Ohio Governor Mike DeWine recently participated in a virtual discussion, hosted by the Clermont Chamber of Commerce, and talked about the economic recovery and other topics brought forth by community members.
“Clermont to Columbus: A Discussion with Governor Mike DeWine,” was held on Oct. 12 at 3:45 p.m.
The chamber invite described the event as, “Join us for a virtual discussion with Ohio Governor Mike DeWine to discuss the economic recovery and what the business community can expect in the coming months from Columbus.”
The event was part of the chamber’s Government Affairs Series and was sponsored by AT&T.
Some 90 people participated in the virtual discussion, which was moderated by Clermont Chamber of Commerce Director of Government Affairs Andrew McAfee, Great Oaks President/CEO Harry Snyder, and University of Cincinnati Clermont College Dean Jeffrey Bauer.
DeWine spoke for about 45 minutes and answered a variety of questions including topics such as:
– How can Ohio retain and attract qualified workforce members?
DeWine said that he supports businesses working with schools.
“Part of what our goal has to be is to let kids know what all the options they have are. Many times, kids don’t know what options are out there for them; college is one, but there are many options out there that don’t involve college,” he said.
He also encouraged leaders to give young people the opportunity to pursue their passion.
– What are infrastructure priorities for Ohio?
DeWine said that he was proud that he was able to convince the State Legislature to raise the gasoline tax, which has provided revenue to make infrastructure improvements.
“The first thing I got when I took office was a briefing from the Ohio
Department of Transportation, and it was a disaster as to where we were going; we were going downhill, and we didn’t even have enough money to keep up our roads, let alone build any new ones or do anything that we all wanted to do,” he said.
DeWine said that Ohio has also invested in water, through its H2Ohio program.
“It’s important to have water in Ohio, so we’ve made that investment,” he said.
DeWine also said that it is his goal to have broadband in every part of Ohio.
He’s also encouraging investment in brownfield remediation.
– The supply chain is crumpling; what is the state doing to fix these
problems?
DeWine said that there is a lot more support for the idea of, “Let’s produce [goods and products] here, and to make things in Ohio or the United States of America.”
He added, “We’re getting a valuable lesson; we rely too much on China?
What is your position on vaccine mandates and businesses being able to operate as they see fit?
DeWine said that he thinks the government should stay out of business.
“I think the government should not be telling businesses to require a vaccine, and I don’t think the government should be telling them they can’t require a
vaccine,” he said.
– What is your biggest setback or regret?
While DeWine did not answer this question directly, noting that he was not trying to be evasive, he did use this time to talk about the COVID-19 pandemic.
He said, “When people ask what our ticket out of this is, it’s pretty simple, we need to get everyone vaccinated.”
What is Ohio doing to support electric vehicle infrastructure throughout the state?
DeWine responded, “Our goal is to be a friendly state to people who have Evs.”
He noted grant funding is being used to help pay for this infrastructure, and
that businesses will help lead the way, too.
“There’s going to become enough electric cars out there that the private sector is going to say yeah, that’s how we kick in,” he said.
To view the whole virtual event, visit the chamber’s recording of the discussion HERE.
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