully, fairly and in a way that will have the biggest impact for the people of Ohio,” said O’Brien, whose district includes all of Trumbull and Ashtabula counties and a portion of Geauga County.

It is the first bill sponsored by O’Brien, who started serving her term Jan. 1, to be approved by the Senate.

Ohio distributed $55.2 million from federal COVID-19 funds for these purposes.

Also approved was a bill sponsored by state Sen. Michael Rulli, R-Salem, to provide $300 million in federal funds to businesses. Rulli represents Mahoning and Columbiana counties. The other sponsor was Sen. Nathan Manning, R-North Ridgeville.

“I am proud to sponsor this important bill which will ensure our businesses, who have greatly suffered this year, have all the available resources to recover in a timely fashion,” Rulli said.

The bill provides $150 million to small businesses that have already been approved for aid but haven’t received money because of lack of program funding, as well as $112.2 million to reimburse child-care providers for pandemic-related expenses, $20 million for indoor entertainment businesses that lost revenue because of canceled events and closures, $10 million for new businesses that opened after Jan. 1, 2020, $4.7 million for Ohio’s fairs and $3.7 million for the state’s two veterans’ homes.

The Senate also approved a bill to provide $125 million to bars, restaurants and lodging businesses.

State Rep. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, is one of the two sponsors of the $125 million proposal in the Ohio Senate.

Also, state Rep. Mike Loychik, R-Bazetta, is one of the two sponsors of companion legislation to the Rulli bill in the House.

LOYCHIK BILL

Meanwhile, the Ohio House on Wednesday approved a bill sponsored by Loychik and state Rep. Cindy Abrams, R-Harrison, that requires public children services agencies to report child abuse or neglect in military families to the appropriate military authorities.

“When it comes to child welfare of our military families, we must put the right steps within our law to provide full collaboration and coordination among these agencies for the betterment of our children,” said Loychik, vice chairman of the House Armed Services and Veterans Affairs Committee.

It is the first bill sponsored by Loychik, a state representative since Jan. 1, to be approved by the House.

The current law requires military services to establish agreements with state and local child welfare services to collaborate on the oversight of cases involving military families, but those agencies may not have the authority or direction to collect that information or share it with U.S. Department of Defense authorities.

Under the bill, which has to be approved by the Senate, child welfare case workers would be required to ask clients if they are associated with the military and give case workers the authority to share that information with the appropriate military authorities to provide better coordination.