Ohio lawmakers break for 'summer recess' until November

Ohio Statehouse spring

Ohio lawmakers have left town for the summer and won't be back in session until November.

(Jackie Borchardt, cleveland.com)

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Legislators worked late into the night last week to pass dozens of bills before breaking for "summer recess."

That break extends into fall on the legislative calendar.

That doesn't mean legislators will spend the next four or five months lying on a beach somewhere, but the long break does raise eyebrows from government watchdog groups and citizens.

"The work of the people should take precedence if in fact you're a full-time legislature," Catherine Turcer of Common Cause Ohio said. "I worry when the next election takes so much precedence over the will of the people."

Late-night lawmaking before break

The Ohio House is next scheduled to meet Nov. 15. The Senate plans to return Sept. 27.

Both chambers had "if needed" session dates scheduled for June, which nudged lawmakers to wrap up their business before the end of the month with marathon sessions last week.

Nearly 50 bills were passed last week and will be sent to Gov. John Kasich for his signature. Dozens more passed one chamber but not the other.

Turcer said having a deadline can be a good thing.

When lawmakers return, they'll be under the gun to approve bills before the end of the two-year session. Any bills pending at the end of the year die and must start the process over again next year. New legislation won't have time to go through the usual committee process unless leaders make it a priority.

Turcer said last week's flurry of legislating was preferable to waiting until the lame duck session period after lawmakers return in November.

Full-time benefits, part-time schedule

Ohio state lawmakers make $60,584 a year, plus a bonus, if they hold leadership positions, well above the median Ohio household income of $49,308 in 2014. Lawmakers can participate in state retirement and health insurance plans, receive mileage reimbursements for travel to Columbus and are provided office space and paid staff members here.

The National Conference of State Legislatures classifies Ohio as full-time "light." The Ohio legislature is well-paid and has a large staff, organization notes, but doesn't meet as often as full-time states New York and California.

Turcer said if lawmakers want to meet on a part-time schedule, they should be paid part-time salaries and benefits.

"Clearly they can get everything they need to have done in November and December, but if they're going to do that, then why not declare themselves a part-time legislature?" Turcer said.

The status is not changing anytime soon, legislative leaders said. House Speaker Cliff Rosenberger values the time legislators spend in their districts and the fact that staff members in Columbus can take calls from constituents year-round, spokesman Brad Miller said.

"The term summer recess really dose just mean a recess from session and committee," Miller said. "The job might be part-time in the sense that members still have their jobs back home but not in the sense that the work itself is part time."

What do lawmakers do during summer recess?

Lawmakers spend time in their home districts and meet with constituents. They return to their other jobs, as attorneys, business owners or whatever else.

Some lawmakers work on bills they want passed easily when they return, meeting with interested parties and working with nonpartisan legislative staffers on bill language. During previous summers, committees traveled around the state to study subjects such as higher education and algae blooms in Lake Erie.

"Meeting with constituents and working on the issues affecting their districts is where a state senator's job starts and where most of their work is done year round, regardless of whether the legislature is meeting in Columbus," Senate President Keith Faber said in a statement.

So are they really on vacation?

Faber said most legislators spend more than 40 hours per week on legislative work and regularly travel to Columbus during the summer.

Micah Derry, state director of conservative advocacy group Americans for Prosperity, said summer recess is when the real work of lawmakers is taking place.

"People's frustration with the legislature is not in the time they spend in Cap Square or how many laws they pass but whether they are accurately representing their constituents," Derry said. "The job not just to make laws but to represent constituents -- the process depends on citizens to engage with their legislators."