A bipartisan group of political allies from Ohio’s State Senate and House of Representatives were the featured speakers at a special meeting for Cleveland-area BLET members at National Division headquarters on June 12.
Sponsored by the BLET’s Ohio State Legislative Board, the meeting brought together several active and retired members of BLET Division 3 and Division 607 in Cleveland, along with state political leaders who supported Ohio’s recently-signed two-person crew bill. On March 31, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed Ohio House Bill 23 into law, which includes numerous safety improvements in response to Norfolk Southern’s February 3 derailment and toxic chemical spill in East Palestine. The law includes a mandate for two-person crews and requires wayside defect detectors to be installed every 10-15 miles along mainline tracks in the state, among other safety items.
BLET Ohio State Legislative Board Chairman John Esterly said: “Ohio is the first and only state with requirements for wayside detectors, and we need to see this spread to other states throughout America. I thank our friends and allies in the Ohio Statehouse who supported this legislation, especially those who attended our meeting in Cleveland on June 12.”
Those friends and allies were: State Representative Bride Rose Sweeney (D-14); Rep. Tom Patton for Ohio House (R-7); Rep. Sean P. Brennan for Ohio (D-4); Rep. Steve Demetriou (R-35); Rep. Joe Miller for Ohio (D-53); Sen. Nickie J. Antonio (D-23); and Sen. Kent Smith (D-21). They spoke about why they supported the rail safety measure, and engaged in lengthy question and answer sessions with the BLET members in attendance regarding ways to further improve railroad safety throughout the state.
Following presentations by the elected officials, National President Eddie Hall spoke to the members of Division 607 who held their Division meeting at National Division headquarters that afternoon.