Smith Statement on Committee Assignments

Today, state Senator Kent Smith (D-Euclid) issued the following statement regarding his appointments to the Senate Energy and Public Utilities, Financial Institutions and Technology, Judiciary, Rules and Reference, Transportation, and Ways and Means Committees:

“I learned early in my Ohio General Assembly career that the heavy lifting as a State Legislator occurs in the Committee Room. The challenge to Democrats serving in the Ohio Senate is that we sit on so many committees because there are so few of us. Ohio is not a 79% Republican state, yet that is the ratio of Republicans in the Ohio SenateOhio Senators. Therefore, the seven Democratic State Senators have to do double and triple duty — especially in the Committee Room. But we know the challenge, and I, for one, am up to the task because the stakes are too high to not work really hard for the residents of the 21st District and the rest of Ohio.”

As a former state Representative, Senator Smith served as the Ranking Member on House Public Utilities (134th and 133rd GA). He also served on Financial Institutions, Housing, and Urban Development (132nd GA) which became Financial Institutions (133rd GA). Senator Smith is the only Democrat on Financial Institutions and Technology as well as Ways and Means Committees. His experience with these committees is welcomed by the Senate.

In the 135th General Assembly, Senator Smith will serve as the Ranking Member for the Energy and Public Utilities, Financial Institutions and Technology, and Ways and Means Committees. To learn more about Ohio’s Senate committees, click here.