Ohio University Student Senate passed a bill Wednesday demanding stricter regulations for accessing and purchasing firearms in the state of Ohio.
One of the bill's requests is for the State of Ohio to ban semi-automatic assault weapons like the AR-15. It also urges Ohio representatives to expand the Brady background check system to include all gun sales and “eliminate loopholes allowing felons, domestic abusers and fugitives to purchase guns.”
“I don’t think this comes down to an issue of rights. It comes down to protection of individuals,” Senator At-Large Sam Miller, a secondary sponsor of the bill, said.
Senate also passed a bill that addresses the lack of broadband access across Southeast Ohio. The bill asks the state legislature for funding for “internet infrastructure expansion” in more than 11 counties, including Athens.
Liz Shaw, chair of the Citizens Connectivity Committee, gave a presentation discussing the difficulties that lack of broadband access has on Appalachian Ohio.
“In terms of broadband, Appalachian Ohio is one of the worst regions in the United States,” Shaw said. “Cell phone reception is spotty, landlines are a nightmare … There’s dead zones all over our county and in this part of the state.”
Accompanying Shaw were two high school students from surrounding districts. Herron Linscott, a sophomore at Federal Hocking High School, said that many of her classmates do not have Wi-Fi connections at home.
“Appalachian Ohio has stereotypically been one of the underrepresented areas of our country. We are a statistic to the government,” Linscott said. “If we want to succeed, if we want to compete with our growing nation, we have to be given as equal a chance as people in urban areas.”
Senate passed two more resolutions, one that will print 500 informational pamphlets about reproductive health and another appointing members to the Bobcat Medal Committee.
