COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio legislators are preparing to introduce bills to rejoin the Midwest Interstate Passenger Rail Commission, an organization the state left in 2013, Statehouse News Bureau reports.
State Rep. Mike Skindell (D-Lakewood) said the House version of the bill will be introduced in the next month or so, and several Republican legislators will sign on. A Senate version also has bipartisan support, he said, but is not as far along.
For a $25,000 annual fee, the state would regain membership in an organization that includes Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, North Dakota, and Wisconsin. The state withdraw under former Republican Gov. John Kashich, who turned down $400 million in federal grants for Amtrak service between Cleveland and Cincinnati. That’s one of several routes the state has started the process to revive under current Republican Gov. Mike DeWine — which is why Skindell needs to rejoin.
“Ohio has claimed that without being part of the commission, they get the same information,” Skindell told the news bureau. “However, they’re not part of the discussions when the Midwestern states are discussing, planning passenger rail development, going after federal rail dollars. Ohio is just not part of that.”
