House District 11: Stephanie Howse marches toward reelection
By Andrew Gilkey
A troop of young girls marches down the streets of southeast Cleveland passing out flyers and candy to people on the streets. The wear bright yellow shirts with big black block letters spelling out “Rep. Howse, Passion for the People, Commitment to Serve.” A parade of older voters follows the young girls down the street, some pushing strollers, some driving black Lincoln SUVs with the same slogan across the doors. Among this march of excited campaigners is Ohio Rep. Stephanie Howse herself, professionally garbed in a polka-dot dress.
“Heyyyy beautiful people,” Howse says in a singsong voice. From there she launches into an impromptu speech about her campaign and why it’s important to register to vote in the upcoming election. As she speaks, Howse swings her key back and forth and uses distinct hand gestures to highlight the important parts of her speech. She gives this energetic speech against a pair of modest ranch homes under Cleveland’s ever-present overcast sky.
Howse is up for reelection this year to the seat she now holds in the Ohio State House of Representatives: that of the 11th District. The Democratic Party nominee, she comes from the part of Cleveland known as Ward 7 at City Hall. In the Ohio Statehouse, however, it is part of the 11th House District, which includes parts of the Cleveland’s East and South sides, plus Garfield Heights and Newburgh.
Howse earned her undergraduate degree in civil environmental engineering from Florida A&M University and a master’s in environmental studies from Cleveland State. She was first elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 2014. Her work in her first term centered around three main topics: jobs, healthcare and education, according to statements on her campaign page.
The House committees she has been part of are Energy and Natural Resources, Community and Family Advancement, Transportation and Infrastructure.
On Aug. 10, Howse won the Civility Award in state government from the National Institute of Civil Discourse, according to the Ohio House website. Howse is the co-chair of the NICD and has held many bipartisan conferences to promote civility in politics.
She also started Footprints, a leadership and self-care program for young girls ages 9–17 in the Cleveland area, according to the House website
Howse’s work in local job creation has been a hotly debated topic. The Ohio Chamber of Commerce gave Howse a 50 percent positive rating on her voting history. This rating does not take into account SB 38, a bill that puts a salary cap on state attorneys, due to her not participating in the voting processes for that bill.
The bills that Howse did support that the Chamber of Commerce considers positive are HB 387, HB 207, and SB 208. House Bill 387 allowed small business to settle business disputes of a low dollar amount in lesser courts. Unlike in previous years, businesses had to sue in higher and more expensive courts. This not only expedites the process, but allows for lower court and attorney fees. With HB 207, Howse and her fellow representatives created a “common sense” approach to worker’s compensation. The bill provides compensation for employees who are injured in motor vehicle accidents that are not the fault of the business. This bill spares businesses from paying compensation for problems not caused by negligence on the business’ part. Howse’s support of Senate Bill 208 changed the technicalities of filling joint income and business taxes, creating an easier-to-understand tax system.
In 2014, while campaigning for her first election, Howse said, “I will work to ensure Ohioans have access to quality and affordable healthcare.” Howse’s healthcare polices revolve around the preservation of Medicaid, identifying and fixing the “cost drivers,” as well as support for caregivers and preventive health care. During her first term, Howse advocated for Medicaid to keep its current budget, which is very important for the aging population of Ohio.
In a telephone interview with a student reporter, Howse said she is doing further research into what drives the cost of care on both the private and public side of the medical industry. She believes that the expenses of medical care are too high, thus putting further economic pressure on caregivers. Though many of her polices in regards to healthcare are about present issues, her primary focus, she said, is preventive healthcare.
She said she believes in “having the conversation with people in matters of preventive measures. It comes down to staying healthy.”
Howse sponsored House Bill 158, which changed the state laws referring to people with mental disabilities from “mentally retarded” to “intellectually handicapped.” This may not seem like a big deal to most people but Elizabeth Stiles, a political science professor at John Carroll University with expertise in policy evaluation, said HB 158 “has a huge impact for the people affected by them (intellectual handicaps). In one sense, this is just a matter of updating the language, but the old language is now hurtful, anachronistic and even sounds insulting.”
According to her website, the area Howse has put the most work into is education policies that focus on high-school students and their preparedness for the adult world. The major bill she introduced was the STEM Private-Public Partnership bill, which allows educators and local businesses in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math that are in high demand to collaborate and create a curriculum. By this method, she looking to boost the résumés of students and help them earn high-paying jobs as well as increasing job opportunities for communities.
“In urban and rural Ohio, there are plenty of well-paying careers, but there are people there without experience. We want people to have real work options in the place they call home,” Howse said in the interview.
Though the STEM Private-Public Partnership bill could have many positive effects, there will be some resistance from taxpayers. Stiles explained, “It’s difficult for taxpayers to see putting out this money when they don’t see the benefits right away. And when the benefits do come, if it has been awhile since the bill was passed, they may not be able to connect the bill to the benefits because so much time has elapsed so it seems like the bill didn’t do anything even if it did.”
Paired with the STEM bill, Howse also introduced the Youth Initiative Program. The program partners with local business who need to fill vacant positions during the busy season and connects them with local students. This helps children to gain work experience, which is crucial for students looking to enter the workforce after high school and provide for their families later on.
As the parade rolls down the street, it passes crowds of people on the sidewalk. The elderly sit on the edge of the road in sawdust-covered camping chairs. Younger observers stand up and hold out pillowcases, grocery bags and cupped palms for the candy being handed out by the paraders. A teenage boy turns, holds a yellow sticker up to the camera and smiles. At the tail end of the procession is a cheerleading team. The girls wave their gold pom-poms and scan the crowd with a cheery expression on their faces. Their coach bounces from one side of the road to another, shaking hands and saying, “How you doing?” to every crowd member. Then, just as fast as it arrived, the parade leaves as Stephanie Howse marches onward.
