Ohio is one of the most restrictive states in the country in its earnings requirements to qualify for unemployment compensation. Though the increase in the state minimum wage has allowed more workers to qualify, Ohio is one of only three states in the country where a minimum wage worker employed 29 hours a week all year would not be eligible for unemployment compensation. It is also one of only three states in which a worker making $9 an hour all year for 20 hours a week would not qualify. Those are among the findings of an analysis by Policy Matters Ohio on how Ohio’s monetary eligibility standard compares with that of other states.

Press Release

Analysis

Eighteen states and Washington D.C. are together spending nearly $2 billion each year in public benefits funds for clean energy to help break down existing market barriers to clean energy products and services, such as lack of awareness and high upfront costs. Across the 18 states, annual funds range from $2.3 million to $440 million. The state of Ohio collects $5 million each year, through a 9 cent monthly surcharge on electric utility bills, putting Ohio at the bottom of the pack. Ohio should strengthen its Advanced Energy Fund and use it to implement a statewide outreach campaign, provide customer rebates for green products such as solar panels, develop Ohio’s clean energy supply chain, and retrain Ohio’s workers for the green energy economy. Amanda Woodrum, Policy Liaison for Policy Matters Ohio, testified on December 11 to urge state representatives on the Alternative Energy Committee to consider expanding Ohio’s Advanced Energy Fund as part of House Bill 357.

Full Testimony

Read Investing to Re-Energize Ohio

On December 6th, Ohio Attorney General Marc Dann held a public hearing and call to action on payday lending. David Rothstein, a researcher for Policy Matters Ohio, testified about the Ohio economy, the explosion in the number of payday lending locations across Ohio (1400% increase in locations between 1996 and 2006), and the spread of payday lending locations beyond the urban centers around which they once clustered. Rothstein also testified on the structure and practices of payday loan establishments, including the methods of lenders with regards to back to back loans, and collection techniques. Recommendations were also made about interest rates and alternatives to loans that trap families in a cycle of debt.

Testimony

Payday Lending Public Hearing Flyer

Read Trapped in Debt

Ohio Employment Down 50,000 since Recession

Six years after the official end of the last recession, the state hasn’t recovered the number of jobs it had when the downturn ended. There are 50,000 fewer jobs in Ohio than in November 2001, according to seasonally adjusted payroll numbers for nonfarm wage and salary jobs released Dec. 21 by the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services (ODJFS). 

Full Report