Senate Bill 1, a proposal to overhaul Ohio’s higher education system, continues to make its way through the Ohio Statehouse after state senators passed the bill Wednesday.

This comes after the legislation, which proposes a host of changes such as banning faculty’s right to strike and requiring professors demonstrate the so-called “intellectual diversity” of ideas, was voted out of the Senate Higher Education Committee earlier that same day. 

It was a tight turnaround for the committee’s members, who met Wednesday morning after hearing about 8 1/2 hours of testimony from more than 200 opponents of the bill late into Tuesday.

During that time, Democratic members proposed several amendments to the bill, including eliminating the provision on striking. They also asked that the bill make universities, not lawmakers, the ones responsible for creating mandatory civics courses that would become a new graduation requirement. 

Republican members rejected all of the Democrats’ proposals during that meeting. This prompted State Sen. Catherine Ingram, D-Cincinnati, to ask other committee members if they “had read these amendments at all.” 

The bill now moves to the Ohio House for consideration and would still need the approval Gov. Mike DeWine if it passes there.

Senate Bill 1 still doesn’t offer explicit DEI definition 

One of the biggest criticisms of Senate Bill 1 is that it would eliminate all diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, work, while never explicitly defining what constitutes DEI efforts in Ohio.

Critics say the bill’s language is vague. Because of that, they claim, entire departments or programs could close. 

Democrats proposed an amendment that would have created a specific carve out to allow support programs for veterans and/or disabled students that may exist under that DEI umbrella to continue. That amendment was also rejected.  

Late into the hearing Tuesday night, State Sen. Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland, acknowledged the confusion around the definition of DEI.    

“My answer to that would be, ‘Well, I didn’t make the term up,’” he said. “Let’s ask Ohio State [University], who spends $14 million a year on DEI. They must know what it is, [and] other universities in our state system as well.”  

Officials at Ohio State, which has a budget of about $10 billion, have already pushed back at that figure. A spokesperson told Signal Ohio earlier this month that the number was “produced without the university’s input or guidance.” 

Cirino, who wrote the bill, made that remark during the testimony of the Buckeye Institute’s Greg Lawson. His testimony marked one of the few times Republicans were highly engaged during the 8 1/2-hour meeting. 

This story was updated Wednesday afternoon to reflect the passing of Senate Bill 1.

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