Trainwreck: Two years and a day after a train derailment spilled toxic chemicals in East Palestine, Ohio, two U.S. Congress members from Ohio are reintroducing bipartisan legislation that they hope will improve safety and prevent future accidents, Sabrina Eaton writes. The “Reducing Accidents in Locomotives (RAIL) Act” that Akron Democratic Rep. Emilia Sykes is introducing with Salem Republican Rep. Michael Rulli would increase inspections on all trains, strengthen safety placard requirements to help emergency responders identify hazardous materials, and increase maximum penalties for violations of rail safety regulations, among other measures.

By decree: U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno wants the U.S. Department of Justice to re-examine consent decrees that it has reached over the years to reform police practices in Cleveland and other cities, Eaton reports. The freshman Westlake Republican is sending a letter to newly confirmed Attorney General Pam Bondi that seeks her views on voluntarily dismissing consent decrees with state and local governments, citing a U.S. Supreme Court precedent on enforcement of consent decrees. “Law enforcement offices need to be able to do their jobs and enforce the law without politicians holding them back,” said a statement from Moreno.

The download dilemma: Ohio’s voter registration rolls can now be downloaded by county whenever the mood strikes. These easy access spreadsheets are part of Secretary of State Frank LaRose’s ongoing effort to make elections more transparent. But as Anna Staver reports, it’s also important to make sure abusers can’t use this data to find their victims.

Trump effect: The University of Akron canceled a forum held every year during Black History Month since 1997, due to it conflicting with President Donald Trump’s order banning diversity, equity and inclusion. The Rethinking Race Forum sought to engage the community with social justice, diversity and DEI topics, Megan Becka reports. Other Black History Month events on campus, such as a gospel choir performing with the city’s symphony, will continue.

No competition: A bipartisan bill in the Ohio Senate would prohibit noncompete contracts for employees, Ohio Capital Journal’s Nick Evans reports. A federal attempt at banning noncompetes last spring was blocked by courts.

Family business: Vice President JD Vance’s half-brother, Cory Bowman, has pulled petitions to run in this year’s Cincinnati mayor’s race, report Sharon Coolidge and Victoria Moorwood of the Cincinnati Enquirer. Bowman, who co-owns a coffeeshop and is founder/pastor of a nondenominational Christian church, would be the first Republican candidate for Cincinnati mayor since 2009. Seven others have pulled petitions to run for mayor, including Mayor Aftab Pureval, a Democrat.

Full Disclosure

Five things we learned from the Feb. 20, 2024, financial disclosure of Democratic state Rep. Ismail Mohamed of Columbus.

1. Mohamed reported two sources of income for 2023: From his state House position, from which he earned $74,337, and his work as an attorney, from which he earned between $50,000 to $99,999

2. He has a license to practice law in Ohio.

3. At any time in 2023, he owed over $1,000 in a student loan from Ohio State University and to Chrysler Capital.

4. He reported receiving gifts from the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus and Congressional Black Caucus, Negev Foundation-Ohio-Israel AG Initiative and from Ohio Jewish Communities Inc.

5. He reported receiving just over $3,400 from both Ohio Jewish Communities Inc. and Negev Foundation/Ohio-Israel Ag and Clean Tech Initiative for a 2023 trip to Israel, which included costs of flights, entrance fees, hotels and ground transportation, and meals. He received a boxed lunch from the Franklin County Commissioners during a legislative round table.

On the Move

Former state Sen. Matt Dolan, a Chagrin Falls Republican, has been named CEO of Team NEO, the business and economic development organization for Northeast Ohio.

Juli Stephens has accepted a position as southeast regional director for U.S. Sen. Bernie Moreno’s office. Stephens, the wife of Republican state Rep. Jason Stephens of Lawrence County, previously worked as a field representative for ex-U.S. Reps. Brad Wenstrup and Bill Johnson.

Attorney General Dave Yost, a 2026 Republican candidate for Ohio governor, has been endorsed by former Ohio Secretary of State Ken Blackwell.

Ahead of Vivek Ramaswamy’s expected entry in the 2026 GOP gubernatorial race, he’s already gotten supportive tweets from Republican U.S. Sens. Rick Scott of Florida, Mike Lee of Utah, and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee.

JD Vance heads to Europe next week on his first foreign trip as vice-president, where the Cincinnati Republican will attend the AI Action Summit in France and the Munich Security Conference in Germany, The Washington Post reports.

Pamela Anson has been named president and CEO of the Better Business Bureau Serving Greater Cleveland, effective mid-February. Anson, who currently serves as BBB Cleveland’s director of brand outreach, will succeed Sue McConnell, who is retiring after 44 years with the business community’s self-regulation group.

Birthdays 

Former state Rep. Janine Boyd

Straight from the Source 

“That’s the odd thing about Mr. Thompson. He can remember everything that would help him mount a defense for why he should not comply, but he has feigned ignorance on anything that would point to the whereabouts of the gold.”

U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley at the hearing of Thomas “Tommy” Thompson, 72, who was paid by central Ohio investors to find shipwrecked golden treasure. He found it, but refused to give up his loot, which has left him in jail since 2015, as The Columbus Dispatch reports.

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