The Ohio Senate is handing the microphone to Cleveland residents to share their thoughts on housing at an upcoming “field hearing” on Jan. 11.
Residents can participate by “testifying” in person or submitting written testimony related to their experience with housing. Cleveland-area housing experts are also expected to testify.
Residents can submit testimony by email until Tuesday, Jan. 9. The meeting is open to the public and will take place on Jan. 11 at 10 a.m. at the Cleveland Foundation (6601 Euclid Ave, Cleveland, OH 44103). The meeting will also be live-streamed at www.ohiochannel.org.
Home ownership in Ohio fell below the national average (66%) for the first time in 2022, according to a 2023 housing report. In Northeast Ohio, residents face challenges such as high exposure to lead paint, lack of housing for renters who make lower wages and deep racial disparities that overwhelmingly affect Black residents.
The new committee on housing was created last year and is led by Sen. Michele Reynolds. The committee hosted its first meeting with residents in Cincinnati and is traveling through Ohio to learn about the unique housing challenges across the state.
How do I prepare my testimony?
Residents can choose how they want to give their testimony–written or spoken–but all spoken testimony must be accompanied by a “witness slip,” which is a form with basic information about you. That information is all public record.
Spoken testimony is limited to five minutes, but written testimony can be longer. Residents who do not wish to speak publicly during the meeting may choose to submit only written testimony. This post was updated to reflect a clarification from the Ohio Senate that it has set a guideline of five minutes for testimony.
Signal Cleveland created a fillable PDF version of the witness slip.
To use our version: 1) Fill out the PDF below, including written testimony on the second page 2) download and save the completed version to your desktop and 3) email it as an attachment to chloe.green@ohiosenate.gov by Tuesday, Jan. 9 at 5 p.m.
Need help submitting your testimony? Contact Dakotah Kennedy at dakotah@signalcleveland.org.
What should I talk about?
Typically, residents who give testimony to state lawmakers speak for or against a specific piece of legislation. During this meeting, residents can choose to speak about anything related to housing in Cleveland. For example, people can share their observations and opinions about the types of issues they are seeing in their neighborhoods or about how an issue affects them.
Residents speaking about a specific piece of legislation should mark “proponent” or “opponent” on the witness slip.
Where do I submit my testimony?
All testimony must be submitted no later than Tuesday, Jan. 9, at 5 p.m. Testimony–written or spoken–must be accompanied by a witness slip.
Witness slips and testimony must be filled out and emailed to Chloe Green, legislative aide for Sen. Reynolds, at chloe.green@ohiosenate.gov.
